OHIO
R
O
C
K
S
ocks of
hio
rafting the
nowledge of
tratigraphy
Earth Science Club
Orrville High School
841 N. Ella St.
Orrville, OH 44667
(330) 682-4661
1. BACKGROUND OF ORGANIZATION: (5 points)
What are the goals, objectives and accomplishments of your organization?
The Orrville High School Earth Science Club was created during the 1964-65 school year in order to
promote an interest in Environmental and Geologic Science education while supporting and supplementing
ideas being taught in the classroom. Of the 605 students enrolled at Orrville High School, 83 are currently
members of the Earth Science Club, making it one of the largest organizations within the school. Through
its 37 year history, the club has achieved its goals of promoting good stewardship of the environment and
building a foundation of awareness and action about the environment by sponsoring day trips, weekend
trips, and week-long trips that allow students to experience the environment and expand their knowledge of
geology. These trips instill an appreciation for the environment and allow students the opportunity to learn
in a hands-on manner. The club also holds a bi-annual newspaper drive that collects 20,000 pounds of
paper per year, and launched a pilot program for white paper recycling through Orrville City Schools that
now includes 6 other school districts. Funding for all club activities has come from environmentally
friendly fundraisers, including an annual citrus sale, environmentally safe detergent sale, and fluorescent
light bulb sale.
2. PROJECT SUMMARY: (5 points)
Include a description of how the proposal furthers environmental education.
R.O.C.K.S. stands for Rocks of Ohio Crafting the Knowledge of Stratigraphy. If funded, the Earth Science
Club will schedule a series of field trips to visit the different strata and geologic features of the state, and
will collect rock samples from each of these areas in order to assemble a stratigraphic cross section of the
State of Ohio. The goal of the R.O.C.K.S. Program is to promote knowledge not only of the geology of
Ohio, but to raise awareness of the environment in general. Giving students the opportunity to study, in
depth, the processes that created the different rock strata of Ohio is expected to motivate students to
become interested and expand their horizons beyond the geology. Understanding the processes which
created the geology of the State of Ohio will give students a foundation from which they can continue
exploration of the environment and the sciences. The Ohio R.O.C.K.S. project will facilitate an
Environmental Geologic education that will literally lay the foundation on which Ohio was built.
Collaboration with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and multiple Ohio State parks and museums
will support a multi-faceted inquiry based education of the history, environment, and geology of the
Buckeye State.
3. PROJECT JUSTIFICATION: (15 points)
Why is the project needed by the target audience?
A student can only learn so much from a textbook. The opportunity to experience geology in a real world
context provides more knowledge in a single day than a textbook could demonstrate in a week. A
chemistry class without a lab would be incomplete, just as a geology class without fieldwork is missing a
vital component. This program would give students the opportunity to study in the field and actually see
the effects of the processes that shape our environment. By assembling a stratigraphic profile of the state,
the students will be able to clearly see the progression and processes that brought about Ohio’s geology.
Any of the 605 students at Orrville High School are able to join the Earth Science Club, and all club
members are eligible to go on club funded trips. An average trip attracts anywhere from 10-30 club
members, and if the R.O.C.K.S program is instituted, interest in the trips is expected to increase due to the
manner in which the program builds upon itself with each successive trip.
Orrville currently has two Ecology classes and an Environmental Geology class accredited
through the College of Wooster, participates in the Envirothon, and has had requests from students that the
curriculum be expanded to include an independent environmental studies program. The interest of Orrville
students in environmental education programs is evident and giving students this opportunity will provide a
way to connect the knowledge they have learned in the classroom with the real world.
4. PROJECT GOALS/OBJECTIVES: (15 points)
In a broad sense, what will be accomplished?
The goal of the Earth Science Club and the R.O.C.K.S. program is to let students reach beyond the
textbook and classroom by providing exciting opportunities to study environmental and geologic science.
Many students who would fall asleep if they were told to read about stratigraphy in a textbook will jump at
the chance to grab a rock hammer and collection bag and hunt for a perfect sample of fossiliferous
limestone or Mississippian concretions. Supplementing classroom education with an exciting context to
study geology and learn more about the environment can create in students a thirst for knowledge that had
never been there before. Each student will create a stratigraphic profile of the State of Ohio, which they
will be able to keep or donate to the Earth Science Club, which plans to in turn donate them to Orrville City
School District Elementary Schools and Junior High School, or other school districts. The profiles will
provide a tangible way for students to see the geology of Ohio.
5. ACTIVITIES AND TIME LINE: (15 points)
What are the specific activities to achieve the objectives, and what is the schedule
for completion?
