Prairie restoration and community building through service learning

Background/Question/Methods In a unique partnership, Carthage College and Harborside Academy (a high school specializing in expeditionary learning) recently paired with a local nature center in Kenosha, Wisconsin to design and implement a native prairie planting as part of a service learning course. The objectives were to promote ecological education while students gained knowledge of native prairie plants and their ability to tolerate both wet and dry conditions, as well as to illustrate the process of collaboration and environmental decision making. The planting area was selected because it often floods in the Spring; planting native prairie plants can increase infiltration by up to 30%. Results/Conclusions With plants from the UW Arboretum and plants donated from Gateway Technical College and the local community, students in this planted the first 500 square feet of their 4000 square foot design in this first year of a multi-year project, and the garden is already serving as an educational site for the community. Already, educational brochures accompany the area and the project has attracted the attention of the media. This collaboration serves as an excellent example of how it is possible to successfully combine ecological education and research with outreach aimed at a variety of audiences.