Science In The Garden: A Personal Journey of National Science Foundation Grant For The Construction and Use of a Greenhouse and Related Facilities

Abstract

While the vast majority of the work involved in this capstone project was actually writing and submitting a national science foundation grant, the project that follows is a description of this process. The genesis of the work began as an idea a coworker of mine had. As a district, Franklin is highly limited in the resources available. Our science classrooms are out of date with technology and there is a disparaging need for more hands-on activities. Throughout our discussions, we dreamed that we could build an outdoor science lab and greenhouse; Somewhere where we would be able to give our students the best opportunities to learn about scientific concepts. When continuing this discussion, it was discovered that the greenhouse could be outfitted with all of the modern-day technology used in agriculture, which is what our community is known for. Quickly, other faculty members and staff discovered that the science department was planning on writing a greenhouse grant, and ideas started to flow about additions that could be made. Together, Franklin CSD came up with a list of needs and wants for a greenhouse, and each of these were implemented in the design. The project includes sections and products required by the National Science Foundation (NSF) such as a bibliographical sketch and budget plans. Each of these sections has a set of directions, and need to be followed with extreme accuracy with penalty of disqualification if not followed. Each figure throughout this project is captioned with a brief description of what the figure is asking the grant writer to do.