NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
A2
Thursday, June 9, 2022
Northeastern Oregon students take to the outdoors for science
By ISABELLA CROWLEY
The Observer
GET INVOLVED
Readers can get involved by
emailing communityscience@
grmw.org.
LA GRANDE — Local high
school students traded their science
classroom and textbooks for the
great outdoors and waders.
Thirty juniors from La Grande
High School boarded buses
Wednesday, June 1, for Bird Track
Springs Campground, about 14
miles from La Grande, to partic-
ipate in the Qapqápnim Wéele/
Grande Ronde community science
project. The students, who were
taking environmental science with
Brandon Galvez, waded into the
watershed for a hands-on learning
experience.
“Kids deserve the opportunity
to learn outside, and we’re in the
perfect place for that,” said Carrie
Lowe, community science coor-
dinator contracted through the
Grande Ronde Model Watershed.
Lowe said the program encour-
ages students to pursue their scien-
tific interests.
“I want kids to know that no
matter what your gifts are, what
your passions are, there is a place
for you in science,” she said.
Throughout the spring a total
of 330 students from Union and
surrounding counties took part in
the community science project,
Lowe said. The project aims to
build community-wide awareness
about the importance of the water-
shed by engaging young people in
monitoring projects.
A watershed is an area of land
that channels rainfall and snowmelt
to creeks, streams and rivers before
Isabella Crowley/The Observer
Students measuring water temperature June 1, 2022, at Bird Track Springs as part of the water quality worksta-
tion while attending the Qapqápnim Wéele/Grande Ronde community science project.
eventually connecting to outflow
points, like reservoirs, bays or an
ocean.
Each group visited a different
part of the Grande Ronde water-
shed, where they learned at three
workstations: water quality, aquatic
macroinvertebrates and riparian
vegetation.
While working at the water
quality station, students measured
water temperature, pH level, chan-
nel width and stream flow.
At the aquatic macroinverte-
brates station they collected and
sampled the types of invertebrates,
such as insects or crayfish, in the
water.
In the riparian vegetation zone,
students learned about flora along
Forecast for Pendleton Area
TODAY
FRIDAY
Considerable
cloudiness
| Go to AccuWeather.com
SATURDAY
Not as warm with
showers around
SUNDAY
Rain; breezy in the
afternoon
MONDAY
Winds becoming
strong; a shower
Clouds and sun,
windy and cool
Wallowa students lend helping hand
Students venture
out to aid in
various projects
By JEFF BUDLONG
Wallowa County Chieftain
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
84° 65°
74° 60°
76° 55°
64° 46°
69° 49°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
89° 68°
81° 62°
82° 59°
70° 51°
76° 52°
OREGON FORECAST
ALMANAC
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Seattle
Olympia
60/56
73/59
77/57
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
80/64
Lewiston
68/59
89/69
Astoria
62/56
Pullman
Yakima 83/62
62/56
82/66
Portland
Hermiston
74/62
The Dalles 89/68
Salem
Corvallis
75/60
Yesterday
Normals
Records
La Grande
80/60
PRECIPITATION
John Day
Eugene
Bend
78/63
81/61
82/56
Ontario
89/63
Caldwell
Burns
80°
59°
80°
52°
105° (2015) 40° (1979)
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
Albany
76/61
Trace
0.36"
0.23"
6.15"
2.23"
4.61"
WINDS (in mph)
86/62
83/51
Trace
1.14"
0.41"
9.80"
4.02"
7.25"
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Pendleton 78/54
76/62
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
HERMISTON
Enterprise
84/65
83/64
76°
61°
77°
51°
102° (2015) 35° (1910)
PRECIPITATION
Moses
Lake
63/56
Aberdeen
73/57
70/56
Tacoma
Yesterday
Normals
Records
Spokane
Wenatchee
62/57
Today
Boardman
Pendleton
Medford
87/63
Fri.
WSW 7-14
WNW 6-12
WSW 7-14
SW 6-12
SUN AND MOON
Klamath Falls
80/48
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
5:06 a.m.
8:43 p.m.
3:06 p.m.
2:23 a.m.
Full
Last
New
First
June 14
June 20
June 28
July 6
NATIONAL EXTREMES
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 109° in Presidio, Texas Low 28° in Bodie State Park, Calif.
the riverbank and helped catalog
locations while learning which
plants have cultural significance to
Indigenous peoples. This worksta-
tion is done in partnership with the
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla
Indian Reservation.
