Allegheny College’s award-winning Creek Connections program has received a renewed grant from the PPG Foundation, ensuring another year of critical funding for its free STEM programming.
Creek Connections has turned the waterways of Western Pennsylvania into outdoor environmental laboratories since 1995. Each year, the program involves 50 classrooms from over 40 different secondary schools. In 2025, classroom and field site visits reached over 2,000 students.
“The purpose of this grant is to help students increase their environmental literacy by studying local waterways,” said Wendy Kedzierski, director of Creek Connections. “By conducting the testing themselves, they gain direct exposure to the scientific method and essential ecological concepts.”
Local K-12 classes partner with Allegheny College students and staff to study their local waterway through monthly water quality monitoring using water chemistry test kits. Parameters monitored include temperature, conductivity, total dissolved solids, dissolved oxygen, pH, alkalinity, turbidity, nitrates and phosphates.
As a signee of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Agreement, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania is charged with the goal of offering students watershed educational opportunities, referred to as “Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences.” Creek Connections’ programming embodies that mission.
In 2026, the PPG Foundation is marking 75 years of community impact. Support of the Creek Connections program is part of PPG’s commitment to sustainability education. The PPG Foundation has supported Creek Connections for three years to help fund monthly water quality monitoring and associated costs to make this routine maintenance possible.
“The PPG Foundation invests in educational initiatives like the Creek Connections program to promote environmental sustainability as an extension of our STEM education work. The Creek Connections program gives students a hands-on opportunity to experience the intersection of STEM and environmental sustainability in a real-world setting,” said Malesia Dunn, executive director, PPG Foundation and global corporate social responsibility. “We understand that investing in programs that equip young people to be environmental stewards may lead to pathways into sustainability-related careers.”
Creek Connections has forged an effective partnership between Allegheny College and regional schools for decades. By emphasizing inquiry-based investigation, the program fosters a deep connection between students and their local environment.
Learn more about the transformative work Creek Connections is doing.