The proposed calendar of trips during the 2002-2003 school year is as followed:
Objective Fulfilled
Collection and environmental experience
Collection and environmental experience
Environmental/Geologic education
Collection and environmental experience
Collection and environmental experience
Environmental/Geologic education
Collection and environmental experience
Assembly of projects
Activity
Date
Dillon State Park
Kelleys Island
Orton Hall and ODNR at Alum Creek
Hinckley Hills
Bowling Green – France Stone Quarry
Cleveland Museum of Natural History
Caesar Creek
Stratigraphic Profile Assembly Day
September 7 & 8
September 29
October 5
November 2
November 23
January 18
April 26
May 4
Students will collect samples to complete their stratigraphic profiles at all sites. Each of the trips has a
specific highlight (geologic features and strata age) that makes it appropriate for the R.O.C.K.S. program,
but each has been chosen for its overall facilitation of teaching Ohio geology and environmental science.
Outdoor trips will include hikes through the area with stops at points of interest and explanations provided
by our advisors. The group will take a hike through Dillon State Park trip which will provide the
opportunity to study Mississippian, Pennsylvanian, and Permian age rocks, such as the Black Hand
sandstone. The trip will be an overnight that will include visits to see the Ohio flint deposits and explore
the museum at Flint Ridge, as well as a trip to Wolf Run to study the Permian Age sandstones. The Kelleys
Island trip will show the effects of the glaciers which played a crucial role in two-thirds of Ohio geology
with its features including the glacial grooves and deposits. The club will tour Orton Hall and the Ohio
Department of Natural Resources branch at Alum Creek to learn more about the geology and natural
resources of Ohio. The Hinckley Hills trip provides an opportunity to study Mississippian Age rocks such
as the Sharon Conglomerate during a hike through the park. The visit to France Stone Quarry at Bowling
Green will include a tour to demonstrate Silurian Age geology, with the main features being the dolomites
and limestones of the region. The Cleveland Museum of Natural History is a trip that is suited for the
winter months and will be yet another opportunity to foster understanding of Ohio geology, along with
allowing students to see an actual stratigraphic profile. The Caesar Creek field trip will furnish a chance to
study Ordovician geology with such items as fossiliferous limestone and brachiopods. Finally, May 4 is
planned as a day for students who have participated in the R.O.C.K.S. program to complete the assembly of
their stratigraphic profile boxes.
6. COLLABORATION: (10 points)
How will other organizations be involved in this project?
The Orrville High School Earth Science Club will be the organization in charge of administering the
R.O.C.K.S. program. The club has worked with organizations such as the Tri-County Solid Waste District
to launch the white paper recycling program, and the City of Orrville to clean up and install trails in a
wetland area near the high school. The club will continue collaboration with the R.O.C.K.S. program with
such organizations as the Industrial Technology Department of the High School, the Ohio Department of
Natural Resources, and other schools within the district and local area. The Industrial Technology
Department of Orrville, which has worked with the Salvation Army to produce wooden toys for
underprivileged children, will be asked to help with the construction of boxes for the stratigraphic profiles.
The club has previously been invited to visit the ODNR branch at Alum Creek, and as this proved to be an
excellent educational opportunity we have included the trip in the activities of the R.O.C.K.S. program.
The club also plans to make the stratigraphic profiles produced by the R.O.C.K.S. program available to
other schools within the district or other school districts for educational purposes. The instructor will also
build a demonstration model of the stratigraphic profile, so in the event that all students would choose to
keep theirs, the Earth Science Club would still have a profile available to loan out for demonstrations to all
interested parties.
7. PROJECT RESULTS: (10 points)
How will you determine the success of the project?
The success of the R.O.C.K.S. program will be first measured through the interest generated by the
program, the level of participation, and the quality of the stratigraphic profiles produced by the students. In
order to quantify the results and allow opportunity to review the goals and reach of the program, a pre- and
post-participation survey will be conducted, allowing an assessment of student knowledge prior to and after
the program, while also allowing students to provide feedback on their thoughts about the program.
Teachers who borrow the stratigraphic profiles will be asked to report back on their usefulness as a
teaching aid. The success of the program should be readily evident through these three avenues, and the
feedback from the survey will provide a way to focus the program more toward the interests and needs of
the students who are participating.
8. DISSEMINATION: (10 points)
How will information and results be shared?
Information about the success of the project will be used by the advisors of the Earth Science Club to
determine any changes that could be made to improve the program. The main opportunity for sharing
results will be through the availability of the stratigraphic profiles created by the program to other schools
within and outside of the district. Making these profiles available as a teaching aid will increase the
awareness and interest in the program, along with enhancing educational opportunities available to teachers
within the classroom. Information about the R.O.C.K.S. project, and the stratigraphic profiles will be made
available on the Earth Science Club website. Teachers from other districts will be able to learn about uses
for the stratigraphic profiles through the website, and information on how to obtain a profile from the Earth
Science Club will also be posted there.
9. BUDGET: (15 points)
Include in-kind services, match monies, personnel, space costs, equipment,
consumable supplies, travel, telephone, other costs (explained) and total costs.
