Local Junior Watershed Manager Program needs your help

Junior Watershed Managers (JwM) is a unique model for engaging high school students with jurisdictional and regulatory agencies in collaborative natural resource management and conservation activities at a watershed level.

Two growing concerns:
1.Reduction in the number of youth participating in the out of doors or pursuing careers in natural resource fields.
2.Addressing a recognized disconnect between the publics’ awareness of human effects on water quality and healthy watersheds.

As a result, the primary goal of JwM is to encourage students to consider a natural resource career path when entering college. Secondly, the program will forge a relationship between youth and the Bear Creek Watershed Association (BCWA), which will serve to develop participants’ leadership skills, confidence and intellectual capacity while furthering the mission of the BCWA, to ensure healthy watersheds and water quality for the future. The project is offering watershed education and management experiences during the school year and lasting active stewardship opportunities within the watershed as the student team projects unfold.

This experiential approach to connecting science and management with hands-on projects can easily be replicated through-out the state and country. The model has adapted elements of other programs but is unique in the fact it takes students from mere participants to primary developers and managers of watershed issues. It is creating an opportunity for them to develop real world skill in collaboration, coordination, budgeting and project management. This educational prototype truly builds on experiential learning models to further watershed education and outreach.

Project Audience
The core group of JwM will be made up of about 20 high school juniors and seniors. The BCWA intends to establish the JwM as a long-term program. However, depending on the team projects the number of youth and community members partaking in service activities will grow. The BCWA has met with local educators from the area high schools who are very supportive of the proposal. The following high schools are targeted because of their proximity to or location within the Bear Creek Watershed.

1. Green Mountain High School
2. Evergreen High School
3. Bear Creek High School
4. Clear Creek High School
5. Conifer High School

The first step in this project is establishing groups of JwM comprised of approximately 20 freshman through senior students from local high schools, which will form project teams (anticipate teams of 4-5 students). The BCWA envisions these teams to function as a school sponsored club with a facility advisor. These teams will orchestrate real-world projects related to research, maintenance, regulatory compliance and care of the Bear Creek Watershed. Each high school team(s) will select a representative for a Youth Stewards Board (YSB). The YSB will consist of a maximum of eight student team leaders. While serving on the YSB for one or two academic years, students will be linked with the BCWA, local experts, managers and scientists. Representatives of the YSB will meet with BCWA Board and will be regarded as an Association participant, which gives them the opportunity to participate in board functions as a voting member. The YSB provides a link among the involved high schools, makes first round of approvals for projects, will have an opportunity to make presentations to watershed partner groups, possible conferences, and help track project success.

Goals
•Encourage students to consider a natural resource career path when entering college.
•Develop participants’ leadership skills, confidence and intellectual capacity.
•Further the mission of the BCWA to ensure healthy watersheds and water quality for the future.
•Cultivate the next generation of conservation leaders that have an understanding of the challenges facing the future of the watersheds in their own “backyard”.
•Reconnect the publics’ awareness of human effects on water quality and healthy watersheds.
•Increase the number of youth participating in the out of doors or pursuing careers in natural resource fields.
•Develop real world skill in collaboration, coordination, project management and budgeting.


How you can help

We rely on grants. Currently there funds available from the "PEPSI REFRESH PROJECT" . Pepsi is taking all of the money that they would normally use in their Super Bowl advertising campaign and will be offering it as grants to projects that get the most votes. Grant totals range from $5,000 to $125,000. We are seeking a $25,000 grant. When you sign up at [url=http://www.refresheverything.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;]http://www.refresheverything.com[/url] you will be allowed to place 10 votes per day for any of the projects that are listed. You are only allowed 1 vote per project, so voting for other $25,000 projects competes with ours (please don't). Traditionally these grants have gone to the West and East coasts. It is basically a popularity contest and it is about time that some of this money came to Colorado.

Go to [url=http://www.refresheverything.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;]http://www.refresheverything.com[/url]
Make an account by clicking on "Join Refresh Everything"
Then "BROWSE IDEAS"
Select the "$25,000" tab.
The project title is "Ensure a water quality future with Junior Watershed Managers"
Click on "Vote for this Idea"

REMEMBER: Vote once a day for the month of September

If you have any questions, please PM me or view the complete proposal (Word Document) for the Junior Watershed Manager program on the Bear Creek Watershed Association website at the link below.
http://www.bearcreekwatershed.org/Progr ... ission.doc

Thanks for your support!
Chris Schauder (Photo-fish)
Co-Chairman Bear Creek Watershed Association
http://www.bearcreekwatershed.org/