Stream Team volunteers certified at PJC-Greenville Center
Published or Revised March 30, 2017
At top, trainees were busy learning to use their water quality sampling kits. Middle, from left, Gabrielle Wilcox and her mother Dana, and Allee Casey work on samples. At bottom, successful students display their certifications: in front, from left, are Gabrielle Wilcox, Aura Garcia, Kenny Le, Alexis Montero, and Debra Jones; in back, from left, are Dana Wilcox, Allee Casey, Marifrances Casey, Isla Casey, and Curtis James.
Paris Junior College biology students and members of the Hunt County community recently participated in a Citizen Scientist class at the PJC-Greenville Center campus.
The students completed a three-phase training course in water quality monitoring via the Texas Stream Team Initiative, which is a part of the Meadows Foundation program.
Texas Stream Team at The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment on the Texas State University campus is dedicated to understanding and protecting the 191,000 miles of Texas waterways. The program brings together community members, students, educators, academic researchers, environmental professionals, and both public and private sector partners to conduct scientific research and to promote environmental stewardship.
Delores McCright, retired biology instructor from Texarkana College, is a Texas Stream Team monitor and trainer. She conducted the training for all 10 students.
Cheryl Anderson, Instructor Biological Sciences at the PJC- Greenville Center campus, has now completed training to become a trainer as well.
Anderson said PJC-Greenville Center students plan to adopt waterways in Hunt County to monitor as part of the citizen science teams across the state which help TST collect much needed data on water quality in area streams, lakes and rivers. The Texas Stream Team monitoring protocols are aligned with a TCEQ (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality) approved Quality Assurance Project Plan.
Anyone wishing to become a member of the Texas Stream Team must complete the three-phase training course before becoming a volunteer. Anderson said she anticipates offering training again this summer and in the fall.
As a volunteer, members will monitor a wide variety of habitats from rivers, creeks, ponds, and lakes to bays, bayous, and estuaries. Volunteers range from school age to senior citizens, from individuals to organized groups like Master Naturalists.
For further information about the Texas Stream Team program at PJC-Greenville Center and Hunt County, contact Cheryl Anderson at 903-454-9333 or email her at canderson@parisjc.edu.
