2023 Grants in Place Celebration of Learning
An annual, virtual event to bookend the Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Program and celebrate the Fellows after completing their place based education projects during the school year.
On Friday, June 2nd RSC hosted the annual Celebration of Learning virtual event - showcasing the 2022 - 2023 Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Fellows and the incredible impact they made with their students in their communities during their place-based education projects.
The Rural Schools Collaborative’s Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Fellows program provides grant awards to rural school teachers who engage their students in exemplary place-based learning projects.
This year, 14 Fellows from our Regional Hubs were selected to participate in the program throughout the 2022-2023 school year. On June 2nd, Fellows and attendees gathered for a virtual Celebration of Learning, giving Fellows the opportunity to share the impact their projects had on their students, school, and community with a broader audience. This event was facilitated by Leslie Cook of Teton Science Schools, whose excellence and expertise in place-based learning made the event a success.
Celebration of Learning Presentations
The presentations featured exciting and inspiring projects that brought together community stakeholders and emphasized the power of connection to place. Watch the replay to learn more about the Fellows and their place-based projects!
The 2023 Fellows cohort was an especially unique group of rural educators. The Fellows supported each others’ accomplishments through their school greenhouse transformations, forest restoration projects, improving local historical sites, fostering cross disciplinary connections, enhancing school and student connectedness – all the while overcoming weather conditions and other road bumps along the way. Nevertheless, these rural educators made a lasting impact in their rural communities all across the country.
Thank you to all of the Fellows for their participation and for sharing about their place-based projects - congratulations on the impacts and connections you all fostered!
You can learn more about each of the 2022 - 2023 Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Fellows here and learn more about past projects and Grants in Place recipients here.
We'd also like to extend a warm thank you to our 2022-2023 Grants in Place Selection Committee:
Tammy La Prad (Committee Chair, Monmouth College); Nate McClennen (Wyoming); Celia Godsil (Knox County, IL); Leslie Cook (Wyoming); Jeremy Eltz (Indiana)
The Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Program is funded through the generous support from Celia and Mark Godsil in honor of Celia's career as a public school teacher and their belief in the importance of classroom teachers to rural communities. Celia and Mark reside in rural Knox County in Illinois. RSC is incredibly thankful for the Godsils three year commitment to elevate the Grants in Place program. Between 2020 - 2023, the Celia B. Godsil Grants in Place Fellows Program has impacted over 35 rural educators and communities and hundreds of students along the way.
Since 2015 the Rural Schools Collaborative and its partners have awarded more than $500,000 to rural classroom teachers in support of innovative place-based projects. We invite you to check out our roster of Grants in Place projects:
Learn about more ways to get involved with the Rural Schools Collaborative community or contact us today at [email protected] with questions about this year's Grants in Place efforts.
Eric Nichols - Crane, OR
May 21, 2025
In a widespread community in Harney County, Oregon, the community is the school.
Place-Based Education, Teacher Profile, Rural Resilience
Ms. Jennifer Pratt, M.Ed. - Houston, MS
May 13, 2025
Houston Alternative School educator and 2024 National Signature Project Award recipient brings place-based learning to life through garden and outdoor classroom initiatives.
Place-Based Education, Teacher Profile, Mississippi, Grants in Place
2024-25 Grants in Place Updates from the Field
April 16, 2025
Celebrating Innovation, Community, and Hands-On Learning: How Rural Educators Are Transforming Classrooms Across the Country Through Place-Based Education