Helping Middle Schoolers Make 'Liquid Connections'

Submitted Photos

Students in the Pottstown Middle School Environmental Education Club learn about water systems and aquaponics at the Montgomery County Community College campus in Pottstown as part of the "Liquid Connections" program.

Blogger's Note: The following was provided by the Foundation for Pottstown Education.

The Foundation for Pottstown Education is now helping to fund a community collaborative program designed to teach students in the Pottstown Middle School students about our local water environment.

The Foundation is funding the program in cooperation with Green Valleys Watershed and the Montgomery County Community College.

This program will provide students in the Pottstown Middle School Environmental Education Club an opportunity to learn about local waterways.

Program topics include adaptations and birds, water quality and orienteering. The group will also participate in field trips to various local sites for hands-on studies and hiking, including Warwick County Park, Green Valleys’ headquarters of Welkinweir, and Murgia Park in West Pottsgrove for pond and stream studies. 

They will tour the Pottstown Wastewater Treatment plant and canoe a portion of the Schuylkill River in Phoenixville. The group will work with the Montgomery County Community College taking part

Pottstown Middle School students are learning about
the ecology of water at MCCC and other locations.

in water quality studies at the Pottstown campus.

The program is titled Liquid Connections – How Water Quality Affects Biological Organisms. 

Through this seven week course the students will learn about how water quality is a measurement of the condition of water relative to the requirements of the biological species the water supports. 

The physical, chemical and biological characteristics of a body of water have a direct impact on the health of the organisms that rely on the water. In nature, pollution and agricultural run-off have major impacts on the water quality of lakes, streams and rivers. 

These pollutants also affect the biological species that the water sustains, often causing species to die off and ecosystems to collapse. Therefore, limiting pollutants and maintaining ideal water quality conditions is vital for the survival of the ecosystems that rely on the water. 

Likewise, in artificial systems, such as the hydroponic systems that are used to grow much of our commercial produce, maintaining proper water conditions is vital to sustained plant growth and yield.

In these sessions, students will learn how to measure various water quality conditions and then use these measurements to investigate how water quality affects the health of natural and artificial water systems.

Specific topics include:

• Session 1: Introduction to Water Quality and Water Quality Measurement Techniques 
• Session 2: Field Study on Water Quality of Schuylkill River and Manatawny Creek 
• Session 3: Field Study Data Analysis 
• Session 4: Automated Water Quality Sensor Introduction and Deployment 
• Session 5: Introduction to Hydroponics and Aquaponics and Water Quality Measurements of  These Systems 
• Session 6: Hydroponic and Aquaponic Systems Data Analysis and Water Quality Experiment Set-up 
• Session 7: Water Quality Experiment Data Collection and Analysis 

From left, Pottstown Middle School science teacher
Ginger Angelo, Carl and Sylvia Landis, and
Dawn White, all from from Green Valley Watershed, along with
Dr. Karen Buchkovich-Sass, Dr. Jamie Bretz and Regina Kline
from  Montgomery County Community College.

Funding for this program is made possible by donations to the Foundation for Pottstown Education to the Foundation for Pottstown Education specifically for environmental studies.

Previously, the Foundation has provided funding to support the Middle School Environmental Club trip to the Pocono Environmental Education Center as well as programs in environmental after school programs for all four Elementary Schools in the Pottstown School District.

The Foundation is currently seeking additional funding to continue to support these programs.

Anyone interested in contributing to these funds is encouraged to contact the Foundation at 610-970-6616 or the Foundation’s Executive Director, Joe Rusiewicz via email jrusiewicz@pottstownk12.org.

About FPE: The Foundation for Pottstown Education’s (FPE) mission is to support, promote, sponsor and carry out educational, scientific or charitable activities and objectives within or related to the Pottstown School District.

Visit www.foundationpottstowned.org for more information about the Foundation for Pottstown Education. You can also follow FPE on Facebook and Twitter.

