A great school year

Louisville Water Company educators visit classrooms. They participate in school health fairs and family science nights. And Louisville Water Tower Park is popular field trip destination. These are just a few facets of Louisville Water’s extensive education program.

During the 2018-19 school year, the program served students at 174 public, private, and parochial schools throughout Louisville Water’s service area. Some of the program’s highlights included …

• Louisville Water educators reached students in multiple classrooms and grade levels at several schools, including Farmer, Kenwood, Bowen, Frayser, Schaffner, Carter, Auburndale, Engelhard, Portland, Bloom, and Kennedy Montessori Elementary Schools.
• The program includes special partnerships with Field and Gutermuth Elementary Schools, which received even more intensive visits and programming.
• Louisville Water educators launched a handwashing blitz that included visits to schools as well as community organizations.
• Handwashing training was also provided to Jeffersontown High School, and the high school students then shared the lesson with elementary schools in their area.
• Louisville Water educators participated in Male High School’s Rain Garden project.
• Educators also participated in more than 15 school health or science nights
• Louisville Water renewed its partnership with Blackacre to work with schools on site at the Nature Preserve.
• The Adventures in Water Festival brought students from 24 schools and more than 20 community partners (about 1,900 total participants) to Louisville Water Tower Park.
• The education program also worked with community partners — including Louisville Visual Art, the Fund for the Arts, and Teach Kentucky — through Louisville Water Foundation grants.

An example of the work that educators did through the Teach Kentucky partnership is the instruction they provided to students at Western, Fern Creek, Southern and North Oldham High Schools. These students explored the science behind drinking water throughout the 2018-19 school year.

All of the schools received in-class programming to connect them to their water utility and learn about the importance of water quality and their individual responsibility to our water source.

Western students also visited with staff members from both Louisville Water and Louisville MSD to learn about the urban water cycle. The students toured the WaterWorks Museum and facilities at Louisville Water Tower Park and then traveled to the Crescent Hill Reservoir to get an in-depth look at water treatment.

Next, they headed to the Floyd’s Fork Treatment Plant in the Parklands to find out what happens to water after it’s collected in the sewer system.

“It was a great experience for everyone,” said teacher Aubrey Holle. “The kids really enjoyed getting to see some of the steps in person. I hope we can bring another group through next year.”