Phyllis Jordan

The "Mountains to the Bay" project allows students in a new school building to study how to return the disturbed land on which their campus is built back to its natural settings. Salem School in Frostburg is already the recipient of a Chesapeake Bay Trust grant that encourages the reestablishment of native species of plants and grasses in the area. The school is located near the Wolf Swamp, one of the largest swamps in North America. With this new project, Jordan wants her 35 students in grades six to 12 to study and monitor soil composition and runoff, gather water samples, and analyze and report data gathered from the school site in comparison with the Chesapeake Bay area. This is believed to be the first time that any school-age group has studied the Wolf Swamp. In addition to the students' work, Jordan is considering the involvement of environmental studies students from Frostburg State University to offer additional analysis and reporting. Jordan resides in Frostburg.