New Developments at SEER

California's Education and the Environment Initiative (EEI)

The Education and the Environment Initiative was established as a result of California Assembly Bill 1548 (Pavley, Chapter 665, Statutes of 2003). It was signed into law in October 2003 by then Governor Gray Davis.

Since January of 2004, SEER has played a leadership role in the planning, development, and implementation of California's Education and the Environment Initiative. SEER is the Principal Consultant to the California Environmental Protection Agency and Integrated Waste Management Board for implementation of the EEI.

In the first phase of the EEI, SEER worked with The Acorn Group, and led the development of California's first ever, officially approved "Environmental Principles and Concepts." This phase of development was completed in October, 2005.

During the second phase of development, which started in January 2006, SEER worked with the EEI's Model Curriculum Planning Committee to create the "Model Curriculum Plan," a detailed plan for the development of a standards-driven, K-12th grade curriculum for science and history-social science. In order to design the most effective curriculum possible, the EEI Model Curriculum Planning Committee brought together the California Environmental Protection Agency, Integrated Waste Management Board, Department of Education, State Board of Education, Governor's Secretary of Education, and the California Resources Agency.

SEER is currently leading, the development of the EEI Curriculum for the State, the third major phase of the EEI. SEER has brought together and is managing a team of over 80 writers, editors, and graphic designers who are working to produce this K-12th grade curriculum. The EEI Curriculum is designed to teaching California's Environmental Principles and Concepts to students throughout California.

Final draft units of the EEI Curriculum have been reviewed by California’s Curriculum Development and Supplemental Materials Commission (Curriculum Commission). The curriculum units are undergoing final revisions and will be presented to California's State Board of Education for review and approval in January of 2010.

The most current versions of the EEI curriculum units are available for downloading from: http://www.calepa.ca.gov/Education/EEI/Curriculum/Default.htm.

Additional information about this groundbreaking new law is available from the Education and the Environment Initiative website http://www.calepa.ca.gov/Education/EEI/.



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Last update 10/8/09