At The Storm King School, Service Learning is more than just working to accumulate community service hours. Through partnerships with local organizations, SKS students engage with the surrounding community in a range of ways including working with special needs children, caring for animals at area rescues, clearing trails in a nearby nature preserve, helping out at the local food bank, and many more.

One such partnership is with the School’s neighbor, the Hudson Highlands Nature Museum (HHNM).  With two locations in Cornwall, New York, HHNM uses its living collections of native animals, natural habitats, and trails to present a wide variety of nature education programs for people of all ages.

This spring, HHNM’s ‘Grasshopper Grove’– a popular outdoor play area for young children– is undergoing renovations and SKS students were there to help. According to SKS’ Director of Service Learning Ben Harnick, “Grasshopper Grove is a nature playground made up of almost 100% natural, mostly raw material. After a long winter, our students ensured it will be safe for the kids once again this spring. We removed old stumps from the “stump jump” area, replaced the stumps, and spread mulch in several areas. Other teams worked in places like the mini-amphitheater, bridge, and creek.

It was a great experience for everyone in many ways. HHNM tackled an important project, and our students made a significant contribution. In the end, they felt gratified that they began with a run-down nature play area and they made it better through their efforts. It was hard work and we got dirty, for sure. One of my favorite moments was when our students began singing different versions of our school’s alma mater as they worked,” continued Mr. Harnick.

“It’s always a nice thing to help others,” explained Yuecheng Cedric Zhao, an SKS junior who volunteered. “Especially when you realize the work will become a heaven for the kids, and you listen to their stories with different perspectives and experiences.”

“I also can’t overstate the positive effect this and other outdoor service activities have on our students,” explained Mr. Harnick. “I witnessed everyone communicating and operating as a team, even students who had never connected before. Everyone got a good amount of exercise, fresh air, and had close interactions with nature. We all worked really hard, and I was incredibly proud of everyone who volunteered.”

With only two weeks until the opening of Grasshopper Grove, HHNM Director of Operations Robert Lipkin was also very pleased with our students’ work: “It was great to see the enthusiasm and hard work from the students from The Storm King School. Watching them all jump in and participate, and work as a team to complete the project was wonderful. It was a big task that we weren’t sure going in if we could complete in one day. We couldn’t have done it without them. They were a joy to work with and we welcome them back any time we have another volunteer day.”