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Encore Students Lend Mother Nature a Helping Hand
The flowers blooming in the courtyard.Between the cafeteria and main office at RHS' Summit Campus, there is an enclosed courtyard that had been overlooked for the past several years. It had originally been planted with ornamental grasses that, over time, simply took over the space.

This past school year, Encore students in Environmental Science, under the watchful eye of Chemistry and Physical Science teacher Ms. Phillips, were put to work removing the existing ornamental grass. The goal was create a low-maintenance, environmentally-friendly, visually appealing space, AND help out Mother Nature by providing a food source for pollinators--like bees and butterflies.

After the ornamental grass was cleared away, an 'Ohio prairie' seed mix was sown in late fall. The first blooms can now be seen in the courtyard. Over the next few years, even more varieties of plants can be expected to appear in this space, as a mixture of annual, perennial, and triennial plants reach maturity--a guide to help students and visitors alike identify the various plants will be posted on the windows! For before and after photos of the courtyard, visit our Facebook page!