For many people, the word "infrastructure" suggests images of roads, buildings, power supplies, and the like. But what if we could reframe our thinking so that our idea of infrastructure includes trees and forests? Educators in Puget Sound ESD (121) recently explored...
Partner stories
These stories are a collection of educator professional learning experiences and opportunities provided by ESD, CBO and Tribal School partners.
Pacific Education Institute
Pacific Education Institute (PEI) delivers high-quality professional development and consultation services for educators in equitable, locally relevant, career connected, outdoor STEM education. PEI’s project, “Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines (SOLS),” is designed to strengthen teachers’ equitable climate science instruction through locally relevant storylines.
Central Washington teachers dig in to PEI’s Regenerative Agriculture Storylines
Thanks to the support of ESD (Educational Service Districts) 105 and 171, eleven more Central Washington teachers were able to join the Pacific Education Institute (PEI) for an exploration of their Regenerative Agriculture Storylines. This two-day hybrid online and...
Cohort of K-3 educators brings PEI’s Urban Forestry Storyline into their classrooms
How can trees be used to create positive impact in communities? This was the question at hand for a group of K-3 educators from Capitol Region ESD 113 this past winter as they explored Pacific Education Institute’s (PEI) Urban Forestry storyline. Tressa Arbow, PEI...
PEI’s Solar Energy Workshop Brings Educators and Energy Professionals Together
Educators in southeast Washington joined Pacific Education Institute FieldSTEM Coordinators Megan Rivard and Amy Dawley for an adventure in solar energy this February. Through a series of three synchronous Zoom sessions and asynchronous tasks via Canvas, participants...
Farmers Facing Climate Change: PEI hosts SOLS: Regenerative Agriculture SOLS Workshop for Puyallup Watershed
PEI FieldSTEM Coordinator interviewed Tara Clark for the workshop's virtual field trip. Mother Earth Farm manager, Tara Clark, shared that she left a film career in Los Angeles to work the land on behalf of her community. Pacific Education Institute’s (PEI) first ever...
Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Forests with ESDs 105 and 171
Workshop participants took on the role of trees and competed with each other for carbon, nutrients, and water. When Pacific Education Institute and two Central Washington Educational Service Districts thought about how to best serve the teachers in their region, an...
Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Wetlands workshop
In late June 2021, 33 teachers from 16 Coastal and West Sound school districts attended a three-day hybrid workshop, Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Wetlands, with Pacific Education Institute’s FieldSTEM Coordinators Karen Lippy and Julie Tennis and PEI...
Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Regenerative Agriculture (Western Washington) writing workshop
During June 2021, 12 educators and Pacific Education Institute (PEI) staff worked together to adapt Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines on the topic of Regenerative Agriculture. The current Regenerative Agriculture storylines were created for eastern Washington...
Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Fire for Secondary Teachers
During May 2021, 25 middle and high school educators from across Eastern and Central Washington attended a three-day online workshop, Solutions Oriented Learning Storylines: Fire for Secondary Educators, with Pacific Education Institute’s (PEI) FieldSTEM Coordinator...