3 Milton Elementary Schools Awarded Environmental Grants

MILTON, GA — Three Milton elementary schools will get a little greener thanks to environmental education grants awarded from the city.

City of Milton Conservation Projects Manager Teresa Stickels delivered the funding Thursday to the winning schools. Each had applied in September for Environmental Education Grants — a program to support Earth-friendly initiatives that reach large numbers of students at Milton public schools.

"Learning about sustainability, growing our own food, and understanding the ecosystem — including plants, butterflies and bees — is invaluable for anyone, especially our younger generation," said Stickels. "The City of Milton is honored to do this small part to help plant the seeds, if you will, for our children to have such important, hands-on insights."

This year's grant recipients are:

Birmingham Falls Elementary School: The grant money will go toward helping the school improve its garden — which already produces enough crops to share some with North Fulton charities — by adding a watering system.

Cogburn Woods Elementary School: Cogburn Woods will use its grant funds to grow microgreens inside classrooms -- showing you don't need a lot of space to grow a lot of food. It's part of a project that also will dive into planting, harvesting and composting.

Crabapple Crossing Elementary School: These grant funds will go toward buying and installing native plants that will attract birds, butterflies and bees to Crabapple Crossing's outdoor courtyard. Students will get their hands dirty cultivating, maintaining, and enjoying the school's garden sanctuary. Congratulations to all the grant recipients. The City hopes that students at these schools have fun harvesting plants and knowledge over the course of this school year.