The following is the archive from CTPSE which merged with Connecticut Outdoor and Environmental Educators Association in 2011. The initiative now is a working group of COEEA, and continues to carry forth from this vision and mission.
CTPSE is a state affiliate of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development based on the principles and objectives established by the U.S. Partnership and the United Nations Decade for Education for Sustainable Development. CTPSE serves as a convener, collaborator, catalyst, and communicator working with all sectors in the state of Connecticut with a special focus on promoting the integration of sustainability principles into K-12 and higher education.
CTPSE VISION
A future Connecticut where everyone has the skills, perspectives, and values that guide and motivate them to seek sustainable livelihoods, participate in a just and democratic society, and live in an environmentally sustainable manner.
CTPSE MISSION
To to integrate the principles of sustainability education into K-12 and Higher Education in the State of Connecticut.
CTPSE GOALS
1. Promote the principles of the United Nations Decade for Education for Sustainable Development into K-12 curriculum instruction throughout the State of Connecticut.
2. Promote sustainability education in higher education and teacher training programs.
3. Work with partners and community leaders to instill a lifelong learning perspective at all levels of education and training in Connecticut that will lead to a sustainable society.
CTPSE BOARD (2011)
Jim Malley, Chair – Emeritus Faculty Central CT State University Madelyn Colon, Vice Chair – CT Department of Treasury
Jeff Greig, Secretary – CT Department of Education Bill Upholt, Faculty University of Connecticut Health Center Kim Benton – Teacher-Parent
Mary Lee Morrison – Director, Paxeducare, Inc Katy Perry, Miss Porter’s School
Susan Seider – Faculty, Central CT State University Jane Zebrowski, Sustainability Advocate
CTPSE PARTNERS
CTPSE TIMELINE
Summer 2006
CTPSE Board member, Bill Upholt, volunteered at the Earth Charter Center for Education for Sustainable Development at the United Nations University for Peace in Costa Rica. Fall 2006 The Connecticut Alliance of Concerned Educators (CACE) is formed to express concern about the regressive, test-centered aspects of the No Child Left Behind legislation and to promote democratic, student-centered education that values the whole child.
Summer 2007
From a CT League of Women Voters grant, CACE sponsors a “Community Conversation” at the Watkinson School to address the key question: “How do we prepare Connecticut’s children for their role in creating a future with a healthy environment, a strong economy and a just society?”
Fall 2007
Recognizing the enormous challenges that school-age children face in an increasingly complex global society, and the critical role that education will play in preparing them for a sustainable future, CACE changes its name to the Connecticut Partnership for Sustainability Education and becomes incorporated. The CT Partnership holds a follow-up meeting of the community conversation at the Lyceum in Hartford and begins to chart a mission for the organization.
Spring 2008
CTPSE Board Members Bill Upholt, Kim Benton, and Jim Malley are joined by Oliver Barton, Principal of the Common Ground School, David Ives, Executive Director of the Albert Schweitzer Institute, and Mitchell Sakofs, Dean of the School of Education at Central Connecticut State University to speak on the Role of Education in Fostering Sustainable Development at the annual conference of the Connecticut Outdoor Environmental Educators Association (COEEA).
Spring 2009
CTPSE partners with COEEA to hold a conference on Sustainability Education in the 21st Century featuring Dr. Debra Rowe, President of the U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development as the keynote speaker.
Summer 2009
CTPSE holds a “Best Practics in Sustainability Education” workshop at the Common Ground School in New Haven. Laurel Kohl from the Institute of Sustainable Energy at Eastern Connecticut State University presents on the Twelve Steps to a Sustainable School. Fall 2009 Faculty from thirteen teacher preparation programs in Connecticut attend a workshop on sustainability education at Central Connecticut State University for teacher educators to prepare teacher candidates to work effectively with K-12 students to build a healthy future for their communities and the planet. Matt Dubel from the Sustainable Schools Project in Shelburne Farms, Vermont facilitates the workshop.
Spring 2010
CTPSE holds a workshop for teacher educators at Central Connecticut State University entitled Preparing Teachers to Educate for a Sustainable Future. Dr. Victor Nolet, Professor of Education from Western Washington University addresses a group of 27 educators. The Watkinson School in Hartford hosts a “Best Practices in Sustainability Education Workshop.”Sponsored by CTPSE, the Green School Alliance, and the CBIA Education Fund, the workshop provided an opportunity for Connecticut schools to share their successes and challenges in integrating the principles of environmental sustainability into the curriculum and campus practices.
Fall 2010
Governor M. Jodi Rell designates November 8-12, 2010 as National Sustainability Education Week. CTPSE works with the Department of Environmental Protection and the Institute of Sustainable Energy to promote the week and the Institute for Sustainable Energy develops an online repository of Sustainability Education Resources. Commissioners of the Department of Education and the Department of Environmental Education issue a joint letter urging all schools to integrate sustainability into teaching and learning.
Spring 2011
CTPSE co-sponsors the annual conference of the Connecticut Outdoor Environmental Educators Association on March 24, 2011. Held at Central Connecticut State University, the conference was entitled “Sustainable Schools & Communities Through Environmental Literacy.” Dr. Stephen Kellert, Professor of Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University was the key note speaker. Professor Daniel Esty the newly selected Commissioner of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection also addressed conferees.
Fall 2011
Hosted a “Best Practices in Sustainability Education Workshop” on November 10, 2011 at the Environmental Sciences Magnet School at Mary Hooker in Hartford. The workshop provided an opportunity for Connecticut K-12 educators to share their successes and challenges in integrating the principles of environmental sustainability into the curriculum and into campus practices. Sarah Kadden, an Educator for the Sustainable Schools Project at Shelburne Farms, Vermont was the keynote speaker. The Environmental Sciences Magnet School at Mary Hooker has the distinction of having been awarded LEED Platinum status by the U.S. Green Building Council, making it one of the most environmentally friendly and energy efficient schools in the country. CTPSE merges with COEEA as the Connecticut Sustainable Schools Project (CSSP)