Habitat Hero Winter 2024 Broadneck High School

Cape Conservation Corps wishes to honor the hard work of the students at Broadneck High School for their hard work and dedication to the environment by awarding them the Habitat Hero Award. Students participate in several ways to promote good stewardship of our land and community.  The ELIT program (described below), the Honors Science Society, and NHS to name a few.  We asked ELIT Coordinator Allison Davis to describe the programs and projects the students have been involved in.

The Broadneck High School Environmental Literacy Program is one of Anne Arundel County’s 13 “Signature Programs,” which are “21st century workforce-relevant themed programs chosen by a school and its surrounding community, to connect classroom instruction with real-world situations and workforce-relevant skills.” It’s clear why Broadneck High School’s theme is Environmental Literacy when you start to get out into the surrounding community, because so many residents on the Broadneck Peninsula, and specifically in Cape St. Claire, work in Environmental or Environmental-adjacent fields. We are perfectly aligned to work with these community stakeholders. 

The Environmental Literacy Program is two-pronged. On the one hand, we provide Environmental Education to all students through Environmental overlays to the curriculum as well as “whole school” involvement. Secondly, we offer specific classes for students who would like to dive deeper into the subject. We offer a single semester “Explorations” class for students in 9th and 10th grade. This gives students a taste of all of the different subjects in Environmental Literacy. If they decide to move forward with classes, we offer an Honors Signature Capstone class. This class is a full year, and the major focus is an action-based Capstone project. If students continue to follow the pathway, they will also take classes in conjunction with the community college, some taught by AACC professors here at BHS, and some at AACC, which they would travel to during senior year. Some of these courses include GIS coursework, learning to fly Drones, and Restoration Ecology. 

Past projects include our award-winning People’s Garden, modeled after the one at the USDA in Washington DC. We have been able to donate produce to My Brother’s Pantry and the Broadneck Community Pantry here at BHS. Last year’s Honor’s Capstone students installed a native pollinator garden on-campus as well. This year, our capstone students renovated two garden spaces. One was turned into a Monarch waystation (we used a lot of milkweed purchased at the Native Plant Sale). Additionally, another area was renovated into a Native Bird Garden solely with plants from the CCC Native Plant Sale. Students also revitalized a demonstration urban community garden and a “grateful garden” with cut flowers.

Additionally, our students have been able to volunteer with Brad Knopf, Vice President of CCC in the Oyster Nursery last spring and he was able to come to our school and bring Oyster Spat for the students to see first-hand. 

Our students also participate in the Weed Warriors, tree-planting, and other activities the CCC shares with us. Many National Honors Society Members value these opportunities to earn their service hours each quarter. Several Students as well as our Facilitator, Ms. Roth, just became Watershed Stewards in the past year as well. 

Right now, our students are gearing up for their individual Capstone Projects and hope to reach out about doing some work in Cape St. Claire, soon. They have many ideas about removing invasives, creating living shorelines, planting SAVs, and doing more Oyster restoration. We all value the wonderful connections we have made with so many people in Cape and hope to continue working together as much as possible!  We look forward to continued partnership with the students and staff of Broadneck High School as we strive for a healthier environment, cleaner waterways, and habitat for all of the local fauna. We thank them for dedication to our mission.