Rose Bay Legacy
Environmental
education program
Mainland
High School students under the sure guidance of teacher, Ms. Louise
Chapman, have adopted 33 acres of land in between Rose Bay and
Spruce Creek in Volusia County as part of the St. Johns River Water
Management District’s Legacy Program, which brings over 500 students,
teachers and advisors together in order to create an outdoor
environmental education center, laboratory, and park.
Although perfectly suited for
environmental studies, Ms. Chapman has also integrated students and
teachers of drama, English, art, math, science, food services, child
development, TV production, construction, business, computer
programming, and exceptional student education into this
comprehensive project. For these students the program offers a rare
opportunity at hands-on learning and the ability to see the
interrelationships between a unique array of disciplines.
The
students have already completed trails, compiled a plant inventory,
put in signage, removed exotic plants, printed newsletters, produced
videos and a web page, and worked on various environmental
monitoring projects. This year they expect to build boardwalks, a
birding tower, finish a fauna list, produce topographic maps, create
software, film progress on the Rose Bay bridge, propagate native
plants and remove and replace exotics with native plants as well as
continuing work on monitoring projects. If that sounds like a
lot of work, it is, but the students are definitely up for it and
look forward to going out to "their" land. A primary goal
of the project is to provide a resource for students to learn about
environmental issues in their area and afford them an opportunity to
invest time and effort into maintaining the health of the
environment.
Ms.
Chapman coordinates the Rose Bay Legacy project with support
services from Stephen
Kintner, Volusia County Environmental Management. The Legacy Program
coordinator for the SJRWMD is Mr. Dan Hayes, who also provides
support from the District. Other Volusia County Government divisions
lend technical advice, as well as the Boy Scouts of America,
the Native American Community Assoc., Halifax River Audubon Society
and many, teachers and administrators from Mainland High School.
If you are interested in
helping to support the many ongoing projects and activities at Rose
Bay Legacy through technical advice, supplies, equipment or funding
please call Ms.
Chapman at 386-226-0351.
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