A Window on the Past -- Literally

From left, Dan Scavello, Dr. Myra Forrest, George Wausnock, and Russ Heist, from B & G Glass, Reading, 

Work is progressing on the alumni gallery at Pottstown High School and recently, thanks to some
valuable donations, visitors literally got a window into the work being done and the history that will be on display there.

Don Moll, owner of B & G Glass, Reading PA, donated two large picture windows to the Foundation for Pottstown Education.

The windows, 14-feet long and four feet high, will offer a panoramic view into the Alumni Gallery now being assembled in the high school and organized, and funded, by the foundation.

The window was installed in the Gallery on a Friday in December, after all students were dismissed from the high school. The Alumni Gallery will open in spring of 2014 and will honor the history and alumni of Pottstown School District, founded in 1838, and currently celebrating its 175th anniversary.

The construction work is being done by Pottstown's own Scavello Restoration.

"The addition of a full length window will add to the welcoming atmosphere of the Alumni Gallery. As our students , staff and visitors pass thru the hall way they will always be reminded of the rich history the Pottstown School District has developed over the past 175 years," said George Wausnock, a Poitstown High School alum and the chairman of the committee charged with the creation of the gallery.

"Don Moll's donation brings us one step closer to being able to open the room to the public this spring," said Myra Forrest, executive director of the foundation.

If you have items you would like to donate for display or would like to give financial support, you can contact Forrest at 610-970-6616.

That Giving Spirit

Third graders in Karen Lawler's class at Franklin Elementary School show off their new supplies, donated by
employees from Pottstown Memorial Medical Center.

Blogger's Note: Once again, FOB John Armato provides information about how Pottstown is beating the bushes to drum up support for the school district from local businesses. Below are two more examples.

Franklin Elementary School third grade students received some much appreciated aid from the employees of the Pottstown Memorial Medical Center.

The aid, in the form of a wide assortment of classroom supplies, was donated to the students as a result of a project headed by PMMC employees Marian Lippert and Karen Kocher.

Each student received school supplies which they immediately began to utilize. Additional supplies will be distributed to students throughout the remainder of the school year.

PMMC employees are proud to be a part of the Pottstown community and to play a role in the education of our young people.

Third grade teachers Karen Lawler and Diana Dotterer were overjoyed with the array of supplies for their students.

 Lawler noted, “Students having the necessary tools to help build their educational foundation will lead to success in their future lives. We are appreciative of all of our community partners and the efforts of the employees of PMMC.”

Presenting the supplies to the students at a special classroom ceremony, Kocher said, “I’m overwhelmed by this tremendous experience and the response of the students to these supplies. Seeing first hand, person-to-person the difference that our efforts can make is encouraging and will help our future efforts in supporting our schools.”

* * *

Foundation for Pottstown Education Executive Director Myra Forrest, and board member
John Armato, center, accept a $1,000 donation from Susquehanna Bank Vice President
Marketing Manager Katrina Belcher.

Recently, Susquehanna Bank demonstrated its support of early childhood education and the Pottstown School District with a donation of $1,000.00 to the Foundation for Pottstown Education.

Foundation Executive Director Dr. Myra Forrest and Board member John Armato accepted the donation on behalf of the Foundation.

Forrest noted, “Being able to provide some of our youngest citizens with the foundation that will lead to their academic success is a stepping stone to a healthy community. The donation will be applied to activities of the Pottstown School District’s PEAK Program (Pottstown Early Action for Kindergarten Readiness)."

She said "the PEAK Program has developed partnerships between the school district and private childcare facilities to coordinate efforts to ensure that students entering school are prepared to take advantage of the educational opportunities offered.”

The donation was presented by Susquehanna Bank Vice President Marketing Manager, Pottstown Office at 159 East High Street, Katrina Belcher.

Belcher said, “Susquehanna has a long history of supporting the local communities where we do business. We recognize the importance of investing in the future of our communities, and one of the best ways to do that is to support the education of our children. We are pleased that our donation will assist the Foundation for Pottstown Education in fulfilling its mission of fully developing their students’ potential.”