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Recognizing April 2026 as National Earth Month and celebrating Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet School’s commitment to fostering the next generation of environmental stewards.
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WHEREAS, Since the 1990s, April has been recognized as National Earth Month. This observed month focuses on environmental protection, sustainability, and raising awareness about climate change, and expands the impact of Earth Day, recognized on April 22, 2026; and
WHEREAS, Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet School is Philadelphia’s only environmental science career technical education institution, and one of only two in the state; and
WHEREAS, Lankenau provides students a unique curriculum centered on environmental science, urban ecology, agroecology, Geographic Information Systems, and place-based learning tied directly to its campus and long-standing environmental partnerships; and
WHEREAS, This unique curriculum is invaluable to our Philadelphia school system, and provides young minds with the skills, technical tools, and resources needed to ensure the long-term vitality of our planet and natural environment; and
WHEREAS, As Principal of Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet School Principal, Jessica Naugle McAtamney has dedicated her career to stewarding Lankenau and shaping the minds of its students with a robust environmental curriculum preparing them for career opportunities in environmentalism and empowering them to be responsible stewards of our planet; and
WHEREAS, Lankenau’s remarkable students work hard every day to challenge their thinking, and draw insights from lessons focused on urban ecology, environmental science, agroecology, sustainability, and environmental stewardship; and,
WHEREAS, Students must receive As and Bs, have exemplary attendance, and no negative behavioral disciplinary reports to even be eligible for admission, and Lankenau has a 100% graduation rate, demonstrating the school’s transformative power at preparing some of our best and brightest minds for lifelong advocacy and love for this planet we call home; and,
WHEREAS, Students at Lankenau go beyond the classroom to engage directly with living ecological systems, building knowledge through hands-on, land-based experiences in biodiversity, climate adaptation, watershed understanding, habitat protection, and applied environmental inquiry; and
WHEREAS, Lankenau embraces long-standing partnerships with environmental and public-interest institutions, including the Schuylkill Center, Manatawna Farms, True Love Seeds, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society, relationships that deepen the school’s instructional identity; now, therefore, be it,
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, Hereby recognizing April 2026 as Earth Month and celebrating the extraordinary contributions of Lankenau Environmental Science Magnet School to our City and its work developing the next generation of environmental leaders.
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