PPL Corporation : Reading, writing and arithmetic with a twist

Imagine creating your own public service announcement about wise energy use, raising trout in your classroom or doing something about abandoned mine drainage. 

These projects and others will become reality for students in six schools in the Lehigh Valley and northeast Pennsylvania because of their selection as recipients of 2011-12 Empowering Educators grants from PPL Corporation. Grant awards totaled $11,200.

"We're always impressed by the variety and quality of the grant applications we receive," said Meg Welker, manager of education and public outreach for PPL. "As an energy company that values environmental stewardship, we're proud to be able to help teachers bring a creative, hands-on focus to energy and the environment."

Grant recipients include:

Newcomer Academy, Allentown, Pa. (Allentown School District): $2,000 to help students in grades 9-12 create a public service announcement about how electricity is generated, how to save energy and why energy conservation is important. Students will visit the Da Vinci Science Center to learn about energy conservation and the Lutron Experience Center to learn about energy-efficient products and the design process.

Saucon Valley High School, Hellertown, Pa. (Saucon Valley School District): $2,000 toward the development of the Saucon Valley Environmental Education Center on the school district property. A three-phase development plan is proposed with the first phase set to include site preparation, development of trails and a teaching pavilion including a bird blind, butterfly garden and solar study area on 20 acres near the school athletic fields. Multi-disciplinary environmental education opportunities will be available to students and the community.

Union Terrace Elementary School, Allentown, Pa. (Allentown School District): $1,700 to help second-grade students learn about conservation, the environment and how changes in the environment affect animals. The unit of study will encourage student discussion on conservation problems and the impact of human activity on our planet, as well as create a greater understanding for the environment and how it needs to be protected. Students will showcase their learning about conservation through digital stories to be displayed for the school community.

Solomon Plains Elementary, Plains, Pa. (Wilkes-Barre Area School District): $2,000 to build two mobile solar-powered kilns to reclaim, process, recover, dry, recycle, and reuse abandoned mine drainage from area streams that have historically polluted the Wyoming Valley. Solomon students and their teachers, working with Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned Mine Drainage staff, will conduct iron oxide activities and demonstrations at Solomon and the other elementary schools in the Wilkes-Barre area.

Northwest Area Intermediate School, Shickshinny, Pa. (Northwest Area School District): $1,500 for Trout in the Classroom, an interdisciplinary program that fosters awareness and knowledge of coldwater conservation, management, and recreation programs. Ninety sixth-grade students will be introduced to environmental conservation education by raising brook trout from eggs to fingerlings and releasing them into Big Fishing Creek, a trout stream in Columbia County.

EverGreen Elementary School, Lake Ariel, Pa. (Western Wayne School District): $2,000 toward a digital showcase project. The goal is to design an interactive walking tour for students and the general public that will highlight the school's "green" and energy-saving features. The funding will support the purchase of touch screen monitors that will showcase lighting, wastewater treatment, heating and cooling, construction and maintenance, and storm water retention. The final station will focus on future directions of the building that could include adding solar or wind energy capacity. 

The grants are in addition to $1.7 million in PPL corporate contributions for educational institutions and programs during 2011. The contributions went to high schools, trade schools, colleges and universities, as well as nonprofit groups that support scholarships, educational improvement programs and early childhood education.

A team of PPL employees, environmental professionals and educators chose the winning projects. PPL sponsors the Empowering Educators Grants program as part of an initiative to educate the public about energy resources and the environment.

There were 31 applications received for the current round of grants. For more information, visit and select Environment and Community, then Our Education Programs.