Crete-Monee School District 201-U in Illinois is in the process of instituting a district-wide science curriculum so that every K-12 student will experience hands-on science. Thanks to a donation from PPL University Park, one of the school district's newest business-education partners, hands-on science can now be a reality.

PPL University Park, a 540-megawatt power plant in University Park, Ill., donated $1,600 to the district to purchase two Full Option Science System kits on magnetism and electricity for third-graders. The kits consist of five sequential investigations, each designed to introduce or reinforce concepts in physical science.

"The program materials are designed to meet the challenge of providing meaningful science education for all students and to prepare them for life in the 21st century," said Lynda Barraca, Crete-Monee science literacy coordinator.

The kits provide opportunities for students to explore the natural and human-made worlds by observing and manipulating materials in focused settings using simple tools. The district has been successfully using this program, sharing kits among all the science teachers. The two new kits will allow more students, more often, to benefit from this learning approach, Barraca said.

Several teachers also toured the PPL University Park power plant and reviewed science-based curriculum developed by PPL as part of the company's educational outreach to communities.

"We appreciate the opportunity to share our resources toward the positive development of the University Park/Crete-Monee community," said Eduardo Perez, PPL University Park plant manager. "We understand the essential role education plays in our society and that as a neighbor in this community, we share in the responsibility of preparing the next generation's workforce."

The Crete-Monee Business-Education Partnership provided the introduction between PPL and the district.

"It is the hope of all those involved in the project that this experience will encourage the students toward becoming the scientifically literate citizens of our future," said Mardie Tuttle, Business-Education Partnership coordinator.

PPL University Park is a natural gas-fired, simple-cycle power plant owned by PPL Generation, a subsidiary of PPL Corporation. Headquartered in Allentown, Pa., PPL Corporation controls about 11,500 megawatts of generating capacity in the United States, sells energy in key U.S. markets and delivers electricity to nearly 5 million customers in Pennsylvania, the United Kingdom and Latin America. More information is available at www.pplweb.com .