Central and northern Maine get more WET!

August 27th, 2009

Contact: Lynne Richard, Portland Water District, lrichard@pwd.org, 207/774-5961 x3324

PORTLAND - Four water education professionals have become certified facilitators for Project WET.  Jessica Leahy, UMaine Assistant Professor of Parks, Recreation & Tourism along with UMaine Ph.D. students Teresa Thornton and Crista Straub joined Stratton teacher Paula Stevens for the all-day training conducted by Maine Project WET coordinator Lynne Richard.

Project WET (Water Education for Teachers) is an award winning nonprofit organization dedicated to reaching children, parents, teachers and community members of the world with water education. Project WET was recently awarded the 2008 UCOWR Education and Outreach Award and the 2009 Association of Educational Publishers Distinguished Achievement Award.  Since its inception in 1984, Project WET has been adopted for use by thousands of teachers in dozens of countries.

In Maine, Project WET activities are used in schools, camps, community events, and water festivals to teach thousands of people each year about water and the need to protect and manage our precious water resources.  Educators learn WET’s hands-on, water education methods at six-hour workshops conducted by trained facilitators. Portland Water District, Poland Spring, and the University of Maine’s Mitchell Center sponsor Project WET.

The new facilitators join Laura Wilson from UMaine’s Cooperative Extension and Gerry Saunders, Unity College’s Director of Education to offer Project WET trainings throughout central and northern Maine.  For more information or to request a workshop, go to www.umaine.edu/projectwet.