NYS mandates climate change education. What will students learn?

By Evan Dawson,

Megan Mack, Julie Williams

Published March 24, 2026 at 4:28 PM EDT

Three men wearing headphones sit at a table in a radio talk studio: a man at left has short grey hair, a grey beard and is wearing a blue button-down shirt, black t-shirt, blue jeans, brown hiking boots and a blue lanyard; a bald man at center is wearing a light blue button-down shirt, light beige pants, brown shoes and a blue lanyard; a man at right has very short dark hair and is wearing a navy vest over a white button-down shirt, jeans and brown shoes.

1 of 3 — Don Haas and Orlando Marrero with host Evan Dawson on "Connections"

Don Haas and Orlando Marrero with host Evan Dawson on "Connections with Evan Dawson" on Tuesday, March 24, 2026

David Griffin / WXXI News

A man with short dark hair and a dark beard is wearing a blue shirt and standing outside in the street.

2 of 3 — Joseph Henderson

Joseph Henderson

Provided

3 of 3 — Kelli Grabowski

Kelli Grabowski

Provided

What are students in New York State learning about climate change? What should they be learning?

The Board of Regents recently approved new standards for statewide climate change education. It's now required that K-12 students learn about the causes, effects, and solutions to the climate crisis.

New York is only the second state in the nation – following New Jersey – to have such a requirement. Our guests discuss what curricula may include and what the changes mean for teachers and students.

Our guests:

Joseph Henderson, Ph.D., lecturer at the University of Vermont and member of the Saranac Lake Central School District Board of Education
Kelli Grabowski, science teacher at Salamanca Central School District
Don Haas, Ph.D., director of teacher programming at the Paleontological Research Institution's Center for Climate Change Education
Orlando Marrero, Ed.D., director of STEAM for the West Irondequoit Central School District