Please take one minute to support No Child Left Inside funding for schools

Please take one minute to send the following template letter (personalize it if you can) to the email address in blue below! Thank you!

This is reprinted from one of the organizations working on passage of the NCLI bill. If your work doesn't allow you to lobby, work on this in the evening and send it on your own behalf, from your personal email. Thanks!




Thank you for your continued support of No Child Left Inside. It’s time to position ourselves for victory in 2010!

The U.S. Department of Education is working on the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (aka No Child Left Behind), and there are critical actions that must be taken now—by you and by all the members of your organization—to ensure that the bill includes provisions for pre-K through grade 12 environmental and outdoor education as outlined in the No Child Left Inside Act, sponsored by Senator Reed and Congressman Sarbanes.

The Department of Education is requesting comments on ESEA as they begin drafting new language for the bill. DOE officials have advised us that the comments they receive are being reviewed and carefully considered. It is essential that DOE hear from every one of us about the value of environmental and outdoor education to student success and teacher quality. Go now to ESEA.comments@ed.gov and let Secretary Duncan and the Obama Administration know that you support the inclusion of NCLI in the reauthorized ESEA. If you choose, you may cut and paste from the template below.

The NCLI Coalition has set a goal of having 50,000 emails sent to Secretary Duncan’s office support of the inclusion of NCLI in the reauthorized ESEA. We would like all NAAEE Affiliate organizations to send a request to all of your members to assist NAAEE in taking the lead in securing these 50,000 emails.

Make no mistake about it: a show of political muscle is absolutely critical…and we need to do it now. Please send your comments to ESEA.comments@ed.gov today, and ask your members to do the same by sending them the attached alert.

We have come a long way since the No Child Left Inside Coalition formed in 2006, but the real work is still ahead. We will succeed in ensuring that all of our nation’s students graduate from high school as environmentally literate students who are prepared for the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century…but it is going to take each and every one of us.

Thank you for all you do!

Shareen

Shareen Knowlton

Director of Education

Roger Williams Park Zoo

1000 Elmwood Avenue

Providence, RI 02907

(401) 785-3510 ext. 357

sknowlton@rwpzoo.org

www.rogerwilliamsparkzoo.org



The template message below may be of use to you in crafting your email. Remember to personalize it with information about why you are a member of the NAAEE Affiliate Network and support the work of the NCLI Coalition.

******TEMPLATE LETTER**********

Dear Secretary Duncan,

As you consider strategies to strengthen and amend ESEA, we urge you to consider the provisions laid out in the No Child Left Inside Act, which would expand opportunities for environmental and outdoor education in America’s schools. Comprehensive environmental education has been shown to improve student achievement across core subject areas and increase engagement in learning. Environmental education is critical to providing our students with the knowledge and skills to tackle complex problems, and succeed in a green economy. What’s more, getting kids outside and active promotes a healthy lifestyle that is essential to fighting obesity and reducing symptoms associated with attention deficit disorder, depression, and stress.



Leaving environmental education out of ESEA would be a missed opportunity to improve education while helping to systemically address the Obama administration’s other priorities of energy independence, a strengthened economy, and a healthier nation. We support the inclusion of NCLI in the reauthorized ESEA.



Sincerely,

XX YOUR NAME HERE XX

Update on statewide activity and conferences

A core group of Leave No Child INSIDE leaders from around the state have been participating in regular conference calls to solidify plans for a fall event that will attract media and celebrate Leave No Child INSIDE successes around the state, and spread our message to a broader audience. We continue our promising progress toward participation from Governor Strickland's office.

In preparation for this large-scale event, we are also hosting an invitation-only event in April so stakeholders from around Ohio can become more familiar with each other and our accomplishments (as well as the work left to do!) before the fall. We are currently vetting candidates for this session, since we need to keep the group small, but represent many areas of the state and the many sectors (health, education, parks & land, urban planning, etc.) which our work touches.

The Steering Teams in Central Ohio and Cincinnati recently met with a facilitator who will be helping us through this process. We are making great progress!

If you would like to be involved in this effort but are not receiving the announcements and conference call invitations, please reply to Alice Hohl at alice@alicehohl.com.

What do American Girl Dolls and our movement have in common?

At first glance, I would say nothing! Being a tomboy nature-lover, I can't say I'm terribly interested in dolls.
But it's amazing the places our message has gone!
Check out the new doll Lanie.
"Lanie is an energetic girl who discovers the world in her own backyard," says the Web site.
She loves to be outside, and although I would argue her "rugby dress" is not the most appropriate explorer outfit, I think we can still claim this as a victory!

http://store.americangirl.com/agshop/html/ProductPage.jsf/itemId/157623/itemType/TOY/webTemplateId/3/uniqueId/705/saleGroupId/1348

-Alice

Do you live or work in Northwest Ohio?

The Northwest Ohio Collaborative of LNCI is evolving and getting organized!!

Our new purpose statement:

A network of organizations and individuals promoting the well-being of every child and family through the discovery and exploration of the great outdoors.

We are developing a website that will be up and running soon..........stay tuned!!!

We will also be sending out a letter in February 2010 announcing our existence......................send your email if you would like to be included.

Our next organizational meeting is January 5th at 10am at the:
W.W Knight Nature Center
29530 White Road
Perrysburg, Oh 43551

Come find out how you can get involved!! Contact Mary for more info:
mary.warren@dnr.state.oh.us

NW OH LNCI Collaborative

We are trying to start a NW Ohio Leave No Child Inside Collaborative!! Join us!
We welcome your input and ideas.
Will have a gathering of all interested parties after Jan. 1st.
What can be more important than getting kids OUTSIDE!!!!

Stay tuned....................

Welcome to the Northwest Ohio Leave No Child Inside Collaborative!

We are just getting organized and would love to hear from those in Northwest Ohio who are interested in the Leave No Child Inside movement.
We are forming a Collaborative in NW Ohio so we can work on this movement in our own communities.
Please contact Mary Warren if you are interested in becoming a member!