Fitch Falcons receive grant for outdoor bluebird project

Austintown Fitch announced it received a $1,500 grant from the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio. These funds will support the “Falcons to Bluebirds” project, a long-term outdoor learning tool for students.

The “Bluebirds to Falcons” project will provide a hands-on learning experience for students through the monitoring of native birds. The grant will help to fund supplies needed to make nest boxes to place throughout campus, along with binoculars needed for monitoring.

Students will study the impact that non-native birds have on the breeding success of native birds. Through years of calculating nesting success, the project will establish breeding populations of native birds around the Falcon campus.

The project will begin with the construction of the nest boxes in February, with the help of the wood shop class at Fitch. After the boxes are built, they will be placed throughout the district’s campus in March.

Biology and zoology teacher Stacey Pavlik was the visionary behind the project and was overjoyed when she got the news about receiving the grant. Pavlik completed her graduate work at Youngstown State University on the research of birds, so this project is very special to her.

“It’s really nice being able to share my passion for the outdoors with my students,” she said. “So often teachers learn about their students, but not too often do students get to learn about their teachers.”

Both Pavlik’s biology and zoology classes will participate in “Bluebirds to Falcons,” but will focus on different areas based on the curriculum.

“In biology, we will focus more on species relationships, whereas in zoology, the students will be doing a full unit on birds,” Pavlik said.

The Foundation for Appalachian Ohio is a regional community foundation serving the 32 counties of Appalachian Ohio. The program encourages and supports creative, local environmental education and activities that build on the unique assets and strengths of the region’s individual communities. The Foundation for Appalachian Ohio is working to ensure Appalachian Ohio is a region abundant in possibility.