This summer, juniors and seniors at SHS will have the chance to spend a week in the beautiful Big Horn Mountains while learning about the biology of the area through a class run by Sheridan College. Students can attend this three credit college class, which is a $1,500 value, for free.

Field-Based Environmental Science: Examining Global Problems through a Local Lens is taught by instructors Dave Muniskc, M.S. Ed and Hermes Lynn, M.S.Ed. From July 21 through 26. Students will spend their time at the beautiful Spear-O-Wigwam Mountain Campus, a historical and picturesque location that was founded in 1933.

Sheridan college will cover the cost, so students can learn without money being an issue. The class will be spent almost exclusively outdoors with some lecture time from the professors. During the six days, students will engage in the scientific inquiry of environmental problems using field techniques in the outdoor lab of the Big Horn Mountains. An entry-level environmental science class for elective credit, the class will cover learning how to design and implement field studies, generate and analyze data, and gain an appreciation of how environmental variables are interrelated on local and global levels.

Students should expect a rigorous and upbeat schedule as a semester class will be covered in six days. Students will collect data in the wilderness, analyze it, and use it to apply concepts to the environment and biological sciences. According to Learn Outdoors Program Coordinator Julie Davidson, working on both land and water, with a textbook, and listening to the professors, the class will be unique and a great opportunity for aspiring biologists and scientists.

For interested SHS students, applications are due by April 19. Scholarships will be available for six students from Campbell, Johnson, and Sheridan County, so sign up as soon as possible. Email your name, phone number, transcript, a letter of interest and a letter of recommendation from your current science teacher to [email protected]. Prerequisites are the successful completion of high school physical science and biology classes.