Congratulations to the Seekonk High School Envirothon Team!

Posted Monday, July 25, 2016 12:00 am

July 25, 2016
Chris Jones, Principal
Seekonk High School
261 Arcade Avenue
Seekonk MA 02771

Dear Dr. Jones,
Congratulations to the Seekonk High School Envirothon team for their hard work at the 2016 Mass Envirothon! The team was one of 16 across the state completing requirements for the Mass Envirothon Community Research Award for their Current Issue research on Managing Invasive Species.
2016 participating team members – all from Seekonk – were:

Alizabeth Almeida
Emily Botelho
Matthew Broadmeadow
Jess Leech
Jacques Turcotte
The team was coached by Seekonk High School teacher Angela Cunard.

The Mass Envirothon Community Research Award recognizes teams who have done thorough and wide-ranging community investigations in preparation for their Current Issue presentation. Qualifying for this award in 2016 required teams to visit a variety of ecosystems in their community and become acquainted with particular species and their adaptations. They also had to interview a number of people conservation commissioners, natural resource managers, long-term residents – for their perspectives on invasive species. In addition the teams used maps and researched local newspapers and the internet.

What they did: The Seekonk team investigated invasive species issues particularly around recent land development projects. They are working with the Edna Martin Land Trust to document the influx of invasives on development sites and to recruit fellow students on a project to remove invasive plants.

Envirothon teams gain strong environmental knowledge and community connections through this experience. They develop teamwork skills and stewardship values. They show that they are capable of college level work and that they can make a real contribution to their communities. Their coaches deserve special commendation for the time and care they put into working with the team.

Thank you for your support of the Seekonk team and their coach! More about the Envirothon can be found at https://www.massenvirothon.org. I can be reached at wsnyder@umext.umass.edu.
Sincerely,
Will Snyder
UMass Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment/UMass Extension
Chair of the Massachusetts Envirothon Steering Committee