AS WE ENROLL OUR 5TH COHORT IN SEPTEMBER, PLEASE JOIN US IN CELEBRATING FIVE YEARS OF THE CHESAPEAKE WATERSHED SEMESTER!
Over the past five years, the CWS program has traveled more than 5,000 miles, cultivated relationships with more than 25 different program partners, graduated 47 alumni, and persevered through the trials and tribulations of the pandemic.
The program’s achievements are in large part due to the educational power of place-based environmental education—an education we believe will support the next generation of environmental leaders on the Chesapeake and beyond. It is hard to quantify the learning that occurs during a CWS semester. The outcomes are best described by students and their families.
CWS has been the most unique program I have ever taken part in.
The memories and experiences I’ve collected along the way are priceless. From petting cows to running down beaches to collecting water samples from abandoned mines– I would not have done this semester any other way. CWS has taught me numerous lessons and qualities that most
people will never get during their high school experience.
— Allie Fitzgerald, CWS4 F’22 (pictured above)
CWS has honestly helped me see the world and have an appreciation for the smaller things because with the right perspective anything small can seem big. And that’s what CWS was for me. What I thought would be a fun thing to do with friends over the school year ended up shifting the way I look at the entire world.”
— Liam Dickey, CWS4 F’22 (pictured above)
The kinds of experiences and memories that Liam and Allie so wonderfully speak about have in part been made possible by a small but mighty crew of philanthropic champions who have helped spread the word about CWS and raised funds to support the growth of the program. Thanks to the generosity of this group, we’ve been able to offer financial support to enrolled families and fund the day-to-day programming of the semester.
In celebration of our first successful five years, and to majorly augment the kinds of trips we can plan for CWS students, our goal this year is to raise $25,000 to purchase a set of 15 kayaks and a trailer.
Please consider making a donation to CWS and the many students to come who will benefit from this purchase!