Alfonso Gonzalez

“Teaching Kids to be Stewards of Chimacum Creek,” Gonzalez’s winning program, was designed to help students become stewards of the Chimacum waters. The sixth-grade students will work hand-in-hand with the North Olympic Salmon Coalition (NOSC) to learn about Chimacum Creek and how to keep it healthy and how to keep the fish thriving. Students will also learn about water pollution and water quality. The sixth graders will visit different creek sites to plant native trees and vegetation along the riparian zones. As the students reach eighth-grade, they will get to work for the Jefferson Conservation District to trap, identify and count fish in the creek. All students maintain a class blog where they share their experiences and results. Students are able to round out their stewardship training as they learn what it takes to keep the neighborhood creek healthy to support fish. This project is the only one of its kind incorporating in-class learning and service learning with outdoor field science activities. Students are doing real science while learning how to maintain our natural resources. Gonzalez lives in Chimacum.