The Willamette River Steelhead Project
A Cooperative Partnership Agreement Between Jefferson High School, Portland, Oregon, and Oregon Websites and Watersheds Project, Inc.
On Friday, July 21, 2000, representatives
of Jefferson High School, Portland, Oregon, and Oregon Websites and Watersheds
Project Inc., finalized and signed a long-term partnership agreement between
the two organizations. The proposal had taken more than two years
to develop and complete. This page contains a description
of the proposed project, a brief history
of its development, and the complete text
of the body of the agreement.
The Willamette River Steelhead Project is a long-term monitoring, research, and education project that focuses on the condition and health of Portland, Oregon's riverine plant and animal communities and of its rivers and streams. Particular emphasis is given to the City's anadromous fish populations and to local impacts on surface water qualities of the Columbia and Willamette rivers and their tributaries.
This Project will directly address local and regional concerns about threatened and endangered fish populations, potential toxicity of local food and sportfish species, and the quality of local surface waters. Student academic and employment opportunities will be created to better inform the public about these important issues in order to make decisions regarding the management of common cultural and natural resources.
The Project will be based at Jefferson High School and may include paid
summer work for Jefferson students in the fields of environmental sciences,
internet communications, and public education. Students will work
with classroom teachers, local professionals and scientists to obtain current
information about endangered fish populations, river water quality, fish
toxicity, etc. Their findings will be used to satisfy academic requirements
and will be reported to the general public via periodic news releases,
televised reports, and the School's internet website. The program
will run at least three years and contain strong components for monitoring,
evaluation and possible replication in other Oregon and Columbia River
basin schools and communities.
The Willamette River Steelhead Project was first proposed in April, 1998 by Bob Zybach and Wayne Giesy of Oregon Websites and Watershed Project, Inc. (ORWW), following discussions and consultations with Principal Opal Chancler-Moore and Vice Principal of Curriculum Kevin Bacon of Jefferson High School. The proposal is sponsored by ORWW, a 501 c(3) corporation based in Philomath, Oregon.
The proposed project is based on models successfully completed by the sponsoring organization and its principals during the past 10 years. The Alberta Street Project used a seven person team of Jefferson-area student interns in 1992 to produce a formal Cultural Resources Inventory with recommendations for an Alberta Street neighborhood in N/NE Portland. The PEAS Project demonstrated that internet communications were an effective way to publicly display K-12 student projects with an environmental sciences focus. PEAS also demonstrated how five rural Oregon schools could efficiently establish a sophisticated Internet communications network with little cost in time or other resources to local school districts.
A focus of the Willamette River Steelhead Project will be to expand
on these earlier projects to include modern technologies developed since
1992, and to include an urban component to the rural communications network
established in 1997. The recent listing of the Willamette River Steelhead
population as a threatened species by the Federal government, and the current
proposed "Superfund" listing of the Willamette River harbor demonstrate
the timeliness of this proposal. We now have a project in place that
can effectively involve Portland area students in the long-term study,
evaluation, and resolution of these common problems.
Jefferson High School ("Jefferson") and Oregon Websites and Watershed Projects, Inc. ("ORWW"), agree to cooperate in a long-term educational joint venture. We understand that this partnership will manifest itself in the form of either one or both of the following project/report topics:
Further, we understand that the project(s) will involve Jefferson students in a three part process of identifying, documenting/measuring, and communicating. For example:
- Historical riverine plant and animal species populations within and adjacent to City of Portland and Multnomah County boundaries.
- Surface water quality where the Willamette and Columbia Rivers enter and leave Multnomah County and Portland City limits.
1. Students will identify historical plant and animal species within Multnomah County or Portland city limits
Jefferson student findings and products can be used by ORWW for educational and promotional purposes. In return, ORWW partnership responsibilities include providing scientific resources, facilitating project fundraising needs, and professional guidance. This will involve appropriate assistance in order to achieve the following:
1. Scientific resources - providing
<Signature/July 21, 2000>
<Signature/July 21, 2000>
Kevin Bacon
Date
Cathy Benedetto Date
Principal, Jefferson High School
Vice Principal, Jefferson High School
<Signature/July 27, 2000>
<Signature/July 27, 2000>
Bob Zybach
Date
Stuart Hemphill Date
Project Manager, Oregon Websites &
President, Oregon Websites &
Watersheds Project, Inc.
Watersheds Project, Inc.