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Oregon Stewardship mentors students from six high schools who earn hours for their senior projects or community service requirements.  Upon graduation, students are eligible for a scholarship for college or vocational school.  Oregon Stewardship awards approximately $11,000 to students each year.  When students build a trail or replant a riparian area, Oregon Stewardship and students provide ongoing, continued maintenance.

  • Kids Unlimited students help by planting riparian native species.
  • Gold Beach fourth graders are led on a hike, led by high school students and Jim.
  • Illinois Valley students planting native species at Thompson Cr.
  • Pacific students are removing ivy from a tree on Elk Cr.
  • Coquille students plant geranium baskets to sale.
  • A student from Oregon State University is propagating navite plants
  • South Medford students planted native species at where Lazy Creek enters Bear Creek.
  • Coquille students help maintain the Coquille River walkway.
  • Rogue Community College earn community service credit by working on Bear Creek.
  • Medford students clearing brush on Bear Creek.
  • Student is learning to plant near Bear Creek.
  • Myrtle Point student's cleaning up their school gardens.

South Medford High School

In 2009 South Medford High School students mentored by Jim Hutchins, found runoff from Interstate 5 draining into Bear Creek in downtown Medford.  Those students created bio swales to help filter the water before it enters the creek.  A bio swale consists of river rock and native spirea, willows and sedge.

In the years following between seven and ten South Medford High School students and several students from Rogue Community College have expanded the original project to 4 miles of riparian restoration by removing invasive blackberries and poison hemlock and replanting with a variety of native species.  In addition they have restored an area along the creek by U.S. Cellular Fields in south Medford and created a small trail there.  In 2017 students removed brush and blackberries along the riparian area of Bear Creek Park and planted native species. Students have continued the restoration on a one mile stretch from Barnett past Bear Creek Park.  Hundreds of native plants have been planted and close to a mile of hiking paths have been built. Over the past few years, students have cleared and barked a walking trail from Barnett Avenue to Willamette in Bear Creek Park.  Panther Pride Trail meanders along Bear Creek.   All are maintained by Oregon Stewardship and high school students.

  • Bear Creek is covered with blackberries before the riparian restoration begins.
  • Bear Creek with blackberries cleared and replanted with native species.
  • SMHS
  • Rogue Community College earn community service credit by working on Bear Creek.

Gold Beach High School

In 1995 the Mathison family donated access for a trail along the Rogue River now called Elephant Bar Trail.  Students designed and built an interpretive trail and maintain year round. Gold Beach seniors mentor younger students during hikes to study stream and estuary ecology at Elephant Bar Trail twice annually, fall and spring. Three board members and two volunteers traveled to Gold Beach to help the Curry Watershed Council clean up Elephant Bar Trail. We are working with the watershed council to develop a plan to have someone continue Oregon Stewardship at Gold Beach High School with financial support from Oregon Stewardship.

Colleges      

Each year students from Rogue Community College’s Environment and Society Class volunteer on the Bear Creek restoration project.  In addition, capstone projects are available for students from Southern Oregon University.

In the Summer of 2019 an intern from Oregon State University monitored native plants both during propagation and once planted in riparian areas.

Oregon Stewardship is also available to mentor Southern Oregon University Capstone students. Contact Jim at [email protected]

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