INDIANA — Thousands of Hoosier students will get a hands-on look at nature this coming school year thanks to a state initiative aimed at bringing classrooms into the wild, including students from Mitchell Community Schools.
Officials with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced that students from 72 schools across the state will experience the great outdoors during the 2026–27 academic year. The field trips are made possible by the Discover the Outdoors Field Trip Grant Program, which supports trips to Indiana State Parks and other state park-managed properties.
The grant program, available to all K-12 public, private, and charter schools, is administered through the Indiana Natural Resources Foundation (INRF)—the official supporting nonprofit of the DNR.
According to a press release, grants of up to $500 per school are awarded to help cover essential expenses, including transportation costs, park entry fees, interpreter-led program fees, and related classroom supplies. Officials noted that generous private donations to the foundation allowed them to increase the total dollars distributed for the 2026 grant cycle, extending the reach of the program to even more students.
Since its inception, the Discover the Outdoors program has helped connect thousands of children with Indiana’s forests, lakes, and unique geological features, often providing students with their first formal experience in environmental education.
2026 Discover the Outdoors Grant Recipients
Below is the complete list of the 72 Indiana schools awarded grants for the 2026–27 school year:
- Alexandria-Monroe Elementary — Alexandria
- Austin Middle School — Austin
- Avon Intermediate School East — Avon
- Batesville Primary School — Batesville
- Bedford Middle School — Bedford
- Beech Grove High School — Beech Grove
- Boonville Elementary School — Boonville
- Brown County High School — Nashville
- Cannelton Elementary School — Cannelton
- Caston Elementary School — Fulton
- Center Grove Middle School Central — Greenwood
- Central Elementary School — Lebanon
- Charlestown Middle School — Charlestown
- Chesterton Middle School — Chesterton
- Columbia City High School — Columbia City
- Columbus East High School — Columbus
- Connersville Middle School — Connersville
- Crawfordsville High School — Crawfordsville
- Danville Community Middle School — Danville
- Decatur Central High School — Indianapolis
- DeKalb Middle School — Waterloo
- East Allen University — Fort Wayne
- East Noble Middle School — Kendallville
- Edgewood Intermediate School — Ellettsville
- Elkhart High School — Elkhart
- Evansville Christian School — Evansville
- Forest Park Junior-Senior High School — Ferdinand
- Franklin Community Middle School — Franklin
- Goshen Middle School — Goshen
- Greencastle Middle School — Greencastle
- Greenfield Central Junior High School — Greenfield
- Greensburg Elementary School — Greensburg
- Griffith Elementary School — Griffith
- Highland High School — Highland
- Huntingburg Elementary School — Huntingburg
- Huntington North High School — Huntington
- Jasper Middle School — Jasper
- Jeffersonville High School — Jeffersonville
- Kokomo High School — Kokomo
- La Porte Middle School — La Porte
- Lafayette Jefferson High School — Lafayette
- Lake Central High School — St. John
- Lawrence Central High School — Indianapolis
- Logansport Intermediate School — Logansport
- Madison Consolidated High School — Madison
- Marion High School — Marion
- Martinsville West Middle School — Martinsville
- Michigan City High School — Michigan City
- Mishawaka High School — Mishawaka
- Mitchell Junior High School — Mitchell
- Mooresville High School — Mooresville
- Muncie Central High School — Muncie
- New Albany High School — New Albany
- New Castle Middle School — New Castle
- Noblesville West Middle School — Noblesville
- North Vermillion Junior-Senior High School — Cayuga
- Paoli Junior-Senior High School — Paoli
- Perry Meridian Middle School — Indianapolis
- Plainfield Middle School — Plainfield
- Plymouth High School — Plymouth
- Portage High School — Portage
- Richmond High School — Richmond
- Seymour Middle School — Seymour
- Shelbyville Middle School — Shelbyville
- South Bend Adams High School — South Bend
- Southridge Middle School — Huntingburg
- Terre Haute North Vigo High School — Terre Haute
- Valparaiso High School — Valparaiso
- Vincennes Lincoln High School — Vincennes
- Warsaw Community High School — Warsaw
- Washington High School — Washington
- West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School — West Lafayette
