At Education Outside, we’re committed to advancing science in public schools, outdoors.
We transform school gardens into lush, living laboratories where learning comes naturally.
Our innovative program brings science and nature directly into the hands of more than
20,000 schoolchildren each year.
Our Mission
Education Outside advances science education and environmental literacy by teaching outdoors in public schools. We spark children’s interest in science and connect them to the natural world through hands-on learning in school gardens.
Our Vision
We are working toward a future in which all children—regardless of race, class, or geography—have positive early experiences practicing science and connecting to the natural world. Through our work, future generations will grow up to be scientifically and environmentally literate, therefore equipped to tackle the pressing environmental challenges of our time.
Our History
Education Outside grew out of a grassroots coalition known as the San Francisco Green Schoolyard Alliance, which led a successful campaign to secure nearly $14 million in city bond funding to design and construct green schoolyards at 84 public schools throughout San Francisco—one of the largest green schoolyards systems of any school district in the country. Through our work with these school communities, we realized that in order to thrive, green schoolyards need dedicated stewards—an impossibility for many schools with limited resources.
Our idea? A service corps of emerging leaders who are passionate about nature, science, the environment, social justice, and elementary education. Since 2011, we have recruited talented, passionate leaders from around the country to serve with us, teaching engaging, standards-based science and other lessons in public elementary schools. Our program debuted in San Francisco Unified School District, and now we are expanding to serve other public school districts in the Bay Area. The Corps for Education Outside is administered by CaliforniaVolunteers and sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service.