The League is launching a pilot program to engage children in hands-on stream exploration during summer and afterschool camps. The League is partnering with the YMCA and American Camp Association (ACA) to train and equip program leaders at 20 facilities in Iowa and Nebraska to use the Creek Freaks curriculum and materials.

This two-year project, funded by a $91,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, will serve as a pilot for adapting Creek Freaks to summer camp and afterschool settings nationwide. The pilot project alone has the potential to engage as many as 40,000 young people in stream ecology studies, water quality monitoring, and waterway stewardship.

The League plans to use updated curriculums and training materials developed during the pilot project plus lessons learned to work with YMCA- and ACA-affiliated camps and afterschool programs across the country.

League staff will also be reaching out to our members in Iowa and Nebraska to see who is interested in Creek Freaks training, provide a refresher course for already trained program leaders, and connect members with local camps and afterschool programs that will need Creek Freaks volunteers in 2017.