FROSTBURG (April 21, 2006) - Reflecting on past environmental achievements and looking toward the future, more than 100 people gathered at the Appalachian Laboratory on Thursday night to honor Route 40 Elementary School teaching principal Patrick Delaney for his efforts to use school grounds as environmental restoration sites. 

"Principals are some of the most important leaders in a community, it is heartening to see one that is dedicated to ensuring that his students are aware of and value the habitat that is around them" said Donald F. Boesch as he welcomed visitors to the 2006 Richard A. Johnson Environmental Education Award ceremony. Boesch is president of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, which oversees the Appalachian Laboratory.

The award, presented by Appalachian Laboratory Director Robert H. Gardner, recognizes local citizens for their outstanding contributions to environmental education and was given to Delaney for his role in restoring habitat on school grounds in Garrett County.

Delaney’s work in the last decade has demonstrated sustained leadership in the environmental education community and dedication to the academic achievement for all Garrett County students. Evidence from his focus has been seen in the establishment of numerous schoolyard habitats and in helping schools develop environmental programs to be recognized as Maryland Green Schools. The passion for the establishment of Green Schools, and the use of the environment as an integrating context for learning, began in 1995 when he and several staff members attended a professional development conference. The seeds were planted on that day, and Mr. Delaney and his Route 40 staff formulated a plan and vision for their school which then took root throughout the County.

Delaney has acquired funding throughout the years from the Chesapeake Bay Trust, McDonald’s and other sources. “The success of Pat Delaney’s environmental education program and schoolyard habitat project at Route 40 School has influenced the grant programs we provide to schools across the State,” said Kerri Bentkowski, senior grants manager of the Chesapeake Bay Trust.

For the past three years Mr. Delaney assisted the county with a partnership program with the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Appalachian Laboratory. The program provided for the development of native gardens and meadowlands on five Garrett County locations and the Hickory Environmental Center. The PIERS project (Partners in Ecology and the Restoration of Schoolyards) recently was awarded the 2005 National Civic Star Award for the State of Maryland.

The award ceremony was followed by a reception in the lobby of the Appalachian Laboratory, sponsored by AES Warrior Run.

The award provides the recipient with $2,000 to support further environmental education activities. This year's check will go to the Route 40 Elementary School in Delaney's name. An endowed fund to support the Johnson Award has been established at the University of Maryland Foundation and is administered by the Appalachian Laboratory. Contributors to the fund include Allegheny Power, NewPage and the Mettiki Coal Corporation, as well as numerous private citizens and other organizations. The Appalachian Laboratory is an environmental research institution located on Braddock Road in Frostburg. 

Past recipients of the Richard A. Johnson Environmental Education Award include: former Times-News columnist Ken Hodgdon (1991); Frostburg State University professor Emeritus Don Emerson (1991); retired teacher Nan Livingston (1992); retired teacher Charles Strauss Sr. (1993); former Appalachian Laboratory Director Kent Fuller (1996); Department of Natural Resources project manager Bernard Zlomek (2001); Hickory Environmental Education Center coordinator Joseph Winters (2002); former Frostburg State University Biology Department Head Melvin Brown (2003); Beall High School Environmental Educator Kenneth Baxter (2004); and Allegany High School Ecology Club mentor Alan Hammond (2005).

Founded in 1961, the Appalachian Laboratory is a center for research on terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems, including how these ecosystems function within the larger context of the Chesapeake Bay watershed., and how human activity may influence these ecosystems and effect ecosystem health and sustainability on local, regional, and global scales. Located in the mountains of western Maryland, the Appalachian Laboratory is one of three laboratories of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

CONTACT:
Dave Nemazie
410.228.9250 ext. 615
nemazie@ca.umces.edu