Student Environmental Development Program

Summary of the SEDP

SEDP 2001 Field Trip The SEDP is an environmental education and leadership development program. The students spend seven weeks of their summer at EPA Region 3 headquarters in Center City, Philadelphia, PA, and on the campus of George Washington University, in Washington, D.C. There, they are taught by a middle school science teacher and given topic lectures by EPA employees and local professionals. The students participate in hands-on learning activities and extended learning experiences (field trips) which supplement their in-class learning. The versatile format can be used as a model for after school, summer, and/or day camp programs. The students are from diverse racial, economic, and cultural backgrounds and range in age from 12-14.

View the Greenworks TV Video on the Mid-Atlantic Region SEDP Program

EPA seeks Wheeling-area middle school students for summer environmental program (05/06/08) Participation is open to students entering the eighth grade in the Wheeling area including eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. There is no admission fee and students receive a stipend and other benefits such as field trips and travel to other cities. Eligibility is based on the students' grades, behavior, attendance and how well the students demonstrate an interest in science, human health and the environment. Applications are due May 21. Press Release | Application Form-PDF [4pp, 510k, about pdf]

Program History

SEDP 2001 class inspect butterfly garden The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Student Environmental Development Program (SEDP) is nationally recognized and has been replicated in communities, including low income communities, throughout the nation. EPA Region 3 currently sponsors programs in Philadelphia, PA, (twelfth year) and Washington, D.C. (fourth year). Past programs have also been in place in the communities of Chester, PA, and in Wilmington, DE, where, for five years now, the community runs a related but autonomous program focusing on local horticultural studies (HELP). The EPA has formed multiple community partnerships to promote SEDP since its inception in 1993. Around 550 students have successfully completed the program, and in turn have taught thousands of others (estimated to be more than 100,000). Some high school and college-bound alumni return in the summer as mentors to the middle school students we host and train.

Goals

The goal of SEDP is to provide a holistic education for the students and help them become responsible adults. The students learn about environmental issues common to their urban communities, including contaminated fish consumption, children's asthma, sun safety, lead, polluted drinking water, and hazardous household waste. Students are also consciously exposed to cultural diversity through classroom activities and field trips. Life skills such as public speaking, working with group dynamics, and computer literacy are also necessary for successful completion of the course. Through this approach to education, general life and job skills, critical thinking, self esteem, team work, and personal and civic responsibility are all promoted. The major goal is for the students, after graduation from the program, to take their knowledge back to their own communities to teach others -- particularly elementary school kids -- about the impact of environmental issues upon their lives.

SEDP Format

Each SEDP is designed to address the specific needs of the community in which its held. The students are encouraged and empowered to use critical thinking to look at the needs of their community and determine ways of addressing them. The Washington, D.C., SEDP challenges students with finding innovative ways to educate their community on environmental heath issues such as contaminated fish consumption, lead safety, pollution of the Anacostia River watershed, children's asthma, and other topics of direct relevance to the students. The students will develop outreach materials and presentations that will be shared with the local community and others on such subjects.

How Are the Students Selected?

The students are selected from middle schools within our Empowerment Zones and have to compete to participate in the program. The schools are notified, and teachers provide names of students who demonstrate an interest in the sciences and who are achieving academically. The applications are reviewed by a panel of EPA employees who one to three students per school. The schools agree to start an Environmental Science Club and provide assistance and opportunities for the students to teach others and showcase their talents.

Sharing the Knowledge

Students are given extensive communication and public speaking instructions and many opportunities to practice their new skills. SEDP is designed such that graduates will return to their communities and enlighten them on the topics they are now educated upon. Additionally, the students take their knowledge on the road and give team presentations to a variety of audiences, including the administrative staff of the U.S. National Fish & Wildlife National Conservation & Training Center and select staff of EPA Region 3 headquarters.

Mentoring

To ensure a smooth transition, each student is assigned at least one personal mentor. We use cascade mentoring to give the students the best opportunity to adjust to the work world and the program. Cascade mentoring is the process of having mentors from different age groups to give the students a better picture of how people achieve at different age groups and levels. We have program mentors who are going into the eleventh grade and mentors going into their first year of college. These mentors work with the students each day and also act as class room assistants. EPA staff members and Summer Interns are assigned as personal mentors. The job of the personal mentor is to develop another avenue of communication that may ease the students' adjustment and to hopefully develop a professional relationship that will last a lifetime.