“We’re learning out in nature,”
said Mason Miles, a high school
student from La Grande. “We see it
in the books, then get the hands-on
experience.”
Outreach programs are benefi-
cial for both students and schools.
Field trips can be cost-prohibitive
for schools, as they need to cover
the price of buses and substitute
teachers, Galvez said. Programs
such as the Grande Ronde commu-
nity science project get funding
specifically to conduct outreach.
“This is a really nice partnership
with the schools and program,” he
said.
The community science project
is funded entirely through grants
and donations. This year it received
$120,000 — $11,000 from Wild-
horse Foundation, $5,000 from the
National Park Service’s Crayfish
Study and $105,000 from Amazon
Web Services in collaboration with
the Greater Oregon Science, Tech-
nology, Engineering and Math Hub
— to cover the cost of implementa-
tion, supplies, tribal guidance and
local participation.
There is sometimes a debate
within the scientific community
whether to refer to projects like
this as citizen science or commu-
nity science, Lowe said.
“We use community science
because we want the commu-
nity to know that everyone is
welcome,” she said.
WALLOWA — Students
in the Wallowa School
District have spent the school
year learning from a variety
of sources, but as it draws
to a close they took a differ-
ent approach — a hands-on
approach.
Students began work-
ing the morning on Friday,
June 3, and spent a couple of
hours doing various projects
to help the community. One
of the projects was planting a
garden at the Wallowa River
House, an 11-bed residential
treatment facility for individ-
uals with severe physical and
mental health issues.
“We are planting a
garden,” said Brandy Bron-
son, a fourth grade teacher. “A
former resident at the River
House passed away and there
is an area filled with wildflow-
ers, so we are going to repaint
the sign there and clean it up.”
The community garden
will be directly behind the
space dedicated to former
longtime resident Doug
Yarger, which will allow for a
partnership with the Wallowa
River House. In addition
to cleaning up the flowers,
students will repaint a sign
that says, “Doug’s Garden.”
Students planted a vari-
ety of fruits and vegetables
that will be monitored and
eventually used throughout
the summer and fall. Seeds
and plants were donated by
the Oregon State University
Extension Service and a nurs-
ery for the project.
“I wanted to see the garden
project get up and going, and
I am also doing our summer
school program,” Bronson
said. “Ann Bloom with Exten-
sion is going to come down to
help us care for the garden,
talk about the fruits and vege-
tables and provide some nutri-
tion lessons.”
The project also allows
older students to lead and
work with younger ones to
make sure tasks are done
while taking ownership in
the work.
Bronson hopes her next
class of fourth graders will
harvest the bounty of the
garden in the fall. It is a learn-
ing lesson from plant to pick,
Bronson said. In the future,
she would like high school
students to build and donate
some raised beds that can be
used at the garden site on an
annual basis.
The garden wasn’t the only
project students took part in.
Students also took on cleaning
up Evans Park in Wallowa.
Bronson said working
on projects is an important
way students can give back
to the community, but it also
strengthens the bond between
the community and the
school. It often leads to new
partnerships and benefits for
both sides.
The work being done high-
lights the theme of commu-
nity and service that has been
the focus of the last month
of classes. The theme at the
beginning and end of each
school year incorporates all
the students in the Wallowa
School District. Students are
broken into family groups and
have readings and activities
that highlight the theme.
“Family groups consist of
a couple of adults and then a
cross group of different aged
students,” Bronson said. “Our
sixth graders usually become
the leaders, and we are trying
to build a community within
our school so the kids are
familiarizing themselves
with other students from other
grades.”
It instills leadership qual-
ities in the older students
and you see how some of the
younger students who may
not be as confident can lean
on them, Bronson said.
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
IN BRIEF
Joseph man hurt, woman dies
in motorcycle crash
LA GRANDE — A Wallowa County man
was injured and woman killed in a motorcycle
crash Sunday, June 5, in Union County.
Robert E. Scott, 50, of Joseph, was travel-
ing eastbound on Highway 82 near milepost
32 when he lost control of his Harley-David-
son motorcycle and crashed, according to
a report from the Oregon State Police. The
weather, which was rain and fog, is being
investigated as contributing factors, police
said.
Scott suffered serious injuries and was
transported to an area hospital. A passenger,
Linda S. Walker, 52, of Joseph, was trans-
ported via Life Flight but suffered fatal inju-
ries and later died.
OSP was assisted at the scene by Union
County Sheriff’s Office, Elgin Fire Depart-
ment, La Grande Fire Department, Life Flight
and Oregon Department of Transportation.
— EO Media Group
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