Idaho Falls Zoo nominated to receive $10,000, but needs your vote
Published at
The following is a news release from the Idaho Falls Zoo.
IDAHO FALLS — The Idaho Falls Zoo at Tautphaus Park is asking for your vote to help them win a community grant.
The Idaho Falls Zoo has been nominated to receive $10,000 through the Fluor Corporation Global Community Project Fund. The zoo is one of ten projects nominated worldwide to receive funding, and they are asking for the community’s help by casting votes between now and June 17.
Voters can cast their votes daily over the next two weeks simply by going to http://community-fund.fluor.com/projects-list, scrolling down to the Idaho Falls project and clicking “vote for this project.” Fluor will announce the winners in late June.
Only 10 charities (five U.S. and five international) from communities around the world, including areas such as Peru, Canada, the Philippines and Idaho Falls will receive $10,000 each from the project fund.
Fluor employees around the world nominated community improvement projects for local charitable organizations in their communities focused on Fluor’s core giving areas of education, social services, community and economic development and the environment.
“The fact that Idaho Falls Zoo has been nominated for this global project fund speaks volumes about the determination, commitment and passion the zoo employees and volunteers have for this zoo and for the children in this community,” David Pennock, Zoo Superintendent said. “It’s a tremendous honor.”
A grant from Fluor will fund the development of a series of interactive stations at the Idaho Falls Zoo featuring STEM-based activities for kids in kindergarten through 12th grade. Fluor employees and zoo representatives will implement educational activities in an enticing zoo setting during Fluor’s STEM Day, “Bringing STEM to Life.”
These activities will align with the state of Idaho science core curriculum, for students in grades K-12. The stations will highlight the zoo’s animal inhabitants and emphasize how awareness of the natural world and conservation of its creatures and resources benefits us all.
An average of 4,000 children and 1,500 adults come through the Idaho Falls Zoo on school visits each summer. However, due to limited staff and resources at the zoo, less than five percent of those groups have access to a personal educational experience such as a tour or zoo-based program.
Tautphaus Park Zoological Society (TPZS) will implement Fluor’s STEM Day, providing an exciting educational experience to more than 50 percent of the students who visit the zoo with school groups. Through this opportunity, students will be engaged in a way they couldn’t have been back in the classroom, benefiting both students and their teachers. The first event will take place in September 2016.
With more than 400 animals representing 140 species from around the globe, the Idaho Falls Zoo has the largest collection of animals in the state and is considered the “Best Little Zoo in the West.” The Idaho Falls Zoo is also the first zoo in Idaho to be accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums and sees an average of 123,000 visitors annually.
TPZS has been an active supporter of the Idaho Falls Zoo since its formation in 1992. In 2015, TPZS raised over $80,000 to fund a new education center at the zoo.