As teachers go back to school, the Southwest Florida Water Management District would like to remind them about another important date to add to their calendar. The deadline to "apply for a Splash! mini-grant":/education/minigrants/ is Sept. 11, 2009.
The goal of the mini-grant program is to promote hands-on water resources education that teaches students about their local watersheds and the freshwater resources within them. Splash! mini-grants provide up to $5,000 per school on a reimbursement basis only and are available to public, private and homeschool teachers.
Grant funding is for classroom projects that focus on water quality, natural systems, water conservation, alternative water sources, flood protection or watersheds. Projects must be completed between Oct.16 and April 30, 2010.
Please log onto the District’s web site at www.WaterMatters.org/mini-grants to fill out the online application. Applicants may save the application, then go back and review or change portions before submitting it.
Last year the District awarded Splash! mini-grants to 209 educators. Past mini-grant projects include water quality monitoring of local lakes and rivers, outreach campaigns designed to promote awareness of water-conserving practices and environmental field trips. For additional ideas, please check out the featured grant projects section on the web page.
In addition to mini-grant funding, the District offers educators free teacher training workshops and free educational materials and online virtual watershed excursions. The publications are correlated to Florida’s Sunshine State Standards and can also be ordered on the District’s web site at www.WaterMatters.org/publications/.
Questions about the Splash! mini-grant application process or the District’s other in-school educational materials can be answered by Mary Margaret Hull, lead communications coordinator, at (800) 423-1476, ext. 4774.