BY ALEJANDRA
O’CONNELL-DOMENECH
Schools Chancellor Meisha
Ross Porter canoed
alongside about 200 public
school students on the Harlem
River on Oct. 12, in honor
of the 10th anniversary of the
creation of the Urban Waters
Federal Partnership, a
program that works to connect
kids living in big cities
with local waterways in order
to teach them about their
impact on the surrounding
environment and human
health.
“Our students are the next
leaders of New York City, and
initiatives like this will empower
them with the knowledge
to care for our environment
and inspire responsible
stewardship,” Ross Porter
said in a statement.
Bronx students from I.S.
229 Roland Patterson, I.S.
X303 Leadership & Community
Service and P.S. 126 Dr.
Margoir H. Dunbar paddled
up the river in six 24-footlong
voyageur canoes along
with seven boat captains
from Wilderness Inquiry, a
Minnesota-based non-profi t
that offers guided outdoor
adventure tours, and got the
chance to learn about the geography
and history of the
river.
Afterward, students went
on land at Roberto Clemente
State Park to learn about the
waterway and park’s wildlife
and different ecosystems by
taking part in activities like
water quality testing, seed
planting, and learning how
to tend to indigenous plants
with the help of local organizations
like the Harlem River
Working Group, the U.S.
Geological Survey, Bronx
is Blooming, the New York
State Parks Department and
the USDA Forest Service.
Normally, Wilderness Inquiry
visits more than 50 cities
across the country each
year and typically comes to
New York City twice a year
for three day-long stints in
order to bring up to 1,000
public school students from
the Bronx out on the water
and learn about the natural
resources around them.
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, O 18 CT. 22-28, 2021 BTR
“That playspace and
hands-on learning is just
a really incredible way for
them to own and feel and experience
these pieces of this
natural wonder really close
to home,” said Willy Tully,
development director at Wilderness
Inquiry, who added
that about 80% of the kids
they serve have never been
out on the Harlem River before
in a canoe or any other
type of recreational boat.
“The Harlem River is this
incredible public natural
resource blocks away from
so many of the schools and
neighborhoods where these
kids live, and a lot of them
haven’t been able to experience
it.”
But due to the pandemic,
nonprofi t’s ability to travel
outside of their home city of
Minneapolis has been limited
and Wilderness Inquiry’s
visit last week — Harlem
River canoe tours and park
activities have been taking
place since Monday and
ended Wednesday — is their
New York City Schools Chancellor Meisha Ross Porter paddles around the
Harlem River with students from the Bronx to celebrate the 10th anniversary
of the Urban Waters Federal Partnership, an initiative that connects
kids living in urban environments to local waterways. Photo courtesy
Department of Education
fi rst time back in the Big Apple
since the pandemic hit in
March of last year. And employees
noticed a change in
energy among students and
teachers than in years past.
“The excitement and joy
and engagement that we’re
seeing this year is different
than it was a year and a
half and I think … it has a lot
to do with how challenging
the pandemic was for kids,”
Tully said.
NYC schools chancellor
canoes with Bronx students