Gunston Awarded $100,000 Grant from CBT

Pictured (L-R): Headmaster John Lewis, Waterfront Director Amy Gross-Kehoe, Board Chair Stoney Duffey

The Gunston School, a college preparatory high school in Centreville, recently received some very good news from the Chesapeake Bay Trust program—a partnership of the Trust, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Restoration Center, and the Maryland Department of the Environment. Gunston was awarded a grant in the amount of $100,000 for a 770’ living shoreline project on the school’s waterfront property. This grant comes on the heels of a $100,000 gift the school recently received from a donor to renovate the school’s waterfront athletics complex. “Very few schools have direct waterfront access,” said Headmaster John Lewis, “and we now have the resources to transform our waterfront into one of the finest facilities on the East Coast.”

Upon completion, The Gunston School’s Living Shoreline will restore 770′ linear feet of eroding shoreline and create 16,183 square feet of wetlands. This stable habitat will benefit local fauna- herons, Maryland Terrapins, fish, crabs and other aquatic organisms that benefit from a typical living shoreline project. Plantings to be installed include Scirpus Pungens, Spartina Patens, and Panicum Virgatum. Other benefits include the enhancement of wildlife and fisheries habit, water quality improvements, and public education and involvement. The renovation of the waterfront athletics complex will provide modern facilities for the school’s crew and sailing teams, both of which compete with schools up and down the East Coast.

The school’s strategic planning process has been focused on developing Gunston’s connection to the water, making the waterfront and the associated educational and athletic opportunities a signature theme of the school. To accomplish this, Gunston has partnered with the MD-DNR, Sustainable Sciences, LLC and Delmarva RC&D. DNR’s Ecosystem Restoration Services (ERS) has had many years of experience in living shorelines and habitat restoration/creation. Personnel from ERS were instrumental in passing the Living Shorelines Law in 2008, while also continuing to provide technical assistances to waterfront property owners throughout the State. RC&D has been working with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Shore Erosion Control Program (DNR SEC) since 1987 by providing assistance to Maryland property owners in resolving shoreline and stream bank erosion problems.

In the short term, the project will directly involve Gunston’s 200-plus student, family, faculty, staff and neighbors. Many regular users, including the Corsica River Conservancy and other partner groups, have shown great interest in monitoring the progress of the project and helping install sand and plants. Approximately 300 volunteers will be assisting with various facets of the project.

The Gunston student experience is deeply intertwined with the waterfront, from the time they arrive to Gunston by boat their freshman year, to the time they disembark by boat as graduating seniors. Access to the river provides a dynamic living classroom, for classes ranging from biology and environmental science to writing and art. Among two of the school’s most popular sports are interscholastic Rowing and Sailing teams. Summer Programs provide children and teens access to water-related camps including rowing, sailing, and the “Water, Wonder, and Wetlands” environmental science camp. Amy Gross-Kehoe, Gunston’s Waterfront Director and Director of Summer Programs, has many reasons to celebrate: “This project allows us to maintain Gunston’s waterfront access that is used by numerous community partners. This also presents a wonderful teaching opportunity on the importance of preserving the Chesapeake Bay.”

Much of the school’s community service is also centered on shoreline and river access. Gunston students mentor local elementary school students in water quality studies and the “Maryland Grows Oysters” project. Additionally, Gunston offers waterfront access on the Corsica River to community members and groups like the Corsica River Conservancy and the Chester River Association. Nearly 600 people per year access the Chesapeake Bay though the Gunston waterfront.

In 2011, Gunston was named a Maryland Green School due to its long standing commitment to instill in students the importance of place, which has resulted in educational experiences that take advantage of the school’s unique riverside location.

For more information on The Gunston School and Open House events, visit www.gunston.org or call 410.758.0620.