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commission AWARDS EDUCATION GRANTS TO RE-ENGAGE YOUTH IN
FISHING, OUTDOORS |
| June 5 , 2006 |
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Youth sport fishing and
aquatic resource education programs received a boost today with the
awarding of $50,000 in grants from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat
Commission (PFBC).
Fourteen organizations
received
Sportfishing and Aquatic Resource Education Grants from the PFBC
to develop or expand programs that teach fishing skills or educate
participants about waterways and the organisms that live within them.
A total of 60 applications were received from sportsman's clubs,
school districts, community groups and county agencies, requesting
more than $225,000.
“Research shows that
good, well-structured education programs lead to kids increasing their
interest in fishing more, improving their skills, and helping them
build a greater sense of aquatic stewardship and outdoor ethics. The
volume and quality of grant applications we received shows there’s
clearly a demand for this type of programming in Pennsylvania. The
challenge is to provide the resources necessary to re-engage youth in
outdoor activities. Succeeding in this effort is critical to the
future of sportfishing and building a more environmentally connected
citizenry,” said PFBC Executive Director Doug Austen.
Grant recipients, amount
awarded and a brief program description follow:
 | Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Erie County,
“Fishing & Learning Youth (FLY)” - $2,025.
This program will work with community groups in
Erie serving inner city youth as well as Presque Isle State Park.
FLY will introduce youth to the art of fly fishing and aquatic
entomology while gaining knowledge and skills they can use in the
continuation of a life-long recreational activity.
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 | Seneca Valley Senior High School, Butler
County, “Aquatic Ecology Experience”
- $4,540. Funding will enable the school to purchase
equipment for an interdisciplinary program integrating aquatic
ecology and sportfishing. The fishing segment of the program is
designed to assist students with skills, techniques, fish biology
and etiquette and follows the curriculum of the Commission’s SMART
Angler Program. |
 | Jersey Shore Senior High School, Lycoming
County, “Boating/Fishing Club” - $4,979.
Funding will be used to equip a fishing and boating
club in the high school. The club will provide an opportunity for
high school students to develop skills in boating and fishing.
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 | Ned Smith Center for Nature and Art, Dauphin
County, “Aquatic Resource Stewardship Education Program” -
$3,490. The Ned Smith Center for Nature
and Art will use the funding to purchase equipment and materials
for the Aquatic Resource Stewardship Education Program; designed
to introduce K-12 students from the tri-county region to studies
of watersheds, stream and river ecosystems.
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 | PA Council of Trout Unlimited, Statewide,
“Trout in the Classroom & First Cast” - $5,000. The grant
provides PATU with funding to administer a grant program to
individual chapters. PATU is requiring 50% match, thereby
doubling the amount invested in these education efforts. Funds
will be used by local TU Chapters to establish six Trout in the
Classroom programs and six First Cast youth fishing clubs.
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 | Cowanesque Valley High School, Tioga County,
“Fishing for a Healthier Environment” - $3,085. This
program will purchase equipment and materials for a school-based
fishing and aquatic resource club. The club will also be involved
in public angler education programming offered in cooperation with
Hills Creek State Park. Equipment will also be used in a variety
of other educational programs as well as by the Tiadaghton Chapter
of Trout Unlimited. |
 | Indiana Area School District – Horace Mann
Elementary School, Indiana County, “Fishing and Boating for ALL” -
$2,881. Funding will enable the
district to equip a program designed to introduce and promote an
enjoyment of the outdoors for students of all ages within its
physical education curriculum. Boating and water safety will also
be taught. The program will provide hands-on experiences to learn
skills, understanding, knowledge of fishing and boating as well as
developing leadership skills. |
 | East Stroudsburg High School, Monroe County,
“Fishing the Delaware” - $1,700. The
school will use the funding to equip, develop and deliver an
interdisciplinary educational unit taught to approximately 150
students in grades 10-12. The unit will provide aquatic ecology,
sportfishing and boat handling training, while showing the
connection between aquatic resources and the recreational
opportunities provided. |
 | City of Erie School District – Irving
Elementary, Erie County, “Irving
Fishing Program” - $2,092. The district will design a program
to expose inner-city students in third through fifth grade to
fishing. These students will also participate in a weekly
science course offering interdisciplinary lessons integrating and
relating biology, chemistry, ecology, geology and math skills,
while building their reading and literacy skills. |
 | Schuylkill County Conservation District,
Schuylkill County, “Sweet Arrow Lake Park Fishing & Boating
Skills” - $5,000. Funding will enable
the County to purchase equipment for fishing and boating programs
at the Park. As a result, County staff will provide on-the-water
training on sport fishing. The County will also conduct boating
safety programming, using PFBC boating safety education programs,
as well as teaching paddling skills. Fishing and boating
equipment will also be made available through a loaner program at
the lake. |
 | Eastern Pennsylvania Coalition for Abandoned
Mine Reclamation, Luzerne County, “From
City Streets to Valley Streams: Exploring the Wyoming Valley’s
Aquatic Resources” - $3,300. Funding
will support a new cooperative program with the Luzerne County
Conservation District and Wyoming Valley’s low-income housing
authorities. The program will introduce sportfishing to nearly
200 of the Wyoming Valley's urban city youth who live in 10
different housing apartment complexes. Involved in the
partnership are the Luzerne County Housing Authority, City of
Wilkes-Barre Housing Authority and the City of Nanticoke Housing
Authority. |
 | National Wild Turkey Federation Wheelin’
Sportsmen, Statewide, “I Can Fish 2!”
- $3,390. The NWTF will develop and deliver additional angler
education programming for children with disabilities. Also
includes leader training and support. The program will be done in
cooperation with and at PFBC barrier-free access areas.
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 | West Chester Fish Game & Wildlife
Association, Chester County, “Downingtown
East Fishing Club” - $3,525. Grant funds will assist the club
in developing a fishing club in Downingtown East High School.
The club includes interdisciplinary instruction in science as
well as ecology. Programming will be offered in-school as well as
out of school. |
 | Center Area School District Education
Adventure & Exploration Club (EAE), Beaver County,
“Center Middle School Aquatic
Exploration” - $4,992.78. Funding will
enable the district to expand its Education Adventure and
Exploration Club (EAE). Equipment and materials will be purchased
to provide members with exposure to stream conservation
techniques, recreational boating and water safety, and aquatic
resource education. |
The Sportfishing and
Aquatic Resource Education Grants program expands on the Commission
long-standing commitment to youth education. The Commission spends
about $450,000 annually on such efforts. Currently 45,000 children
receive the
Pennsylvania League of Angling Youth (PLAY) newsletter from the PFBC
four times a year; 8,000 Pennsylvania school teachers have been trained
and use the PFBC’s aquatic education curriculum; and more than 400 PFBC
fishing skills instructors teach thousands of children in angling basics
annually. In addition, the Commission provides equipment and support
for 39 free
tackle loaner sites statewide.
Re-engaging youth in fishing and conservation is a major point of
emphasis for the PFBC. Statistics from the National Survey of Hunting,
Fishing and Wildlife Recreation show that in 1980, 26% of the
Pennsylvania kids aged 6-15 fished. In 1995, that number climbed to
41%, but dropped to 35% in 2000. |
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