Bedford and Harrisburg, PA (December 16, 2020) – Recently, Pennsylvania Envirothon, a statewide competition that educates high school students in natural resources and environmental sciences and emphasizes the importance of environmental sensitivity, and Digital-first Sponsor PSECU, launched a free, educational app. Dubbed “Pennsylvania Envirothon,” the app is now available for download for both Android and Apple devices.

“Envirothon is a fun, academic event. It challenges high school students to think critically about the natural world and their roles in it. Envirothon combines in-class curriculum and outdoor training, helping students to learn more about our natural resources, flora and fauna, and current environmental issues,” said Pennsylvania Envirothon Executive Director Lorelle Steach. “We believe our new app will play an even greater role in team preparation, especially with many students experiencing distance learning.”

The Pennsylvania Envirothon app was made possible with financial support from Pennsylvania’s anytime, anywhere digital credit union, PSECU.

“As an organization that has long embraced technology and its benefits, PSECU has been able to offer our members top-of-the-line digital tools and resources to securely and conveniently manage their finances anytime, anywhere,” explained PSECU President and CEO George Rudolph. “We’re sure that the new Pennsylvania Envirothon app will provide students – and the greater community of users – with many of the advantages of digitalization, too, all the while educating them as future environmental leaders. We couldn’t be prouder to serve as the project’s Digital-first Sponsor.”

The Pennsylvania Envirothon app encourages users to learn about topics including soils and land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife, and environmental issues, and browse a feed of natural resource information – all while experiencing Pennsylvania’s outdoors. Features of the app include:

• Links to Envirothon Station Training references

• Guides to identifying trees, fish, wildlife, and more

• Audio and photo files for identifying birds and their songs as well as frog and toad calls

• Quizzing options to test lessons learned

• Information about Digital-first Sponsor PSECU

Austin Jadlowiec, an Envirothon alum and junior at the University of Pittsburgh pursuing a double major in math and computer engineering, developed and designed the new Pennsylvania Envirothon app. "The Envirothon is a wonderful opportunity, no matter what your field of study is,” he shared about his experience with the competition. “If something interests you, chase it! You never know what opportunities it may lead to in the future."

“We hope users will find this portable guide useful as they train for Envirothon competitions or while they just enjoy all nature has to offer,” Steach added.

About Pennsylvania Envirothon
The mission of the Pennsylvania Envirothon is to provide students with the knowledge and tools necessary to address the natural resource challenges facing today’s world as well as the challenges of tomorrow. It educates high school students in natural resource and environmental sciences and emphasizes the importance of environmental sensitivity while stressing a need to achieve a social, ecologic, and economic balance in life. Envirothon’s learning objectives emphasize awareness, knowledge, attitudes, and application. For additional information, visit www.envirothonpa.org.

About PSECU
Opened in 1934, PSECU was founded by 22 ordinary people who pooled $90 and made an extraordinary commitment to each other: To create a financial institution where collective resources benefit all members. Today, PSECU continues that legacy as Pennsylvania’s largest credit union, managing $7 billion in assets and offering its more than 475,000 members convenient anytime, anywhere digital banking options. PSECU was named a 2020 Best-In-State Credit Union by Forbes Magazine and a Best Credit Union of 2020 by GOBankingRates. For more information about PSECU, visit psecu.com. View its Year In Review to learn how PSECU contributes to the greater good.