EPA makes $100,000 grant to Neighborhood House of Milwaukee

Milwaukee, February 22, 2021 — Neighborhood House of Milwaukee (NH) was one of only two Wisconsin organizations to recently receive a grant from the Environmental Protection Agency. The program, Renew-Recycle- Reclaim (3R) aims to increase access to environmental science education and meaningful conservation activities for more than 1,000 low-income, urban youth of color, ages six to 19, who live in and around Milwaukee.

This educational grant has three goals:

1. Agricultural Education
2. Community Projects
3. Career Development

The program’s interns, guided by NH staff, will develop lesson plans and then instruct younger students in interactive educational sessions using established curricula. This instruction will be paired with stewardship activities such as building pollinator gardens, wetland species monitoring and bio-blitzes. This combination of lessons and activities gives students opportunities to put what they have learned into practice. Interns will also help lead field trips to NH’s Nature Centers as well as local and state parks and other nature centers.

Jeff Martinka, Neighborhood House of Milwaukee’s Executive Director said, “We deeply appreciate the EPA grant for our Environmental Education Program. This program is one of the oldest in the metro-Milwaukee area. Our goal is to increase environmental and science education along with meaningful conservation activities for more than 1,000 urban youth.

We also seek to inspire diverse, underserved, urban high school/college students to pursue post-secondary education and professions in natural resources careers by starting them out with paid internships and high

quality job training and work experiences. With the guidance and support of our staff, they in turn teach hundreds of younger children and serve as role models to encourage them to follow in their footsteps.”

Beginning with elementary school students the 3R program strives to inspire youth to pursue science and green careers, also adding to diversity in the natural resources field.

 ABOUT NEIGHBORHOOD HOUSE: 

The Neighborhood House of Milwaukee inspires discovery in children and families of all backgrounds, encouraging lifelong learning and confident leadership. Founded in 1945, as community center for urban youth, families and seniors, our programming expanded to include award winning early childcare, after school programs for youth and teens, adult education for refugees, parenting support and environmental education for families and school districts throughout Milwaukee’s metropolitan area. All who we serve have the same access to our diverse community of exceptional childcare and educational enrichment designed for long-term success.

For more information, please visit https://neighborhoodhousemke.org/

EPA Grant Announcement Website: https://www.epa.gov/education/environmental-education-grant-descriptions 

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.