AWC honors students explore national parks

A group of Arizona Western College honors program students hiked into the wilds of three national parks as part of their coursework requirements to demonstrate leadership abilities this summer.

Seven students and five faculty members and volunteers trekked through "breathtakingly beautiful and rugged terrain" to explore the many-sided dimensions of the national parks system, said Liz Renaud, interim director of the honors program and trip lead instructor.

"We understand the honors students are the cream of the crop, and we expect them to show their leadership ability and develop group and teamwork skills," Renaud said.

Between July 10 and 22, the students visited the Zion National Park, the Grand Tetons and Yellowstone. They would have enjoyed their home state parks as well but because of the extreme heat, the team decided the summer season was best suited to an out-of-state sojourn.

The honors program is an interdisciplinary course that covers whatever subject is highlighted for the term - in this case, ecology, said Renaud.

The ecology class was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that enabled students who grew up in a desert environment to see what else is out there, such as mountains, lakes, snow, elk and bears, said student Michael Dominguez. They had the chance to view organisms and be surrounded by completely different habitats than to which they were accustomed, he added.

While in the Tetons, students had the opportunity to shadow AWC professor George Montopoli, who works during the summers as a Grand Teton National Park ranger, doing routine patrols of mountains, rivers and back country. Students also helped Montopoli with trail maintenance, building retaining walls and replacing redwood plank steps with stone. 

"We wanted to get the students excited about becoming rangers themselves and motivate them to come up with ideas of how to preserve natural resources and see on a national level how they can show responsibility to protect the environment," said Renaud.

After each day's exploration, students wrote "reflective journals" to address questions about particular issues such as comparing and contrasting different flora and wildlife at the various elevations in which they passed through and to answer what are the qualities needed for particular habitats to survive, Renaud said.

She said the honors program exists for three factors: recognition, prestige and responsibility. Candidates for the honors program must maintain a 3.5 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale, be full-time students and demonstrate a well-rounded character through volunteer civic service activities.

Once invited to join, students are expected to complete three classes: an honors colloquium, honors capstone and honors seminar in addition to the core requirements of their major discipline, Renaud said.

This fall, students who complete the national parks field trips will produce a Power Point presentation that will be screened for not only fellow students but also the AWC District Governing Board. 

"It was a wild ride," Renaud said. "Students had a fantastic experience, they were very open-minded and exceptionally willing to absorb every aspect.

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William Roller can be reached at wroller@yumasun.com or 539-6858.