Park for Every Classroom Program Expands Nationwide

In partnership with the National Park Service, Shelburne Farms expands program to engage eight national parks in equity-centered climate change education

We know education plays a vital role in addressing our climate crisis. When students are empowered to understand and engage in climate solutions, it can impact their choices over a lifetime. Now, we’re excited to announce that the Park for Every Classroom program is expanding nationwide with a pilot focused specifically on supporting equity-centered climate change education to accelerate positive change. 

This pilot is supported by the National Park Service’s Washington, D.C. Area Support Office and Interpretation, Education, and Visitor Services. Park for Every Classroom is co-facilitated by the National Park Service Stewardship Institute and Shelburne Farms.

“We’re grappling with some of the most pressing issues facing our country right now – the threat of climate change and its disproportionate effects on marginalized communities,” explains Park for Every Classroom director Joan Haley, Ed.D. “Parks have a vital role to play in mitigating the effects of climate change, examining our cultural and natural history, and building climate resilience through education.” Climate resilience is the capacity to adapt, learn, and engage in transformational change in the face of shifting climate circumstances. 

Since 2011, Park for Every Classroom has connected teachers and community partners with national park staff around the country, tapping into each place’s unique potential to enhance learning. In this pilot, teams will develop park-based educator professional development, so that teachers can create vibrant experiences that make the impacts of climate change tangible for students, illustrate complex issues, forge meaningful connections to place, and cultivate stewardship for land and community.

The parks selected for this pilot are: 

• African Burial Ground National Monument (NY)
• César E. Chávez National Monument (CA)
• Crater Lake National Park (OR)
• Cuyahoga Valley National Park (OH)
• Everglades National Park (FL)
• Great Smoky Mountains National Park (NC/TN)
• Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park (HI)
• Saguaro National Park (AZ)

Parks were selected based on their commitment to and enthusiasm for developing educational programming centered on climate resiliency and social justice that will benefit their communities. Over the next year, each park will work with community partners and educators to form a team, then create and implement professional development opportunities for educators, with support from a PEC community of practice and workshops. 

Shelburne Farms and the National Park Service have been close partners for more than two decades, with a deep and shared commitment to place-based education. Park for Every Classroom formed in 2011. Since then, 15 northeast parks have offered more than 40 professional development workshops for teachers, giving them the tools, resources, and support they need to create experiential, engaging curricula for thousands of students. Early evaluation reports positive impacts on student learning.

The PEC program directly addresses National Park Service priorities related to education, relevance, stewardship, and professional development, and complements the National Park Service Climate Change Response Program’s initiatives. Read more about the park service’s mission.