Pleasant Valley Elementary School will host a Boardwalk Trail Ribbon Cutting for the school’s “Wildside” – a 13 acre piece of land on the school’s property that is used to educate students about the environment. The festivities will begin at 3:30 p.m. with meet and greet, followed by the official dedication and recognition at 4 p.m. Immediately following, there will be an Open House with tours of the site. Pleasant Valley Elementary School is located at 17625 S.E. Foster Road, Gresham, Oregon. 

Twelve years ago, Pleasant Valley Elementary School sixth grade teacher David Scharfenberg got permission from the Centennial School Board for he and his students to begin a restoration of seven acres of district owned property that sits adjacent to their school playground. The goals of the project were to: improve soil and water quality; provide native plant and animal habitat; and encourage the public to learn about and appreciate the environment.

Named the Wildside by students, the project eventually grew to nearly 13 acres. Students, their families and community volunteers have planted 4,200 trees, 1,400 shrubs and removed acres of invasive plants such as blackberries. More than 1,600 different volunteers have donated 7,400 hours of service to the project over the years. A total of $197,000 in grants has been used for restoration, flooding abatement, water quality improvement, signage, tools, structures and student instruction.

Scharfenberg say that since the beginning, 910 sixth grade students and their families have been a part of the Wildside Crew. “This is the group of students who have done most of the work over the years. They have done the planning, planting, building, and taking the younger students out to the site to educate them about the environment. The sixth graders are the ones who have directly benefited from the service learning activities.”  While working on the Wildside is a fun activity for students, Scharfenberg makes sure that the work integrates reading, writing, math, science, speaking and art.

The June 1 Boardwalk Trail Ribbon Cutting will show off the fruits of their labor for all of the businesses and volunteers that have contributed to the restoration project over the years and local dignitaries.