Crews finish stabilization project on Minnesota’s Knife River
Adelle Whitefoot, Two Harbors News Chronicle:
Improvements were made to part of the Knife River recently in hopes of enhancing the water quality in the years to come.
+ In other river news, the U.S. Geological Survey is installing a stream gauge on Michigan’s Chocolay River.
Ashland firefighters deployed to California
Amber Mullen, Ashland Daily Press:
On Tuesday, a team of 20 type-two initial attack wildfire fighters was deployed from Ashland to assist in the suppression of the King Fire in Pollock Pines, Calif.
+ Paul Sundberg’s Photos of the Week feature some breathtaking shots of a roiling Lake Superior.
+ Thunder Bay’s Chronicle-Journal: “Gardening season all but ended as residents woke up to frost and a temperature of -2 C on Thursday.”
+ The Marquette Maritime Museum unveiled a new exhibit this week, reports WLUC’s Phil Ford.
The folks at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore passed along this news release earlier today:
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore Receives 2014 Park Stewards Grant
Apostle Islands National Lakeshore is one of 28 national parks selected to receive a 2014 Park Stewards grant from the National Park Foundation, the official charity of America’s national parks. The grant will fund the Apostle Islands Experiential Learning Partnership (APISELP) between the National Park Service and the Bayfield High School.
Now in its sixth year, the Park Stewards program gives high school teachers and students the opportunity to explore the relevance of national parks to their lives, and enables them to become civically engaged stewards of their national parks through year-long service-learning projects.
“With our Park Stewards program, teachers and students are able to explore science, nature, sustainability, and more through America’s largest living classrooms – our national parks,” said Neil Mulholland, President and CEO of the National Park Foundation.
During the first three years of the APISELP, students at Bayfield High School completed four successful independent research projects, developed and disseminated a science demonstration program which teaches about the physics of lighthouses, and implemented a project in which students learn about and participate in trail development and maintenance in the park. In the fourth year of the partnership, Bayfield teachers Rick Erickson and Mark O’Neill will work with students to place remote trail cameras on the mainland and at island locations in an attempt to obtain baseline information about mammal populations in and adjacent to the park. Rick Erickson and his physics students will work with park staff to help develop hands-on exhibits about the physics of lighthouses for a new exhibit at the Michigan Island Lighthouse. Bayfield students will continue to assist in the development and maintenance of trails, boardwalks, and cultural landscapes within the park. The students will photographically document their park outings and post pictures on the school’s website. Mr. Erickson also plans to schedule a teacher workshop in early 2015 to inform and train area teachers about his Park Stewards related efforts to incorporate the Apostle Islands in his classroom.
“It is an honor to receive this grant because it will allow us to enhance an amazing partnership with the Bayfield School,” said superintendent Bob Krumenaker. “The APISELP has made valuable contributions to the National Park Service through independent student research and service learning projects and will continue to raise student awareness about the park by incorporating Apostle Islands-related topics into multiple grade levels over the next year.”
University of Phoenix is now serving in its third year as the program’s official educational sponsor. The University is committed to opening opportunities for education and workplace readiness, and supporting sustainable solutions for environmental health. Its support of the Park Stewards program helps both teachers and students build a deeper connection to and sense of stewardship for America’s national parks, while offering students the chance to explore new career horizons.
“University of Phoenix is proud to once again support the National Park Foundation in helping build future generations of national park enthusiasts and supporters,” said Pat Gottfried, vice president of Corporate Social Responsibility for Apollo Education Group, parent company of University of Phoenix. “The University has long supported environmental stewardship in our operations, offered sustainability- related degree programs and engaged in environmental philanthropy across the nation. We welcome the opportunity to continue to reinforce this commitment through our support of the National Park Foundation and the teachers and students it impacts.”
Since 2009, the Park Stewards program has made it possible for 110 high school teachers to work in parks over their summer break, creating engaging curriculum to teach to their students in the coming school year. During their time in the parks, the teachers and park staff also develop service-learning projects for students to take part in during the school year. The projects tie to state academic standards and make meaningful impacts in the national parks. Examples of projects include monitoring water quality, creating digital history apps, hosting a BioBlitz, and designing art sculptures.
In addition, two students from each grantee school team will be selected for summer internships that will help support and grow their interest in national parks and the National Park Service. – Submitted