Learning to think beyond oneself

I’d like to voice my support for the new, exciting project happening in the Whitefish Schools — the Center for Applied Sustainability. The idea for this learning center is a long-term concept that is extremely positive for our students and will be used for all grade levels K-12.

This hands-on center will teach students in the areas of energy, agriculture, forestry, natural resources and entrepreneurship. What excites me most is that it plants the seed at a very early age for thinking beyond oneself. The values we will be creating in our youth will be extraordinary as we teach them to think and see well beyond their years. There will be many long term benefits from this type of learning for all ages.

Sustainability is a concept that many people are not introduced to until college and beyond. To have our children understand this concept early in life will be a huge advantage not only for them, but also for our community, nation and planet.

Besides all the cool things they will be doing in the greenhouse, labs, orchards and experimental forest, they will be learning life skills for the future in business and careers.

This is another example of a successful collaboration project in Whitefish; it is being funded privately with the shared vision of the school district.

— Mike Jenson, Whitefish