BUDGET SPREADSHEET
OEEF FUNDING ESC Contribution
A. PERSONNEL
1. Salary or Wages
2. Benefits
3. Stipends
4. Substitute Teachers
Subtotal
B. NON-PERSONNEL
1. Supplies
2. Equipment
Textbook: Fossils of Ohio (15 @ $18 ea.)
Canvas Field Bags (30 @ $30 ea.)
Safety Goggles (30 @ $6 ea.)
Student Transits (11 @ $169 ea.)
Brunton Instructional Transit (2 @ $212)
Needed for Stratigraphic Boxes:
Plywood (6 4'x8' sheets @ $15 ea.)
Hinges (60 @ $0.50 ea.)
Latches (30 @ $0.50 ea.)
Wood Screws (1 box @ $7)
3. Printing
4. Other
Transportation
Vans 2 vans @ $50/day ea. (for 7 trips)
Gasoline (for total of 7 trips)
Kelleys Island ferry $10/person x 24 people
Admissions
Cleveland Museum Of Natural Hist.
$4.50 x 22 students + $5 x 2 advisors
Lodging
Dillon State Park Cabins 6 @ $125 ea.
Meals
4 meals (Lunch, Dinner, Breakfast, Lunch) for overnight
@ $5/meal/person for 24 people
Subtotal
C. CONTRACTUAL
Subtotal
TOTAL EARTH SCIENCE CLUB FUNDING:
TOTAL OEEF FUNDING:
0
0
0
0
0
0
2000
0
0
0
0
0
180
900
180
1690
0
0
0
0
0
424
150
60
60
20
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
340
1600
1400
0
155
0
875
0
0
680
4610
6104
0
0
0
0
$
$
4,610.00
6,104.00
Budget Narrative:
OEEF funding for the R.O.C.K.S. project covers expenses related to the trips to be taken and the
equipment which will be needed to facilitate studying the stratigraphy of Ohio in depth. Mr.
James Duxbury, the official Earth Science Club advisor, receives a stipend from the school to
advise the group. The Earth Science Club also has available volunteer advisors who will help by
driving vans and supervising trips. No OEEF funding will be used for personnel. The textbook
Fossils of Ohio (10 @ $18 each, $180 total) will be used to help students learn about any fossils
found during explorations, and will also act as a rough field guide. The Earth Science Club
currently has a set of canvas field bags which were purchased with club funds, but they have
begun to deteriorate to the point where a project such as this would warrant their replacement.
The field bags (30 @ $30 each, $900 total) would be used for carrying any samples found, and
for the tools that can be used in the field, including the rock hammers, which the Earth Science
Club currently has a set of and will be providing. Safety goggles (30 @ $6 each, $180 total) are
needed to protect students while using rock hammers to find samples for their profiles. The
Student Transits (10 @ $169 each, $1690) are a multipurpose tool which the students will be
trained to use to find data such as the dip and strike of a rock plane, or the slope of a region. The
Earth Science Club will purchase 2 Instructor Models with club funds (2 @ $212 each, $424
total), which the advisors will use to demonstrate the capabilities of the transits to the students.
The supplies listed under Needed for Stratigraphic Boxes are those that will be used by the
Industrial Technology Department to assemble the boxes in which the stratigraphy profiles will
be created. The supplies include plywood (6 sheets @ $25 each, $150 total), hinges (30 pair @
$2/pair, $60 total), latches (30 pair @ $2/pair, $60 total), and wood screws (2 boxes @ $10 each,
$20 total). Earth Science Club fundraiser monies will cover transportation costs to the sites
including provision of vans for transportation (4 vans @ $50/day/van for 8 days, $1600 total) and
gasoline ($50/van/trip for 7 trips, $1400 total). The cost of the ferry at Kelleys Island (30
students and 4 advisors @ $10 each, $340) will be paid for through OEEF funds. Admission
costs to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History (30 students @ $4.50 each, 4 advisors @ $5
each, $155 total) will also be funded by OEEF funds. The lodging costs of the R.O.C.K.S.
program kickoff overnight event at Dillon State Park for 30 students and 4 advisors (7 cabins @
$125 each, $875 total) are to be funded with the OEEF grant. The Earth Science Club will pay for
all meals (4 meals @ $5/meal/person for 30 students and 4 advisors, $680 total) on the overnight
Dillon State Park trip. Finally, since the Earth Science Club is unique in its goal of providing
environmental education opportunities to all interested students regardless of their financial
circumstances, any unforeseen costs (i.e. greater than anticipated student interest, rising
admissions costs, etc.) will be covered with Earth Science Club funds. Approximately 2/3 of the
startup costs will be funded with OEEF funds, with 1/3 coming from Earth Science Club funds.
In future years, since equipment will have already been purchased, the Earth Science Club will be
able to fund all expenses related to the R.O.C.K.S. program.