Letha's Youth Outdoors Fund

Letha's Youth Outdoors Fund is sponsored by Indiana Native Plant Society (INPS). Provides financial assistance for transportation and naturalist fees to help Indiana youth groups and schools visit nature centers and preserves.

Letha’s Fund Application Guidelines - INPS Meet the Indiana Native Plant Society Support INPS with a Donation History & Accomplishments Why We Care about Native Plants Visit Native Plants in the Wild Help with Plant Identification Indiana Native Plant References Gordon Mitchell’s Plant Profiles Other Native Plant Resources What’s an Invasive Plant?

Groups Determining Invasiveness Indiana Invasives Initiative and CISMAs Other Invasive Species Activists Indiana Invasive Plant List Reporting an Invasive Plant Sighting Indiana Terrestrial Invasive Plant Rule Top Garden Invasives / Native Alternatives Prioritizing Invasive Plant Removal Why Landscape with Native Plants?

Getting Started in the Home Landscape Indiana Native Plant Finder Grow Indiana Natives Certification Program Certify Your Native Garden Ecological Garden Maintenance Growing Native Plants from Seed Indiana Native Seed Communities Direct Sowing of Tree Seeds Indiana Plant Conservation Alliance Plant Ordinances & Covenants Toward a Native Plant Friendly HOA Letha’s Youth Outdoors Fund Letha’s Fund Application Guidelines Indiana Native Seed Communities Biodiversity Garden Tours Meet the Indiana Native Plant Society Support INPS with a Donation History & Accomplishments Why We Care about Native Plants Visit Native Plants in the Wild Help with Plant Identification Indiana Native Plant References Gordon Mitchell’s Plant Profiles Other Native Plant Resources What’s an Invasive Plant?

Groups Determining Invasiveness Indiana Invasives Initiative and CISMAs Other Invasive Species Activists Indiana Invasive Plant List Reporting an Invasive Plant Sighting Indiana Terrestrial Invasive Plant Rule Top Garden Invasives / Native Alternatives Prioritizing Invasive Plant Removal Why Landscape with Native Plants?

Getting Started in the Home Landscape Indiana Native Plant Finder Grow Indiana Natives Certification Program Certify Your Native Garden Ecological Garden Maintenance Growing Native Plants from Seed Indiana Native Seed Communities Direct Sowing of Tree Seeds Indiana Plant Conservation Alliance Plant Ordinances & Covenants Toward a Native Plant Friendly HOA Letha’s Youth Outdoors Fund Letha’s Fund Application Guidelines Indiana Native Seed Communities Biodiversity Garden Tours Letha’s Fund Application Guidelines Letha’s Youth Outdoors Fund supports trips for school and youth groups to experience nature in an educational context.

Preferred groups are those with the least access to expe­riences in the natural environment. More about Letha’s Fund Proposed field trips should be designed to give youth a meaningful outdoor experience. Programs that incorporate the importance of native plants and their habitats and/or the impacts of invasive plants will be given higher priority.

Teachers/leaders may select natural sites such as nature preserves and environmental education centers suitable to their location and situation. To minimize transportation costs, applicants are encouraged to select nearby sites. Field trip activities should be led by environmental educators/naturalists or similarly qualified leaders.

Grants cover the costs of transportation, naturalist fees, and related supplies. Letha’s Fund will reimburse transportation arranged through school transportation systems or local transit. In the interest of stretching donated dollars, we request that driver/bus charges be based on direct costs (driver hourly pay, bus mileage).

Approved expenses are reimbursed upon receipt of invoices after the trip has occurred. Awards range from $50 to $700, based on need and available funds. Who can apply: Any teacher or youth group leader in Indiana.

What we fund: Transportation, naturalist fees, and other costs for field trips to stimulating natural sites. We do not fund picnics, food, or chaperone fees. When to apply: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, and grants are awarded to appropriate projects as long as funds are available.

Applications should be submitted at least one month prior to the proposed trip. How to apply: Complete the online Letha’s Fund Application Form . You may download this Template to prepare your proposal prior to submission.

After you click Submit, you will receive an email confirmation of receipt, along with a copy of your application. Notification of funding: Applicants will be notified whether their application has been funded within three weeks of submittal.

Evaluation/reporting: After the field trip, awardees must download a Letha’s Fund Grant Report Form and submit it along with invoices and copies of any post-trip activities that measure the success of the trip, such as photos, drawings, or writings. Acknowledgment: Awardees must recognize INPAWS as a funding source in all printed materials, signs, or publicity generated through the activity.

Questions and correspondence for Letha’s Fund should be addressed to lethasfund@indiananativeplants. org . Posted on July 6, 2018 by eniemiller - Here’s a sample of the natural areas visited by groups over the years: 6 Riverwatch stream locations in northern Monroe Co.

Amigo Centre (Sturgis, MI) Bean Blossom Creek at Trevlac (Brown Co.) and Bean Blossom Bottoms (Monroe Co.)

Camp Tecumseh (Brookston) Charlestown State Park (Clark County) Eagle Creek Park Earth Discovery Center & Ornithology Center (Indianapolis) Fernwood Nature Preserve (Buchanan, MI) Gene Stratton-Porter State Historic Site (Rome City) Greene Environmental Learning Center (South Bend) Holliday Park & Nature Center (Indianapolis) Indiana Dunes West Beach Succession Trail Marian University Ecolab (Indianapolis) Mary Gray Bird Sanctuary (Connersville) McCormick’s Creek State Park (Spencer) Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center (Noble County) Oxbow County Park (Elkhart) Red Mill County Park (La Porte) Shakamak State Park (Jasonville) Southeastway Park (Indianapolis) Letha’s Youth Outdoors Fund Letha’s Fund Application Guidelines Indiana Native Plant Society info@indiananativeplants.

org Except as noted, all content © Indiana Native Plant Society 2026.