Environmental Action School Mini-Grant Program

  • The Environmental Action School Mini-Grant Program is co-sponsored by the Ann Arbor Public Schools and the City of Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability and Innovations.  It provides an opportunity for AAPS staff to apply for mini grants of up to $500 in support of projects that promote environmental action and sustainability at AAPS schools. Up to 40 awards are expected. Projects can include school gardens, recycling, outdoor educational field trips, classroom experiments, and anything else that you can create! 

    Projects can begin as soon as the Spring of 2023, with final reporting and expenditure of all funds by the end of the 2023/24 school year. 

    Projects should demonstrate an alignment with the AAPS Environmental Sustainability Framework approved by the Board of Education in December 2022. 

    • AWARD: up to $500 
    • APPLICATION DEADLINE: The 2023/24 grant application cycle is closed. Please check the webpage periodically to find out when the next application cycle opens.
    • PROJECT COMPLETION: No later than the end of the 2023/24 school year 

    If you have any questions regarding this opportunity, please email Marion Martyres, AmeriCorps Environmental Sustainability Researcher, at: martyresm@aaps.k12.mi.us.

     

    AAPS School Environmental Action Mini-Grant Awardees - SY 22/23

    Awardee

    Staff Role and Location

    Project Description

    Action and Advocacy Subcommittee, sponsored by Coert Ambrosino

    Freeman Environmental Youth Council 

    Environmentally-themed board game - purchasing classroom sets of “Solutions” to engage classes

    Service Subcommittee, sponsored by Coert Ambrosino

    Freeman Environmental Youth Council

    School Cafeteria Waste Audits - purchasing school cafeteria waste audit kits

    Leslie Baugh

    Teacher at Scarlett Middle School

    Composting - purchasing composting bins for school use

    Jessica Bell

    Teacher at A2 Steam

    Kayaking Huron River - to study local watershed

    Melissa Bender

    Teacher at Pioneer High School

    Recycling Binders and Notebooks - purchasing Zero Waste boxes from TerraCycle 

    Kristin Berger

    Teacher at King Elementary

    Nature Trails - purchasing mulch to cover school pathways accessible to students

    Rachael Bergren

    Teacher at Westerman Preschool

    Outdoor Learning - purchasing rain suits for students to use during data collection and on the nature playground

    Heidi Busch-Binetti

    Paraeducator at Slauson Middle School

    Reusing - purchasing stainless steel bottles for students

    Samantha Cucu

    Assistant Principal at Martin Luther King Elementary

    Outdoor StoryWalk - purchasing supplies for nature trail signs of pages from a children's book 

    Laura Dills

    Family and Community Resource Specialist at Westerman Preschool

    Outdoor Learning - installing a “Little Free Library” with garden boxes

    Cameron Dominick

    Teacher at Bach Elementary

    School Garden - purchasing garden supplies

    Sherry Grant, sponsored by Koren Clinkscale

    Garden Coordinator at Martin Luther King Elementary

    School Garden and Composting - purchasing garden supplies and worm factory composting bin

    Janet Heaton

    Teacher at Wines Elementary

    Recycling Supplies - using TerraCycle to collect hard to recycle classroom and office supplies

    Angela Hood

    Teacher at Pioneer High School

    Controlled Prairie Burn - partnering with Greenview Nature preserve to have controlled burn of Pioneer Prairie

    Tori Jovanovski and Tom Gibb-Randall

    Teachers at Ann Arbor Open School

    Public Transportation Education - purchasing public buses for school field trips and educating about AATA buses 

    Greenhouse Club, sponsored by Nicole Lemon

    Huron High School

    Gardening - refreshing and planting at the school’s community garden

    NHS and Interact Club, sponsored by Nicole Lemon

    Huron High School

    Reusing - hosting a book drive event for local community and students

    Cala Millis

    Teacher at Carpenter Elementary

    Water Conservation Learning - visiting Leslie Science Center and virtually touring a water treatment plant along with providing reusable water bottles

    Catherine Moutard

    Speech Language Pathologist at Bryant Elementary

    School Garden - purchasing supplies to re-establish foundations of school garden

    Michael Mychaliska, sponsored by Casey Warner

    Student at Skyline High School

    Native Plants Garden - installing native species planting and revitalizing school garden

    Laura Padalino

    Teacher at Scarlett Middle School

    Native Plant School Garden - purchasing native plants for garden

    Polly Salvato

    Teacher at Westerman Preschool and Family Center

    Recycled Art Projects -  using materials from Scrap Box

    Heather Schimmel

    Counselor at Skyline High School

    Nature Trail - developing a labyrinth on the mindfulness path walkway

    Neha Shah

    Teacher at Burns Park Elementary

    Garden Sensory Beds - to purchasing garden sensory beds supplies

    Eva Simon

    Teacher at Lakewood Elementary

    Native Species - purchasing materials for the life cycle of monarch butterflies and native plants for garden

    Nathan Smead

    Teacher at A2 Steam

    School Garden - purchasing native pollinator plants, blueberry, raspberry, and blackberry bushes for the school garden  

    Josh Tumolo

    Teacher at A2 Steam

    School Garden and Composting - purchasing soil for existing garden beds and adding a new compost station

    Daniel Verdugo

    Teacher at Huron High School

    Environmental Education Magazine - printing and distributing Ñ! magazine, an educational project

    Casey Warner

    Teacher at Skyline High School

    Helping and Protecting Trees - researching and planting mulch around damaged trees on school property

    Jenni Wilkening

    Teacher at Pioneer High School

    School Composting - creating a school composting system

    Jenni Wilkening

    Teacher at Pioneer High School

    School Garden - purchasing supplies for the plant club to restart the school garden

    Jean Wilson

    Teacher at A2 Steam

    Classroom Gardens - purchasing small cold frame for growing kale, mint, basil, and lavender

    Angie Wolney, sponsored by Julie Spiroff

    Garden Coordinator at Wines Elementary

    Rain Garden - purchasing supplies to create a rain garden with the 5th grade classes

    Carolyn Wood

    Teacher at Logan Elementary

    Classroom Garden - purchasing cold frames for 3rd-grade classes to use during their science unit 

    Erin Wright

    Teacher at Eberwhite Elementary

    Increasing Recycling and Composting - researching and incentivizing to reduce waste