President Obama, EPA honor Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators awardees

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and President Barack Obama awarded Ross McCurdy, a teacher at Ponaganset High School in Scituate, Rhode Island, with the Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators during a ceremony at the White House on Thursday for his creative teaching efforts.

“Ross McCurdy makes lessons relevant and fun,” Curt Spalding, regional administrator of EPA’s New England office, said. “He encourages his students to be active participants in the challenge of improving the environment.”

Twelve other teachers were given honorable mentions at the ceremony, where McCurdy was applauded for his engaging, hands-on approach to teaching students throughout 17 years of teaching grades 10 through 12. This includes research on renewable energy, like creating a hydrogen fuel cell-powered Ford Model T and building a 16-foot-by-8-foot solar building at the school.

“We are just as reliant upon our environment now as we were 10,000 years ago and recognizing our innate connection with the environment is essential to our quality of life,” McCurdy said. “We are fortunate that today’s students understand the importance of environmental awareness and are enthusiastic to learn what they can to protect our natural world. As teachers it is up to us to provide every opportunity for our students to take care of our environment both now and into the future.”