Pollinator Protectors: Excessive Faculty Park

Excessive Faculty Park is positioned on the location of a former highschool in Cheltenham Township, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When the varsity closed and the location was in want of renovation, the local people organized to rework the land right into a public park. From the beginning, the neighborhood advocates had the imaginative and prescient of making and preserving a local ecosystem. As we speak, the thriving and exquisite native meadows and rain gardens are stewarded by Pals of Excessive Faculty Park. Widespread milkweed (Asclepias syriaca), the one host plant for Monarch butterfly caterpillars, is ample within the meadow that’s tended with none use of pesticides or herbicides, making certain wildlife can thrive. Along with supporting native wildlife and vegetation, the park is a hub for neighborhood schooling and engagement for individuals looking for to rework their suburban yards to assist native pollinators. 

Endangered Species Coalition companions with Pals of Excessive Faculty Park (FHSP) on tasks spanning artistic arts installations, academic packages, native plantings, and digital and in-person trainings. This collaboration has included Pollinator Protectors funding for native plant species, artist-led packages about macroinvertebrate habitat and Monarch butterflies, and revolutionary academic packages for native and nationwide audiences.

In Could 2025, artists Rebecca Schultz and Diane Ehrich displayed their work to the neighborhood in live performance with the reveal of a brand new native plant backyard. Rebecca’s artwork set up, Embedded, represented the Park’s panorama and parts of native pollinator vegetation. Embedded was made with unfired, regionally foraged clay and contained Widespread Milkweed seeds which might develop into a part of the backyard. In her workshop, Diane introduced her botanical illustration of widespread milkweed, to encourage neighborhood members to be taught extra concerning the significance of milkweed, and create artworks of their very own via a hands-on drawing lesson.

All through the summer time, the Widespread Milkweed illustration remained on show on the entrance of the close by public library, the place milkweed seeds have been obtainable for guests to take at no cost, and books about pollinators, native vegetation, and native ecology have been featured. The illustration drew consideration to the seeds and books, rising the variety of library guests that introduced dwelling seeds and books, and galvanizing the neighborhood!