SWEP provides a variety of live and virtual water education programming for students and teachers

SOLANO COUNTY, CA (MPG) – Water conservation is once again the order of the day as California’s perennial drought reemerges from its brief hiatus. The Cities of Vacaville, Fairï¬eld, Suisun City, Vallejo, Benicia, and the Fairï¬eld-Suisun Sewer District and Solano Irrigation District are providing funding for the School Water Education Program (SWEP). SWEP provides K-12 teachers and their classrooms a fresh and exciting interactive live-lesson about our local water resources. Lessons are custom tailored to the needs of each classroom, and include fun visuals, engaging educators and lively pacing to pull students into the science of our County’s water systems. The lesson highlights the roll each student has in helping to conserve and maintain a healthy water supply. “I definitely think the kids were motivated by the thought of their actions affecting the environment (and) …getting involved in a career in science,” reports Ayesha Faust, a Markham Elementary 5th Grade Teacher from Vacaville.  Stacia Symanski, a 3rd Grade teacher from Cordelia Hills Elementary in Fairfield adds “(SWEP lessons) supported the curriculum we’re working on, …(helping students to) understand that water and pollutants go into the ground and waterways.”

SWEP provides a variety of live and virtual water education programming for students and teachers, including intensive training workshops that provide teachers with innovative water science education resources and support. This year, program offerings also include a spring virtual, live-streamed field trip for younger students to the Dunnell Nature Center in Fairfield. All SWEP activities are free to Solano County teachers and their classes, and lessons link to other County environmental programs like Earth Day, Coastal Cleanup Day and World Environment Day. Solano RCD Education Program Director Marianne Butler says “There’s still time to take advantage of SWEP offerings this year.  Teachers can go to our website or give me a call at (707) 678-1655 to get started.” Butler is excited to point out that “We have an additional new opportunity for teachers. Our Solano Water Institute Teacher Training is open for registration on our website. This is a multi-day, fieldtrip-based institute offering innovative, locally relevant information on our region's complex water resources and highlights the preservation of Solano County open spaces.” The first session of the Solano Water Institute will be held in August 2021.

Solano RCD is a non-regulatory special district to the state of California that works to protect, restore, and enhance Solano County watersheds through its diverse education, restoration, and partnership initiatives. Learn more at solanorcd.org or by calling (707) 678-1655.