Have you gardened during the COVID-19 shutdown? In the 2020 spring semester, students in the Public Engagement in Science graduate course partnered with the Cincinnati Nature Center to inspire the community to learn about species of plants and animals originally from our region and inspire people to plant these species on their own properties. When COVID-19 led to stay-at-home orders, this took the form of hosting a contest akin to a virtual science fair for K-12 students. They were challenged to create informative materials for anyone interested in growing and attracting native species in their own yards.
Local K-12 students submitted a variety of posters related to any native plant, animal, or community of interest to them. While there were many creative submissions, winners were selected based on their creativity, the research they did, and how well they communicated their information to the audience of their choice. Both the graduate students and Cincinnati Nature Center were impressed by what was accomplished by the competitors.
We are excited to present the winners of the contest, and hope that their creations will aid anyone interested in growing plants beneficial to southern Ohio. Congratulations to Emma Jeffers, Elliot Griesser, Carson DuBrucq, Kacy Nagy, and Madison Brown! We sincerely hope you enjoy your prizes and wish you success in the coming school year!
CNC’s announcement of your accomplishment can be found here.
Click the student’s names to view their work at full size!
1st place: Emma Jeffers
2nd place: Elliot Greisser
3rd place (tied): Carson DeBrucq and Kacy Nagy
Honorable Mention: Madison Brown
