Nauset Teacher Wins Innovation Grant

ORLEANS – When John Simms left Nauset Regional Middle School at the end of last year, it remained to be seen what would come of the popular adventure education program he oversaw for more than a decade. 

 The course, which pushed beyond the boundaries of core subjects such as English, math and science, challenged students to deepen their connection with nature. But for Susannah Remillard, the course was built so much in his vision that it was hard to replicate.

 “John Simms was a powerful teacher, and he brought so much of his own experiences to teaching,” she said. “And I think the kids really benefited from that. He was the voice of adventure ed, and he brought authentic life stories to the work that he was doing. But those aren’t my stories, right? So I have to bring to the classroom and the work that I’m doing what I’m passionate about.”

 Now in her second year at the middle school, Remillard has taken the helm on two new courses that carry on the spirit of adventure education, but in different ways. Earth keepers teaches seventh grade students about the interconnectedness of the land that they live on, while change makers allows eighth graders the opportunity to use their skills and strengths to actively promote good stewardship of the land.

 For her work, Remillard was recently awarded a $2,000 grant through Voya Financial’s Unsung Heroes program. More than $6 million has been awarded through the program to date in support of “innovative teaching methods” and “creative educational projects” nationwide. 

 "Many of us have fond memories of the teachers, staff and administrators who encouraged, supported and inspired us. These individuals are the 'best of the best' and have made a meaningful difference in countless lives across our nation," Angela Harrell, Voya’s chief diversity and corporate responsibility officer and president of the Voya Foundation, said in a statement.

 Remillard said Earth keepers represents “a new vision for place-based education.” Using her ties to Wampanoag culture and history, the goal of the course is to help students recognize and understand their surroundings as one interconnected system, similar to the way the Wampanoag people have for tens of thousands of years.

 “Ultimately we want students to see that when they care for and steward the smallest creatures and the earth and the sky and the birds and the plants that they are actually protecting the things that are nourishing them,” she said.

 Earth keepers lays the foundation for the work that students will do as eighth graders in change makers. With a better understanding of what it means to be good stewards of their surrounding environment, change makers tasks students with using their interests and skills to create an “action plan” to put that stewardship to work.

 “We all know these are middle school kids and they’re doing a lot of identity work,” Remillard said. “Some of them are artists, and some of them are photographers. Some of them like to be on a soapbox and like to write. So how do you explore those different skills that might be in a change maker’s toolbox?”

  Students in change makers work on exercises such as argument mapping, persuasion and visual storytelling. They also partner with local environmental nonprofit groups, for whom they are tasked with preparing and ultimately pitching an action plan to better protect the Nauset environment. 

 Together, the courses offer not only the opportunity to fold core school subjects into a more experiential setting, they also give students that chance to concretely put the things they’ve learned into action.

 “Because we need to empower them,” she said. “They’ve got a lot of environmental messes to clean up.”

 Nauset Regional Middle School Principal Peter Cohen applauded Remillard’s work with the Earth keepers and change makers courses, especially her ability to creatively interweave the school’s core curriculum into a place based setting. 

 “She’s just a wonderful educator, and she’s one of those people who makes our school a really wonderful place to learn,” he said.

 Receipt of the $2,000 Voya grant puts Remillard in contention for additional grant funding. Three national winners will be selected to earn an additional $5,000, $10,000 or $25,000 for their respective projects. The three winners are expected to be announced in late October or early November, Voya said in its release.

 For Remillard, that additional funding would be used to help fund the creation of a wetu and garden in the area of the school’s outdoor classroom space near Boland Pond. The project, which is being conducted alongside the Wampanoag Tribe, is designed to be a space for ongoing education for students. 

 Remillard said the plan is to raise approximately $30,000 for the project, noting that the effort has already received $5,000 contributions from the Orleans Conservation Trust and the town of Orleans. 

 “We’ve got to raise a significant amount of money for this wetu, so we’re in the process of grant writing and looking for private donors and things like that,” she said. “Because we want this outdoor learning space that’s so real for kids and a garden that would be awesome for our school.”

 But beyond the grants, Remillard said she’s proud of the recognition innovative classes such as Earth keepers and change makers are receiving, as well as the support the courses have received from the Nauset community.

 “It’s just a recognition that kids need to be out there, they need to be experiencing, they need to be exploring,” she said.