Ponaganset H.S. teacher receives Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators

ROSS MCCURDY,  a teacher at Ponaganset High School in Scituate, received the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators given out by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at a recent White House ceremony. / COURTESY TWITTER
ROSS MCCURDY, a teacher at Ponaganset High School in Scituate, received the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators given out by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at a recent White House ceremony. / COURTESY TWITTER

SCITUATE – Ross McCurdy, a teacher at Ponaganset High School in Scituate, received the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators given out by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency at a recent White House ceremony.

McCurdy, who teaches students in grades 10 through 12, has been helping students connect with the environment during his 17 years as an environmental educator, according to the EPA.

At Ponaganset High School, he creates hands-on learning opportunities, encouraging students to apply what they learn in class to solve real-world problems, the EPA said in a news release.

“Ross McCurdy makes lessons relevant and fun,” Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office, said in a statement. “He encourages his students to be active participants in the challenge of improving the environment.”

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The award was given to 15 teachers nationwide at a ceremony at the White House last month that also honored 60 students in nine states with President’s Environmental Youth Awards.

“We are just as reliant upon our environment now as we were 10,000 years ago and recognizing our innate connection with the environment is essential to our quality of life,” McCurdy said. “We are fortunate that today’s students understand the importance of environmental awareness and are enthusiastic to learn what they can to protect our natural world. As teachers it is up to us to provide every opportunity for our students to take care of our environment both now and into the future.”

The Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators is administered by The White House Council on Environmental Quality in partnership with the EPA.

Teacher awardees receive a plaque and an award of up to $2,500 to further their professional development in environmental education. The teacher’s local education agency also receives an award of up to $2,500 to fund environmental educational activities and programs.

McCurdy’s students have done extensive research on renewable energy technologies and applied this knowledge to several projects, including creating a hydrogen fuel cell-powered Ford Model T, preparing and driving coast to coast in a turbo diesel pickup truck fueled by biodiesel, and forming a musical group that powers its musical equipment using a 1,000-watt hydrogen fuel cell with alternating current output.

McCurdy’s students also built a 16-foot-by-8-foot solar building on the school’s grounds, known as the solar shed.

Through McCurdy’s efforts, Ponaganset now offers science and alternative energy and sustainable systems classes. Sustainable concepts are now integrated into the broader school curriculum.

In addition to the EPA award, McCurdy received a $750 merit award from the Bartlett Award, established by the National Environmental Education Foundation in 2007.

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