Green County teachers will have an aid in environmental education this year, thanks to a partnership agreement signed Jan. 18, 2013. 

The agreement established Green County’s PRIDE Environmental Education Outreach Program. The program’s goals are to help students prepare for state science tests and develop life-long environmental stewardship skills.

Eastern Kentucky PRIDE, a nonprofit environmental organization, offers the program to all schools in its 42-county service area. Local partners, such as county and city governments, enroll their schools in the program and pay an annual fee, which is based on student population.

In Green County, the local partners are the Green County Board of Education, Green County Fiscal Court, City of Greensburg, Green County Conservation District, Forcht Bank, Community Trust Bank and PBI Bank.

Signing the partnership agreement today were Superintendent Jim Frank, Green County Schools, Judge Executive Misty Edwards, Green County Fiscal Court; Mayor Lisle Cheatham, City of Greensburg; Vice Chairman Gary Ferguson, Green County Conservation District; Faye Conley, Community Trust Bank; Susie Lewis, PBI Bank; Tom Noe, Forcht Bank; and Tammie Wilson, Eastern Kentucky PRIDE.

“We are honored that these sponsors see the PRIDE program as a wise investment in Green County’s students and environment,” said PRIDE’s Tammie Wilson. “Like PRIDE, these sponsors are committed to providing a quality education for our young people and igniting their personal responsibility for nature. We are excited about this partnership.”

“We look forward to adding the PRIDE program to our curriculum at Green County Intermediate School,” said Superintendent Jim Frank. “It is important for our students to understand the need to preserve and protect our environment for themselves and generations to come.”

“No doubt this program will naturally create a smooth transition for younger students to continue the work that is being done with our recycling efforts and open doors to other opportunities for environmental stewardship,” Frank added. “It’s a win-win with the added bonus of better preparing our students to meet science standards and improve accountability.”

“We would certainly like to thank our partners for their contribution and for having the same vision of protecting the environment around us and affording this opportunity for our students,” Frank said.

The PRIDE Environmental Education Outreach Program sends a PRIDE Environmental Education Liaison into classrooms to lead fun, hands-on activities on environmental topics, such as energy and water quality. Liaisons tailor lessons to teachers’ curriculum plans. They discuss how the lessons apply to the environment of southern and eastern Kentucky, drawing from PRIDE’s success with promoting environmental education in the region since 1997. Liaisons also encourage students to find ways to care for the environment, such as volunteering to pick up litter.

Genny McCubbin serves as the PRIDE liaison for Green County. She started Jan. 16, and she is working with third and fourth-grade students.

“I have a passion for teaching, and I am very happy to have the opportunity to teach hands-on lessons to students for them to better understand the world around them,” McCubbin said. “Students are the gateway to the future, and we need to be giving them all the keys to make the world a better place to live so that when they are grown-ups they make good environmentally friendly choices.”

McCubbin earned her Bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Lindsey Wilson College. She is the fiancé of Cody VanMeter, and she is the daughter of John and Nancy McCubbin and Sherry Loyall.

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