BOLD Network (Building Outdoor Learning in Durham) Teacher Meeting at The Hub Farm (above).

Durham Public Schools (DPS), a school district with 53 schools across the city and county of Durham, North Carolina, serves over 32,000 students and employs nearly 7,700 teachers and staff. DPS has a history of innovative environmental education opportunities, including a farm and an outdoor learning specialist, and has been advocating for outdoor learning well before the pandemic through the BOLD Network (Building Outdoor Learning in Durham). This legacy of environmental stewardship and outdoor learning allowed the district to shift into a pandemic response that centered on outdoor learning and built upon existing expertise.

Through site visits and assessments of existing infrastructure on its school campuses, DPS was able to find ready-to-use outdoor spaces and other areas that could be usable with a few upgrades. An education foundation generously allocated 75 percent of a reopening grant for outdoor learning and planning. Over the course of the 2020–2021 school year, DPS learned valuable lessons about best practices, the importance of appropriate clothing for students, and that you can “start small, try what outdoor learning you can now, and go from there.”

The outdoor learning program has been very successful and DPS plans to continue to use these spaces moving forward, inspiring other districts of similar size to also pursue education outside during the pandemic and beyond.

As of September 2021, the district is still utilizing their outdoor learning strategies and plans to do so through the 2021–2022 school year.

In September 2021, we asked Dan Schnitzer, Project Manager for Sustainability and Capital Improvements for Durham Public Schools, to discuss the district’s current outdoor learning programming and COVID-19 response.

Previous Programming and Pandemic Response

Q: How did schools in your district use outdoor spaces before the COVID-19 pandemic?

Dan Schnitzer: Throughout the district, DPS has a variety of outdoor learning spaces, from shade structures with picnic tables, to numerous nature trails on campuses, to ponds, stump circles, and even our own farm (The Hub Farm). The spaces were used primarily by teachers who were predisposed to going outside. A lot of science teachers, some art teachers, and a variety of others who simply enjoy being outdoors and are comfortable taking kids outside. At one of our schools, they even have an outdoor learning specialist who teaches everything from knot tying to tree identification, fire building, and more. We have also worked hard to develop The Hub Farm as a field trip site for all district students.

Q: How and when did schools in your district use outdoor spaces during the COVID-19 pandemic?

DS: During COVID, we did a lot of site assessments. These assessments entailed walking campuses with administrators and teachers to simply look at the entirety of their property through a different lens. We used overhead maps and on-the-ground pictures to mark areas that were good for outdoor learning and eating. These spaces included under trees, existing canopies, covered walkways, and other areas that might be overlooked simply because we had not looked at the property through this lens before. What we found were a lot of ready-to-use spaces and a lot of spaces in need of minor upgrades, like benches, chairs, or stumps. At many schools, these sites were labeled and schools created a sign-up for their use.

Q: How did your district decide to use the outdoors during the pandemic?

DS: There was not a specific decision point to use the outdoors but a communal understanding of its importance. The district had been laying groundwork for this for years. Within DPS, there is the BOLD Network (Bringing Outdoor Learning to Durham). Started with grant funding and led by district level STEM staff, the program manager for The Hub Farm, and an Outdoor Learning Teacher, this group supported and advocated for outdoor learning for years. They created the DPS Outdoor Learning Guide and continued to meet virtually through remote learning, focusing on highlighting best practices in outdoor learning and running professional development on how to bring kids outdoors. As their work gained more attention, the district hired a project manager with a focus on sustainability. Months later, the district has hired a district level outdoor learning specialist. 

District Education Data

• District website

• 53 total schools: 30 elementary, 9 middle, 2 secondary (6–12), 10 high schools, as well as an alternative school and hospital

• 7,696 teachers and staff

• 32,042 PreK–12 students

• 52% qualify for free/reduced lunch

Location

• This urban and suburban school district is located in Durham, North Carolina, serving the city and county of Durham.

Climate

• Hot and humid summers with thunderstorms: 80°F to 90°F or more

• Cool winters: 20°F to 40°F

• Warm to mild spring and autumn

• Precipitation: 93 days per year

• Rainfall: 29” per year

• Snowfall: 6.8” per year, but usually melts quickly

Outdoor eating at a middle school (above). DPS conducted site assessments looking for opportunities to implement outdoor learning, such as under the shade of existing trees.

