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Cindy Booker presents Eco/Eagle Island field‑trip growth and trail plans to Grand Island board
Summary
Cindy Booker, Eco/Eagle Island coordinator, told the Grand Island Central School District board the program logged 1,124 student visits in its first year and more than 2,202 last year and described pollinator‑garden renovations and plans to restore and widen trails across the 49‑acre site to expand outdoor learning.
Cindy Booker, coordinator for the district's Eco/Eagle Island program, told the Grand Island Central School District board on Sept. 1 that student participation in off‑site environmental education has grown substantially and outlined plans to improve trails and outdoor learning spaces.
"In the first year that I started working ... we have 1,124 student visits," Booker said, adding that "last year, I had over 2,202 student visits." She described using block scheduling so grade‑level classes can take consistent field‑trip itineraries and said a large portion of visits are third‑grade classes.
Booker detailed recent site work at the program's outdoor learning area, including renovation of a pollinator garden where she recorded monarch caterpillars and a chrysalis sighting. She credited a local signmaker who donated a new welcome sign and said she plans to add an informational panel to the back of it.
On trails, Booker said the site's established network—"Grand I Eco Island is a 49 acre site"—needs maintenance: widening some paths with millings and mulch, trimming overgrown shrubs and adding safer surfaces so students can walk in single file without brushing against thorny vegetation. She described collaborating with district buildings and grounds staff and local parks department personnel to identify low‑cost fixes such as moving fallen trees to act as berms and placing millings for more durable paths.
Board members and student representatives voiced support for volunteer involvement and possible student community‑service projects. One trustee moved and the board approved a motion related to the presentation (motion text not specified in the transcript) by voice vote, 6‑0.
The coordinator also invited high‑school volunteers to assist with trail and habitat projects, such as building bird‑nest boxes and trail markers, and said she has applied for habitat certification through the Grand Island Nature Alliance.
The board did not take formal budget action on the project at the meeting; trustees said they would consider volunteer efforts, possible millings provided by the town, and discuss the item again in joint town‑school meetings and future agendas.