How Long Is the Program ?

Each year the students spend six to seven weeks between July and August at EPA. A typical work day is 8:30 a.m. till 1:00 p.m. Monday though Thursday. Fridays and other weekdays when the students participate in extended learning experiences (field trips) the hours are adjusted accordingly. The graduation ceremony is held during the final week of the program and the students are required to participate in a group presentation of an environmentally related topic of their choosing. If you missed last year's graduation, you missed an experience. Each team selects an environmental topic, last year lead, radon, water pollution and pesticides, that they want to research and present at the graduation.

How Do We Measure Success?

We measure success through the pre and post test scores, by the number of schools who develop environmental science clubs, and by the number of classes and outreach activities conducted by the SEDP graduates. We also use internal and external reviews to evaluate the program's effectiveness. The external reviews include post program evaluations from the Science Teacher and the contractor hired to administer the program. Internally the program is designed to meet and be evaluated by the American Association for the Advancement of Science's Benchmarks for Science Literacy and the North American Association for Environmental Education's Environmental Education Materials: Guidelines for Excellence. The guidelines are actually designed for Environmental Education materials, but the basic principals apply and can be used for Environmental Education Programs. The Environmental Education Materials: Guidelines for Excellence are a set of recommendations for developing and selecting environmental education materials. These guidelines aim to help developers of activity guides, lesson plans, and other instructional materials produce high quality products and to provide educators with a tool to evaluate the wide array of available environmental education materials. These guidelines are grounded in common understanding of effective environmental education.

The Guidelines are:

#1 Fairness and accuracy: Environmental Education programs should be fair and accurate in describing environmental problems, issues, and conditions, and in reflecting the diversity of perspectives on them.

#2 Depth: Environmental Education Programs should foster awareness of the natural and build environment, an understanding of environmental concepts, conditions, and issues, and an awareness of the feelings, values, attitudes, and perceptions at the heart of environmental issues, as appropriate for different developmental levels.

#3 Emphasis on skills building: Environmental Education Programs should build lifelong skills that enable learners to prevent and address environmental issues.

#4 Action orientation: Environmental Education Programs should promote civic responsibility, encouraging learners to use their knowledge, personal skills, and assessments of environmental issues as a basis for environmental problem solving and action.

#5 Instructional soundness: Environmental Education Programs should rely on instructional techniques that create an effective learning environment.

#6 Usability: Environmental Education Programs should be well designed and easy to use.
For more information on the guidelines or to obtain a copy, please contact our Public Environmental Education Center.

The American Association for the Advancement of Sciences Benchmarks for Science Literacy specifies how students should progress toward science literacy, recommending what they should know and be able to do by the time they reach certain grade levels. Benchmarks are a tool to be used by educators in designing a curriculum that makes sense to them and meets the standards for science literacy recommended by the Publication Science for All Americans.

How Can I Get Involved in The SEDP?

Any EPA staff, Senior Environmental Employees or contractor can participate in the SEDP. As a matter of fact we've had people from other agencies volunteer to work with the students. Everyone has something to offer from teaching classes, mentoring, chaperoning, administrative support, contacting schools and students, arranging trips, or just providing your ideas on how to improve the program. For more information on the Student Environmental Development Program, please Contact Larry Brown, SED. Coordinator, at (215)814-5527, or at: brown.larry@epa.gov

Past Program Participants and Partners

EPA Office of Children's Health, Office of Environmental Education, Region 3 Office of Communications and Government Relations and Chesapeake Bay Program Office, the Corporation for Community and National Community Service, North Light Community Center, AmeriCorps*, George Washington University, the Children's Health Initiative, and the D.C. Environmental Education Consortium, which includes: the National Wildlife Federation, Peabody Early Childhood, D.C. EHA Fisheries & Wildlife Division, Anacostia Watershed Association, Urban Treehouse, National Resources Conservation Service, Naval District Washington, Bureau of Land Management, Earth Conservation Corps, ECC/Living Classrooms, National Park Service, US Fish and Wildlife, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, and others.

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