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Author: Mara Spears, CEP Project Specialist Staff, Elana Burns, Communications Content Student Assistant

From Groundswell to You

   Program Updates

   December Professional Learning Opportunity

   January PLO Sneak Peak

   Dinner & Dialogue Recap

   Donate to Groundswell

   Groundswell Project How-To's and Submissions

   Tracking PBE Hours

Friends of Groundswell

   Teaching About Mental Health and Climate Change 

   Rooted in Community: How Sue Blackall Turned Classrooms into Change

   Funds for Field Trips to Meijer Gardens

Groundswell strives to serve our educators, students, and broader community by providing the highest quality of place-based education facilitation. In reviewing our program's offerings, we've assessed how to best continue to provide excellence service to our schools. 

To ensure educators stay connected and continue growing in PBSE practice, adjustments to our program are occurring.

Starting in August of 2026, in order to receive funding, an educator must:

       AND

Starting August 2027, in order to receive funding, an educator must:

       AND

       AND

This looks like:

      Every other year: 2-3 days of Summer Institute

      Every year: 

            2 hours of PLO             

            2 hours of Showcase

            2 hours of 1:1 coaching

If you have any questions on these program changes, consider registering for our December professional learning opportunity (info below), where we will have a Q&A with the Director of our center, Clay Pelon. Additionally, feel free to reach out to us at groundswell@gvsu.edu

The goal of this professional learning session is to help you care for your mental, physical, and emotional well-being. Grounded in science, we’ll take a closer look at how the body responds to stress and learn simple, practical strategies to reduce its impact—benefiting not just your students, but you most of all. 

Participants will be invited to try light stretching and breathing exercises, though movement is completely optional. Comfortable clothing is encouraged, and yoga mats are welcome!

Dr. Tamara Coleman brings over 30 years of experience teaching anatomy and physiology. Her research into stress and the nervous system began well before COVID, inspired by her work with highly stressed college students.

We invite all educators, administrators, community partners, and anyone interested in place-based education to join and register for this session. Please help us spread the word!

We have a wealth of experience and knowledge in our network, which means some of our educators have been teaching outdoors for many years. Some teachers also are very new to this, but all of us can benefit from learning tactics for outdoor ed. Join us virtually in January for a professional learning opportunity provided by educators from Northview Field School. Dave Kraff and Carl Baird will tell us how to build your own collection of outdoor emergency preparedness resources to ensure safety during outdoor learning experiences. Come learn about helpful strategies to give you, your school, and your students' parents a peace of mind when it comes to adventuring outside!

Keep an eye on our website and socials for the date! We will announce it soon. 

Dinner and Dialogue acknowledges the efforts and energy teachers and partners put into creating quality projects for our K12 students. Almost forty members of our network attended and they brought positivity and great conversation. The event was set in an organized speed networking format. The first part of the night was dedicated to reminders on project processes and partnership values and requirements, and after dinner attendees were instructed to engage with one another on project concepts for teachers. Groundswell staff  facilitated the tables to rotate, with partners moving around the room in themed "pods" to meet with educators and share their expertise. Each round was nine minutes, and conversation prompts were provided for both parties.

Overall the event was bustling with activity but connections were happening! Teachers were able to get partnerships established for their projects, an important aspect of their place-based education practice for the year. During the academic year a stewardship project is required to have two partnerships to be eligible for funding. 

Your favorite Stewardship Initiative has a new link for giving! Join us in fundraising this November as we seek dollars to continue great outdoor learning. Now it's easier than ever to share out and ask friends and family to donate to! 

       Text to Give: GIVE2GROUNDSWELL to 44321

We're also set up on a new giving platform through our parent nonprofit, the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative. Click below to donate, or copy/paste it to send to a friend. 

Are you an educator interested in practicing place-based education? Submit a brainstorm document to work with Groundswell for the 2025-2026 academic year. Groundswell staff work with you to design a project that engages your class, emphasizes student inquiry, and partners your school with two or more community organizations that enhance your project. 

Using our updated website, learn how to fill out a brainstorm document and explore resources on our Google Drive! Get started now, as project spots are limited. 

At Groundswell, much of our support for stewardship projects comes from grants—and those grants rely on data that shows the real impact of our work. We know teachers are taking students outside all the time, and we want to make sure those efforts are recognized and supported! By keeping your own record of outdoor teaching hours, you’re helping us tell the story of how place-based stewardship education is making a difference. These numbers help secure future funding and demonstrate student learning beyond the classroom. Below is a quick Google Form to track your time practicing PBE with your students; consider bookmarking this on your browser to easily access it! 

Click the button below to track your weekly PBE hours.

Speaking of mental health; let's dive deeper. The Climate Mental Health Network and National Environmental Education Foundation have teamed up to support teachers navigating the emotional challenges of climate change in the classroom. Their new Climate Emotions Toolkit for Educators provides practical lesson plans, mental health literacy tools, and strategies for helping middle school students—and teachers themselves—build resilience and hope. We at Groundswell are proud to share this valuable resource that bridges environmental education and mental wellness!

By Elana Burns

Sue Blackall is more than just your average retiree. With more than 30 years of teaching experience, she’s left one of the biggest footprints in the Village of Sparta, though if you ask her, the real imprint belongs to her students.

As a longtime science teacher, Sue found ways to take learning beyond the classroom and into the soil. Her students built rain gardens, restored local creeks, and connected with community partners to make their projects come alive.

We have an entire article on this incredible work. Click the button below to read more about Sue and her impact. 

Have you always wanted to take your students to Frederick Meijer Gardens? Well, now you can! You can apply for a scholarship to get your field trip costs covered so your students can learn on-site at this immersive local park. Work with the great staff there to plan an educational trip for your class and get the most out of your day. Click the button below to read more and apply. 

Questions? Please contact Groundswell at groundswell@gvsu.edu.

Text to Give: GIVE2GROUNDSWELL to 44321