Status of Comprehensive State Environmental Education Programs:

Description and Breakdown by State (1995)

· State EE Master Plan - 11 states

Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Washington, and West Virginia.

Definition: A comprehensive state plan whose purpose is to chart a course of action and to provide an implementation schedule for meeting state goals for EE. These plans set forth the goals and objectives for EE within the state and typically list who is best suited to achieve or implement these goals and objectives (e.g. the legislature, the business community, school administrators, etc.). They are created through input from a wide range of EE leaders, educators, legislators, state agency representatives, business representatives, and others.

· State By-law or Requirement for K-12 Environmental Education Instruction - 12 states

Arkansas, California, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Definition: Requirement that schools and K-12 teachers incorporate EE into their existing curriculum. This component is achieved through legislative or administrative avenues.

· Coordinated Statewide Teacher Inservice Training in EE - 15 states

Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas and Virginia.

Definition: Teacher training that targets K-12 teachers and enables them to become fully competent to teach to all of the goals of EE. A coordinated system of inservice programs that makes EE training available to all teachers within a state and allows for professional development options in EE as well as credits to maintain teaching certification.

· Required EE Training prior to Teacher Certification or Licensing - 3 states

Arizona, Delaware and Wisconsin

· Definition: EE preservice training required for teachers desiring to teach certain subjects or grade levels that provides instruction in and ensures competencies in environmental/ecological concepts, the range of instructional and assessment methodologies used with EE and effective approaches for infusing or inserting EE into the curriculum.

· EE Curriculum Guide or other state publication providing direction to the development of an EE program at the school district level - 15 states

Arkansas, California, Hawaii, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, Ohio, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Definition: EE Curriculum Guides often include instructional strategies, resource listings and suggestions for developing curriculum. They assist in integrating EE into existing curriculum and helping with curriculum/school restructuring. EE Curriculum/Resource Guides sometimes have units and lessons for use by teachers and school districts.

· State Environmental Education Learner Objectives/Outcomes - 17 states

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Definition: Objectives, Outcomes, Benchmarks, Essential Skills, etc. are intended to assist educators in developing specific instructional plans and assessment strategies for incorporating EE in given subject areas. These help ensure instructional consistency within academic disciplines among the state’s schools and may be exit oriented or lesson oriented.

*Note: Within many of the states, the EE Learner Outcomes/Objectives, Benchmarks, Essential Skills, etc. are found within the science, geography, and social studies standards.

· State Supported EE Grants Program - 21 states

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nebraska, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Definition: Grants program that uses state and/or private sector funds to increase EE programming at the grassroots level. EE grants programs are typically overseen by state offices for EE, state EE Boards or Advisory Councils and are accessible to both formal and nonformal education entities for enhancing or creating state and locally based EE projects.

· State Assessment Program that includes EE - 3 states

Kansas, Maryland and New Hampshire

Definition: Application of assessment “tools” (including standardized testing, authentic/performance assessment measures and other evaluation methods) to determine the extent to which EE curriculum and instruction is having the desired impact on students.

· State EE Board or Advisory Council - 22 states

Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Definition: State EE Boards or Advisory Councils are the policy making and implementation oversight bodies for many state EE programs. EE Boards/Councils include key representatives of sectors/constituencies supporting EE including school teachers and administrators, university and business representatives, legislators, state agency representatives, and leaders from nonprofit conservation organizations. These entities often oversee implementation of an EE master plan’s recommendations. Further it may also complete assessments of the status of EE statewide, continue to identify needs and set priorities for EE, consult with the Department of Education (or equivalent), Department of Natural Resources and other state agencies and offices about EE program priorities, complete regular reports to the legislature, oversee an EE grants program and solicit funds.

· State EE Office - 16 states

Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Washington.

Definition: State office and staff with EE responsibilities such as the following: assess the status of environmental literacy; prepare an EE plan; staff the EE grants program; promote and assist in the development of EE learner outcomes; promote and aid in the development of EE preservice and inservice teacher training; cooperate with federal government, agencies and the private sector around EE programs; function as an EE clearinghouse; initiate, develop, implement, evaluate, and market nonformal EE programs; initiate research on EE; and coordinate EE conferences on a periodic basis.

· State Level EE Centers and/or Regional Offices - 20 states

Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Definition: EE Center(s) whose primary goal is to assist educators and administrators throughout all levels of the education system in the incorporation of EE as required or recommended by the state legislature. Typical services include: inservice EE programs, assistance in infusing EE into district and school curriculum, resource libraries, school networking programs, and EE literacy assessment projects.

· Interagency State EE Committee - 23 states

Alabama, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Definition: Committee of state agency representatives (sometimes include Federal agency representatives with state offices) which work to eliminate overlap in EE programs and to leverage their resources for greater impact.

· State EE Association - 45 states

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Definition: Non-profit, professional grassroots organization whose members typically include teachers, agency and nature center professionals, college students and community educators as well as organizational members such as colleges and universities, school districts, environmental groups, businesses and county, state and federal agencies. This organization helps support and implement EE programming as well as providing members with networking opportunities, professional development and communication about EE concerns.

· Computerized Networking System for EE Materials and Services - 11 states

Arizona, Florida, Hawaii, Kentucky, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington.

Definition: Computer network that provides educators and EE leaders with access to EE resources, events, funding opportunities and other helpful information.

· Funding sources for EE - 24 states

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Definition: Source(s) of funding to support the state level EE program infrastructure and specific programs, such as an EE grants program. Can be provided by a variety of means such as general revenue, license plate fees, resource user fees, polluter fines, taxes, lotteries and private donations and grants.

· EE Trust Fund for raising and supporting EE programs with both public and private dollars- 5 states

Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Texas

Definition: Mechanism for generating and disbursing financial resources for EE. Trust funds are a permanent fund enabling EE leaders to collect and spend both private (grants and donations) and/or government dollars