Photo by Rosanna Ruiz

McKenzie Youth Field Days (youth K-6)

Sierra Foothill Conservancy has a proven track record of providing quality place-based environmental science centered programming. The outdoor education program has been developed over the course of a decade and has been shaped to compliment both Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards. Using the environment as the vehicle, focus is placed on reinforcing students’ critical-thinking, problem-solving, and analytical skills. Offered as a component of STEM based education, youth field days on the McKenzie Preserve provide authentic, meaningful and engaging activities that create hands-on opportunities for students to experience the environment around them and what is happening there. Trained docents and educators work with students to provide a close engagement to our natural world and educate about the benefits and importance of local land conservation. The Conservancy seeks to provide these opportunities to all students but pays special mind to those in underserved and underrepresented areas.

As an alternative to Youth Field Days, we are providing weekly STEM At Home activities for parents who are schooling from home. We are currently partnering with Fresno Unified teachers and hope to gain a presence in more school districts across our service region and to retain funding/sponsorships for this necessary program. It is our hope to expand this program, utilizing docent expertise and other avenues well beyond event restrictions, particularly in order to continue to expand our reach into communities of underserved youth.

Wildlife Ambassador Program (K-College)

Our in-class presentations are an expansion of the organization’s outdoor science component and have an underlying theme of environmental education and stewardship. SFC recognizes the need to educate students on the importance of conservation, while also recognizing the reality of shrinking funds for field trips. This program offers schools an opportunity for a one-hour, in-class, presentation featuring live birds of prey. These presentations begin with a preface on basic raptor biology, and then blend into an overview of how these birds exist in the environment and why they are important. Other topics discussed include adaptation, anatomy, and how raptors fit into the food chain in a predator/prey relationship. A personal introduction to these amazing predators will make the food chain come alive.

By bringing live, native birds of prey to capture and hold the interest of the audience, the hope is to create a strong, meaningful connection to the natural world. Coming full circle, the premise of this educational experience is to enhance participants’ knowledge of native species and habitat in the hope that they will gain a greater respect for wildlife and open space corridors, as well as the importance of conservation and stewardship. This is just one of the many avenues SFC sees as an opportunity to give back to the local communities in a powerful way.

Hikes and Classes (All ages and abilities)

Each season Sierra Foothill Conservancy (SFC) plans a host of hikes and classes that focus on educational aspects and outdoor experiences designed to connect participants with the importance of a healthy and sustainable environment. All hikes and classes are led by volunteers who are either trained hike docents, or prominent in the field of study for the class they are teaching. For the participants, these hands-on explorations help to build a sense of awareness that celebrates joint efforts in conservation.

For the 2020/2021 Hikes and Classes season, in the face of the unknown as far as restrictions, we have been developing alternative experiences for constituents. Some of these ideas include phased preserve access (docents, board, very small groups, business groups), preserve “experiences” to increase funding, specialist classes to small groups (Naturalist, animals, etc.).

Nature Force Youth Ambassador Program

SFC’s Nature Force Program consists of youth ambassadors from Mariposa High school. The main objective of the Nature Force Youth Ambassador Program is to work with underserved young people in developing leadership skills and becoming future stewards of the land through a meaningful connection to the outdoors and an increased awareness of the link between health and recreation. This is accomplished by focusing on building diversity by engaging in meaningful, deeply impactful outdoor experiences and ensuring the program is evaluated and improved in a thoughtful, sustainable manner.

The Youth Ambassador program is designed to help build on current outdoor education opportunities by engaging student peers on conserved lands from all levels of outdoor experience – from first encounters with the outdoors to seasoned hikers. The diversity of program activities includes trail building, outdoor recreation (hiking, mountain biking and backpacking), wilderness training, habitat restoration, youth education experiences, and much more. Engaging youth in these activities effectively addresses the decline of youth connection to the outdoors by creating a strong sense of appreciation and ownership for the natural world.  The outcome of knowledge and experience results in inspiring young leaders who have a strong sense of dedication to the future of environmental health and natural resource conservation. We are very proud of our youth ambassadors and the work they do!

Service Learning Opportunities (HS to College)

In 2009, SFC joined forces with Fresno State’s Jan and Bud Richter Center for Community Engagement and Service Learning (Richter Center) to engage students in unique opportunities to serve their local community. This partnership continues to date, and SFC is the longest running partner that the Richter Center has worked alongside in its journey to becoming one of the leading-edge proponents of service learning among universities. Their desire was to partner with SFC in creating one-day service events centered on student involvement in land stewardship, while learning about the natural and cultural resources present in their own backyards.

By creating hands-on, high profile projects on our preserves, SFC has provided an array of meaningful experiences. Maintaining trail systems on our preserves provides maximum experience with minimal impact to the open space corridors we work so hard to protect. Having safe trails allows the organization to offer an array of opportunities for local communities to connect with the cultural, historical and unique ecological features of the Central Valley foothills. Developing opportunity to engage in and explore the wonders of the preserves is critical to our ability to broaden an awareness of the direct connection between recreation and the need for proactive stewardship of local lands.

The partnership has also fostered other service opportunities, including having students from multiple service-learning classes, internship programs, and general volunteers involved in extended service with SFC. Over the years, Fresno State students have contributed thousands of hours of service and have helped advance the mission to protect the Sierra Foothills, a benefit to both the organization and the region.

Sierra Foothill Conservancy has made Educational Services available to educators. Below you will see photos of our field trips sponsored by SFC. Click on the pictures to see more detail.