Massachusetts Cultural Council Awards $7,000 Grant to Lloyd Center for the Environment
Boston, MA – The Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC), a state agency, has awarded the Lloyd Center for the Environment (Dartmouth, MA) a $7,000 Cultural Investment Portfolio Grant for public cultural programming.
Awarded through a competitive process, this organizational support grant signifies that the Lloyd Center for the Environment provides a high level of quality in its programs, community service and administrative ability.
Financial support from the MCC’s Cultural Investment Portfolio Program assists the Lloyd Center in its ability to continue providing environmental research and education services to the schools and citizens of southeastern Massachusetts. Of special note is the fact that MCC support partially underwrites the costs of Lloyd Center science programs provided to public schools which would not otherwise be able to afford them. With municipal and school budgets as tightly restricted as they are today, the Lloyd Center’s ability to bring interactive and cost-effective science classes, both in-school and at the Center’s 82-acre coastal nature preserve, has proven to be of great benefit to the cities and towns it serves.
“Fostering students’ interests and education in the sciences is crucial to their future success in today’s economy. I am pleased that this grant will enable the Lloyd Center to continue providing exciting hands on science programs for area children and schools,” said Senator Mark Montigny. “These programs not only teach valuable science skills but also showcase the beauty and richness of our area’s natural resources to the children thus inspiring them to be good stewards of their environment.”
MCC has a budget of $11.2 million, including an appropriation of $9.5 million from the state of Massachusetts and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and other sources. Its funds reach every community in Massachusetts. The mission of the MCC is to promote excellence, education, access and diversity in the arts, humanities and sciences in order to improve the quality of life for all Massachusetts residents and to contribute to the economic vitality of our communities. The not-for-profit cultural industry has a $4.2 billion economic impact in the state.
The Lloyd Center for the Environment, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, founded in 1978 and situated with its headquarters and spectacular nature preserve overlooking the scenic Slocum River estuary, has achieved a well-earned reputation for excellence in environmental research and education. Through its innovative outreach programs, it has established itself as a highly regarded leader in the ongoing effort to raise awareness of the area’s fragile coastal resources and the importance of protecting them.
At its 82-acre nature preserve, comprising pristine salt marsh, maritime forest and undisturbed wetlands, in one of the most unspoiled reaches of Dartmouth, the Visitor Center is open from 10 to 4, Tuesday through Saturday, and on Sundays, June – September, free of charge. There, aquarium exhibits offer unique views of live freshwater and saltwater species of fish and other marine critters. The Center is also home to a fascinating collection of live local reptiles, many representing endangered species, being “head-started” and readied for release back into their natural environment. At the always popular touch-tank, youngsters learn the hands-on joy of socializing with gentle spider crabs, elusive minnows, sea stars (starfish), whelks, hermit crabs, periwinkles and mussels.
The top-floor Osprey Room Observatory, with its magnificent views of the Elizabeth Islands and Buzzards Bay, has been designated by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Environmental Affairs as one of the Commonwealth’s top-fifteen “Special Places”. Through telescopes there, one can get a close-up view of formerly endangered Ospreys, and their chicks, nesting on platforms erected by members of the Center’s research staff.
Trails are open from dawn to dusk, seven days a week. The Lloyd Center for the Environment is located at 430 Potomska Road, Dartmouth, Massachusetts. For more information, visit www.lloydcenter.org or call 774-628-9241.
Contact: JoAnn Bernier Cornell, Director of Communications
774-628-9241 ext. 20