Cara Tirado, K-12 Curriculum & Assessment Science Coordinator for the Carson City School District, has been chosen by the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) as one of only five individuals nationally to receive a Leader in Sustainability Fellowship for the coming 2022-2023 school year.
Carson City School District will receive ongoing support from the center and its partners over the course of the next year and will benefit from connections and resource sharing with a broad network of other school district sustainability staff.
“Ms. Tirado is an excellent example of sustainability to both her students and coworkers alike,” said Richard Stokes, superintendent for the Carson City School District. “We are pleased she is getting the recognition and accolades on a national level for all that she does in our school district.”
According to the Carson City School District, Tirado has facilitated and piloted sustainability curriculum throughout K-12 grade levels. She also has a team of teachers at the K-5 level piloting curriculum from the Biomimicry Institute, which has been wildly popular. Additionally, Project ReCharge is used in both science and STEM courses at the 6-8 grade levels, and she’s helped develop a new Environmental Science course at the high school level.
Earth science is currently being integrated into each of the three core science classes: biology, chemistry and physics, so every student who graduates from Carson High School or Pioneer Academy will have a healthy dose of Earth Science and its systems in their background.
“The coordinator team is currently in the beginning stages of K-12 vertical alignment with a focus on sustainability and grouping units across the curriculum so students can study a topic from different viewpoints within each core class,” Tirado said. “I hope to bring the 4Ps (Phenomena, Place, Project and Problem) Based Learning model into our classrooms through this work and give the students the opportunity to solve problems collectively and collaboratively. Part of sustainability is sustaining healthy relationships with peers and teachers. I aim to help young people learn how to deal with conflict and work with someone especially when they disagree on a subject.”
Tiradio said in her position, she helps promote and integrate sustainability mindsets where possible, not only in the area of curriculum and instruction, but also in the areas of culture and climate. She also would like to develop outdoor learning spaces at all ten school sites in Carson City.
“Studies show students perform and feel better when given the opportunity to work outside and connect with nature,” she continued. “Nestled in this beautiful valley, it only makes sense to teach our students about our local ecosystems, using our local ecosystems.”
The five national fellowship recipients represent more than 114,000 students from diverse communities all across the country.
