Cradle of Liberty Council, Boy Scouts of America Brings STEM Education to Southwest Philly

WAYNE, Pa., Jan. 13, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Cradle of Liberty Council, Boy Scouts of America (COLBSA) announced today a new collaboration with the Cobbs Creek Community Education Environmental Center (CCCEEC) to create a Scouting hub in Philadelphia. Located on a 965-acre plot surrounded by Cobbs Creek in Southwest Philadelphia, the historic site is fully equipped with classrooms and full-service laboratories that offer environmental education to City residents.

"We are so grateful to the CCCEEC for allowing us to use this amazing facility to expand our life-changing program offerings to even more youth in Philadelphia. This is a major undertaking that would not be possible without their help," said Daniel Templar, Scout Executive/CEO, COLBSA. "It's a perfect combination. The CCCEEC offers a beautiful green space for indoor and outdoor learning and we offer a program that provides STEM education, outdoor skills, community service projects and more to over 18,000 youth in the Greater Philadelphia region," he added. "We are always looking for great partners like the CCCEEC to help us positively impact more families through Scouting."

The new partnership will kick off during the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend, January 14-16 with two days of free STEM education classes for Scouts and non-Scouts on Saturday and Sunday. During the first class, students will learn how mobile applications, commonly referred to as apps, are developed and then create one of their own. Additional monthly merit badge classes and volunteer training opportunities will be available for Scouts and members of the local community.  

"Since 1991, our goal has been to give the Philadelphia community a place to explore the sciences through hands on activities, research, training and more," says Alicia Burbage Executive Director, CCCEEC. "Our new partnership with the COLBSA will enable us to get young people in the Southwest Philadelphia community and beyond excited about science, technology and the outdoors."

About the Cradle of Liberty Council: The Cradle of Liberty Council serves more than 18,000 young boys and girls throughout Philadelphia, Montgomery, and Delaware Counties in nearly 500 scouting groups chartered to civic, faith-based, and educational community organizations. It provides youth with dynamic outdoor programs that build character, foster participating citizenship, and encourage personal fitness. For more information, visit www.colbsa.org.  

About the Cobbs Creek Environmental Center: The Cobbs Creek Environmental Center is a premier urban environmental education center in Southwest Philadelphia. Our mission is to embrace and educate people of diverse backgrounds to understand and appreciate the important role the environment plays in our lives. For more than two decades, we have offered environmental education programs to the community, local schools and other non-profit agencies. For more information, visit www.cobbscreekenvironmentalcenter.org.

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SOURCE The Cradle of Liberty Council, Boy Scouts of America (COLBSA)