TOWN OF DEKALB, New York (WWNY) – “I’m seeing a lot of nectar down here. They’re packing it in- good.”
What they’re describing is the inside of Hermon DeKalb Central’s new observational beehive.
It’s part of the nationwide Bee Cause Project and is currently the only school in the North Country that has a hive like this.
Hermon DeKalb Central School District Board of Education Vice President Mike MacCue donated some of his own bees for the project.
He says its a great way for kids to learn.
“This is bringing something that the students can see, that they can participate in. They can hear the hum of the hive, they can see the bees communicating with each other, they can put their hand on the glass, they can feel the heat that they’re generating,” said MacCue.
At the beginning of July, the Hermon DeKalb faculty installed more than 5,000 bees for summer school. Two months later, that number has grown to 10,000 bees.
Fifth grader Griffin Williams was at summer school when the hive was installed, and learned all about the importance of bees and their usefulness as pollinators given that the global population is dwindling.
Williams says he learned through his teacher that human interference with chemicals such as pesticides are to blame.
“I would say that we’ll need to stop whatever we’re doing that’s hurting the bees. And whoever is hurting them, I feel like they should stop it because there’s not many bees left and people should focus on helping the bees,” said Williams.
According to Assistant Principal Rebecca Hocking, the school is currently working on the second half of the “Bee Cause” grant application to expand the program for the school.
“The second phase of the grant is to write a grant for a pollinator garden. So that’s our goal this year,” said Hocking.
Advocates say it’s important to teach kids about the bees and the benefits they can be to the community.
Copyright 2023 WWNY. All rights reserved.