From top to bottom: New picnic tables at an elementary school; stormwater playground renovation at an elementary school (the bench is made of sidewalk removed to improve stormwater management on the playground); and DPS Foundation-funded picnic tables for outdoor learning and eating.

Q: How did you support your staff and school community to take learning outside this year? Is your school collaborating with any educational partner organizations?

DS: The DPS Outdoor Learning Guide was a collaborative effort that has been a centerpiece of the work as it was created to be accessible to teachers, administrators, and the community. The Durham Public School Foundation allocated $300,000 in grant funds for reopening purposes with over 75 percent of the funds going to outdoor initiatives and purchases. The Foundation recently allocated more funding for the purchase of outdoor seating that can be acquired and distributed quickly, while the district is making longer term investments in metal picnic tables, tents, and permanent outdoor learning spaces.

Q: Describe the furnishings and outdoor classroom infrastructure of any new or improved outdoor learning spaces. Who chose these elements, and how were they obtained and funded? 

DS: We have included a mix of infrastructure from permeable shade structures to metal roofed pavilions, temporary tents for eating, picnic tables, and more informal seating like stumps and Crazy Creek-style seats.

Q: How is it outdoor learning going now?

DS: It’s going great! Some of the barriers that we thought existed in the past are being plowed through. Supervision, clothing, and so on are very real obstacles, but they are solvable. In the past, there was limited motivation to solve those issues because schools were already working on so many challenges. Now that being outdoors has become a health priority, we are able to focus attention on solving those challenges. Often the solutions will look different at each school, so while I have no transferable answers, I am sure that these challenges are solvable with flexibility.

Q: What would you say have been the biggest successes and challenges of holding school outdoors?

DS: Successes are:

1. Getting students and teachers outside.

2. Securing funding for short-, medium- and long-term infrastructure for outdoor spaces. 

3. Being able to have conversations with so many people, including our board and community around the value of being outdoors, regardless of COVID. 

Challenges:

1. Time. The time structure/limitations that exist in schools are based around being indoors. While also an opportunity, we need to re-think the use of time within the school day, including lunch, to accommodate being outdoors and the value that comes with that. 

2. Infrastructure capacity. Schools are built as indoor spaces, so even with investment in infrastructure, only a minority of students can reasonably be outside at a given time. 

3. Mindset. This is linked somewhat to time, but there are significant mindset shifts, paradigm shifts, and discomfort-related issues that need to be addressed to make outdoor learning a systematic part of school operations.  

Q: Would you recommend that other districts try this? What advice you would offer them?

DS: YES!

1. Try something small and try it now. It can simply be taking kids for a walk around their school. Have them identify other usable spaces. 

2. Talk with your administrators about “what needs to happen to make this possible?” It might be things like a walkie-talkie or a sign on your door [for example].

3. Try something bigger and bring a friend [for example, another class, teacher, or administrator].

From top to bottom: Flexible seating at a middle school; covered seating and bouldering wall at an elementary school; and outdoor learning area at an elementary school.

Outdoor Learning Overview

In this recorded presentation, Dan Schnitzer, Project Manager for Sustainability and Capital Improvements for Durham Public Schools shares how the district pivoted during the pandemic and implemented outdoor learning district-wide. This presentation was delivered on April 13, 2021, during one of the National COVID-19 Outdoor Learning Initiative’s biweekly Community of Practice meetings, which provide a forum for schools and districts around the country to share their outdoor learning questions, plans, and progress.

Webinar Timing
  0:00    Introduction by Sharon Danks
  1:28    Presentation by Dan Schnitzer, Durham Public Schools
24:48   Questions and discussion

Existing covered space (above).

Media Coverage

“COVID-safer learning? Durham school board OKs plans for outdoor classrooms”
— ABC News (local), September 9, 2021

“Durham Schools Look to Add Outdoor Classrooms”
— WRAL.com, September 8, 2021

“Durham teachers, parents excited by idea of outdoor learning for student”
— WRAL.com, September 8, 2021

“Picnic tables, extra air filters – Durham Public Schools adding more COVID safety measures”
— CBS (local), August 27, 2021

“Durham parents create COVID-safe, outdoor eating space for students”
— WRAL.com, August 23, 2021