Allendale Public Schools host its second annual Allendale Community Field Day event on May 18, bringing together students, teachers, professors and other community members in an effort improve the outdoor educational facilities on the Allendale K-8 joint campus.

Last year, the field day involved planting two gardens as part of a larger effort called Project Budburst. This year projects included the planting of a butterfly garden, the construction of bat houses and the construction of birdfeeders.

Peter Riemersma, a geology and integrated science professor at Grand Valley State University, co-wrote the grant that funded the event with sixth-grade science teacher Keith Piccard. Their hope for the project was to create a time for the community to come together and create something for the benefit of everyone.

“The end result that we foresee is a set of projects and activities that has K-12 students, collegiate students, community members, professors and researchers working together to do ‘real science,’ while at the same time contributing to the body of knowledge that is called science,” Piccard said. “Our end result is to create an environment where students want to learn more, and what better way to do it than through the vehicle of science.”

Funding for the project—about $1,700—came through a grant from the Harold Sheridan Fund of the Allendale Community Foundation and from elementary and middle school Parent Teacher Organizations.

“I am actually more concerned about making sure we budgeted enough money so to have enough food because so many people want to come,” Piccard said.

Funds also helped pay for materials and presenters to visit Allendale students. Amy Russell, professor of biology and GVSU’s “resident bat expert,” introduced various types of bats to fourth and fifth-grade students, and Holli Ward, founder of the Michigan Butterflies group, also presented at the school.

The birdfeeders were designed as a community service project by GVSU students under the direction of Sung-Hwan Joo, a professor in the engineering department. On April 20, Riemersma, and several other judges, decided which of the 30 birdfeeder designs were the best. The plans were then given to senior engineering students who combined the best ideas and put together easy-to-assemble kits.

Two identical birdfeeders were constructed and placed in separate locations, which will provide students the opportunity to study where the birds decide to go when given the same house and food options. The birdfeeders are unique in that they are made of plexiglass so that students can see through them.

The Allendale Boy Scout Troop 39 was also involved with the project and helped with the construction of 10 bat houses.

Ted Vruggink, an Allendale community member, volunteered to grow the butterfly garden plants. Once planted, the garden will be registered as a “monarch way station,” as part of a wider project to create more habitats for butterflies. Future plans may include tagging the butterflies with a tiny tracking sticker on their wings, which allows scientists to follow their migration.

“It’s one thing to come together as a community and watch a movie,” Riemersma said. “It’s another thing to come together as a community and build something. If you get a lot of people together, it’s amazing what you can do in a short time.”