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$150,000 Goal
Did you know that only 15% of all Sacramento students have had a meaningful experience in nature?
That’s right. In this beautiful city full of wild places, only 15% of the students in the region have been able to explore the magic of the area’s vernal pools, dip their toes in the creeks and rivers that course through the county, or become acquainted with the creatures who call Sacramento “home.”
Sacramento Splash exists to connect the remaining 85% of students to Sacramento’s wild places. Why do we do this? Because we know that connecting kids to nature through hands-on, real-life experiences is the best way to fight climate change and make a positive environmental impact on a local level.
Since 1999, Sacramento Splash has provided hands-on environmental education experiences to more than 165,000 Sacramento 2nd-7th graders. How do we do this? By working directly with area teachers who are passionate about providing quality science education to their students.
Splash acts as the bridge that connects students and teachers to quality educational experiences right in their own backyard. Splash provides science training to participating teachers so that they feel equipped and empowered to deliver high-value science education to their students. These lessons culminate in an exciting hands-on field trip experience to Mather’s vernal pools or to Project AWE at the historic Nicolaus Dairy. Additionally, we provide Splash in the Class, an exciting and interactive 60-minute presentation about stormwater pollution prevention. We also hold the Youth Environmental Leadership Camp (YELC) every summer.
“This is the best outdoor field trip I’ve ever been on in my 22-year teaching career”
- Tara A. | 5th-grade teacher at Helen Carr Castello Elementary
It is our goal at Splash to ensure that every Sacramento 2nd-7th grader has at least one meaningful experience in nature every school year. Splash knows that under-resourced schools and underrepresented communities are often left out of quality science education because of a lack of funding for these programs. We focus our outreach efforts on these communities and schools because we know that environmental education should be available to all students, no matter where they live or what school they attend.
Helping children understand and value our natural world through science education and outdoor exploration.
Looking at the year ahead, we have:
➡️ 665 field trips and presentations scheduled
➡️ 105 Classrooms will visit the vernal pools through our Investigating Vernal Pools Program
➡️ 237 Classrooms will have an experience at the Nicholas Dairy with Project AWE
➡️ 245 Splash in the Class presentations will be conducted in classrooms
➡️ 90 Classrooms will learn about the importance of Reducing, Reusing, Recycling and ROT (Waste sorting for our Environment)
➡️ 60 Campers will attend our Youth Environmental Leadership Camp this June
➡️ 550 or more people will attend one of our programs through extra curricular programing
➡️ 50+ People will visit Splash through their college courses, and or through a work supported field trip.
In total, that’s over 20,000 who will be witnessing the magic of nature during the 2026-27 school year alone.
Your participation during the Big Day of Giving will allow Splash to provide quality hands-on experiences to each of these students, ensuring that 20,000 of Sacramento’s students have access to nature.
Please consider a donation in the following amounts:
$1,000 - paves the way for one student to be a part of our Youth Environmental Leadership Camp
$500 - pays for 1 bus to bring two classes from a Title-I school to any Splash field trip
$200 - provides 1 student a full scholarship to visit the Mather Vernal Pools
$150 - secures 1 student a full scholarship to visit the Nicholas Dairy
$50 - provides maintenance to Splash’s “Critterville,” where nearly 40+/- animals native to the Sacramento region live.
$50- provides food to feed one of our 3 Nigerian Dwarf Goats and our chickens at the dairy.
At Sacramento Splash, we believe that access to outdoor education is essential for everyone to develop a deep appreciation and understanding of the natural world.
We recognize that historically under-represented and under-served communities have faced systemic barriers to accessing outdoor education, leading to inequitable distribution of the benefits that nature provides. At Splash, we are committed to addressing these inequities by working to increase access to outdoor education programs for these communities. We are dedicated to building partnerships and creating programs that are inclusive, culturally responsive, and equitable.
We strive to foster a love of nature and environmental stewardship in all members of our community, regardless of their background or identity. We recognize that there is much work to be done to promote equity and inclusion in the outdoors, and we are committed to being part of the solution.
Organization name
Sacramento Splash
other names
Splash
2008
Mission Category
Environment
Operating Budget
$100,001-$250,000
Organization Need
Funding: Program, Volunteers, Funding: Other, Board Members
Local Counties Served
El Dorado, Sacramento
Address
PO Box 3188Sacramento, CA, US