School participation in the Bureau of State Parks' Watershed Education Program showed a marked increase last year, with many students participating in on-site field investigations with park staff.

A program year-end report for the period from July 1, 2005, to June 30, 2006 showed Bureau Environmental Education Specialists continue to put forth a tremendous effort to educate middle and high school teachers and students on the topic of watersheds in Pennsylvania.

206 schools and 6,756 students and teachers actively participated in what is seen as "tremendous increase" from the previous report of 116 participating schools and 5,869 active students.

Similar to last year, state parks and environmental education centers facilitated more programs with students than teachers as indicated by the attendance at field trainings, student summits and program orientations.

The number of students performing field investigation training with park staff increased by 955; almost double last year's participation. The number attending program orientations also showed a dramatic increase reaching 464 more students than the previous year

Basin-wide student summits posed a challenge for park staff this year due to increasingly stringent school liability policies and budgets.

(Reprinted from DCNR’s Resource, January 31, 2007 issue)

2/2/2007