2021 Excellence in Education Awards

The Excellence in Education Awards recognize outstanding contributions to the profession of education that model excellence through thoughtful engagement of education principles, innovation, and adaptation.

Duration:

1 minute, 25 seconds

Fort Monroe National Monument accepts the first annual Excellence in Education Award for its collaborative effort on the Shored Up! cross-curricular program that connected every 4th and 5th grade student to the natural and cultural resources in their backyard.

Learn about the Excellence in Education Award

Students participate in the Shored Up! cross-curricular program offered by Fort Monroe National Monument and its partners.

NPS Photo

Fort Monroe National Monument

Through collaboration and co-creation, National Park Service Chesapeake, the James River Association, Hampton City Schools, Fort Monroe National Monument, Shored Up!, and several local partners worked together to develop and implement a culturally-affirming, cross-curricular program that connected every 4th and 5th grade student to the natural and cultural resources in their backyard.

Approximately 1,600 hundred students participated in a three-part learning experience:

1. virtual lessons about the historical significance of Fort Monroe National Monument and the environmental issues facing Hampton's waterways;
2. field trips to the fort and aboard the James River Association’s education boat; and
3. a stewardship action project at their schools to address storm water pollution.

Hampton City Schools serves a predominately Black/African American student population in a climate-adverse coastal city. By emphasizing the contributions of African and African American residents of Hampton in building the city and the nation, Hampton students learned that taking care of their Chesapeake community is part of their heritage, too.