Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience
Meaningful Watershed Education Experience (MWEE)
Pennsylvania Sea Grant and partners host and facilitate Meaningful Watershed Education Experience (MWEE) professional development workshops for formal and non-formal educators, so they can facilitate MWEE experiences in the classroom and other educational settings.
What is a MWEE?
The Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) is a learner-centered framework that focuses on investigations into local environmental issues – leading to informed decisions and actions that contribute to stronger and more sustainable communities. MWEEs include in-class learning and hands-on outdoor experiences to ultimately make sense of the relationships between the natural world and society.
The MWEE consists of four essential elements and four supporting practices that build upon each other to create a comprehensive, learner-centered experience. Throughout the MWEE, formal and non-formal educators provide structure, support, and encouragement as learners use their curiosity and creativity to investigate and take action to address a local environmental issue.
MWEEs are appropriate for all grade levels with content and practices that grow in complexity and sophistication across the grades — starting with educator guided inquiry and progressing to learner-centered inquiry. Using the MWEE framework helps educators engage students, meet academic standards and objectives, and foster additional learning objectives such as teamwork, social-emotional learning, and civic responsibility.
Pennsylvania Sea Grant and partners have hosted numerous MWEE professional development workshops for formal and non-formal educators. Check out a few workshop highlights, below.
What participants are saying about recent MWEE workshops:
“The hands-on ‘be the student’ portion of the exploration, where we got to see how the facilitators lead us (the students), was most helpful. I now I understand my role in a MWEE.”
“I enjoyed the hands-on learning and face to face conversations with partners.”
“It was most helpful to engage in the outdoor, hands-on portions of the workshop where we were considered the learners.”
June 9 & 16 PA Certified MWEE Ambassador Workshops
These one-day PA Certified MWEE Ambassador-level workshops, hosted in Erie, PA at Asbury Woods (June 9) and Presque Isle State Park (June 16), included in-class presentations and discussions and in-field explorations, and were designed to provide the basic skills for participants to begin planning and implementing MWEEs in their classrooms or centers.
Accomplishments: Formal and non-formal K-12 educators from Pennsylvania’s Erie and Crawford Counties learned how MWEEs align with state education standards; gained tools to design learner-centered, place-based education; explored strategies for environmental action projects and community connections; networked with other educators and potential partners; and left with ready-to-use resources. Participants received 6 Act 48 hours and a $150 stipend for successful completion of the one-day workshop.
Organized and facilitated by Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Asbury Woods, IU5, the Stroud Water Research Center, and PA DCNR.
June 9 Photo Recap
June 16 Photo Recap
July 27-28 PA Certified MWEE Facilitator Workshop
This two-day PA Certified MWEE Facilitator workshop was designed for formal and non-formal K-12 educators who had already acquired the MWEE Ambassador level certification. This elevated role enables facilitators to provide PA Certified MWEE Ambassador and Educator level, and non-certificate MWEE workshops with a regional focus.
Accomplishments: Formal and non-formal K-12 educators from Pennsylvania’s Erie and Crawford Counties advanced their knowledge, skills, and ability to implement MWEEs in an instructional setting; grew their aptitude to mentor other educators; and strengthened their capacity to advocate for integrating MWEEs into their school’s or district’s curriculum. Participants received 12 Act 48 hours and a $250 stipend for successful completion of the two-day workshop.
Organized and facilitated by Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Asbury Woods, IU5, and the Stroud Water Research Center.
July 27 Photo Recap
Previous MWEE Workshops
MWEE – Watershed Literacy and Tree Planting
April 28-29, 2025
| Pennsylvania Sea Grant and Penn State Extension offered a two-day immersive, hands-on watershed learning experience for educators, to explore the Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience (MWEE) curricular framework, learn tree identification skills, tree planting best practices, and more. The program was designed to equip educators with the tools and knowledge needed to create impactful environmental literacy experiences.
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Other Types of MWEE Workshop Activities
Constructing habitats in Philadelphia County
Fish painting science lesson in Lancaster County
Macroinvertebrate sampling in Lebanon County
Exploring local phenomena using maps in Chester County
Defining an environmental problem in Dauphin County
Learning about aquaponics in Erie County
Contact Michelle Niedermeier
Michelle Niedermeier joined Pennsylvania Sea Grant in July 2021 as education lead. She is responsible for funding, planning, developing, implementing, and evaluating youth and adult educational programs with a focus on ocean, river, and Great Lakes literacy; civic action and stewardship; coastal resilience and resources; and watershed and environmental sustainability topics across Pennsylvania. Read Michelle’s full bio.
Support for the PA Certified MWEE Ambassador (June 9 and 16) and Facilitator (July 27-28) workshops was provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Great Lakes Bay Watershed Education & Training (B-WET) program, helping to fund place-based educational opportunities for students. Project Title: Systemic Implementation of Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences with Educators and K-12 Students in Counties in the Lake Erie Watershed of Pennsylvania
Grant Number: NA25NOSX429G0020-T1-01
