Thomas Jefferson High School students recently took first place in the Allegheny County Envirothon sponsored by the Allegheny County Conservation District.
Envirothon, a program of the National Conservation Foundation, is a natural resource environmental education program for high school students that combines classroom learning and outdoor activities. Teams of students from throughout the county competed in field testing in April at North Park utilizing their knowledge of soils and land use, aquatic ecology, forestry, wildlife and environmental issues.
By finishing first, the students got to compete in the Pennsylvania Envirothon on May 22 in Union County. They did not win at that level; only one team from each state competes in the NCF-Envirothon in July and August at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in New York.
“My co-sponsor/coach Brian McClain and I have been doing Envirothon for the past 26 years,” Thomas Jefferson adviser Dan Giger said. “What we like best about [it] is that it exposes students to subject matter they don't typically see in their regular courses.
“It also gives us the chance to get kids outside to explore aspects of Pennsylvania's environment.”
Senior Connor McCann, 17, of Jefferson Hills, said he enjoyed exploring topics he otherwise would not have.
Juniors Lukeman El-Hajj, 17, of Pleasant Hills, and Hunter Houk, 16, of Jefferson Hills, were so inspired that they are considering studying environmental law and wildlife biology, respectively, in college.
“I like how the competition tests my capabilities and what I know about the environment,” Hunter said.
Lukeman said he enjoys studying Pennsylvania's wildlife, especially birds.
Junior Kamryn Mull, 16, of Jefferson Hills, liked being outside, as well as facing other students.
Junior Reagan Sanderson, 17, of Jefferson Hills, also enjoyed competing.
Carmichaels Area High School in Greene County came in sixth in the state Envirothon, including a first-place finish in the Soils and Land Use category.
Meanwhile, Boyce and Fort Couch middle school teams in Upper St. Clair swept the top three places in a junior Envirothon held in South Park.
The Boyce team of Brayden Wong, Alex Zhang, Mateo Lin, Yusuf Unlu and Siddh Patel placed first and had the top overall score in the Current Issues category.
The Fort Couch team of Hope Waldron, Eliot Kim, Cynthia Shen, Sunny Liu and Mira Murthy finished second with the top overall score in the Soils & Land Use category.
Placing third was the Fort Couch team of Aanya Agrawal, Suhavi Singh, Ahana Mendhi, Maria Alfredon-Themudo and Lindsey Fitzgerald.
The students were led by gifted education teachers Sherri Garvey of Boyce Middle School and Tom Yochum of Fort Couch Middle School.
“This group put in a lot of hard work and effort for the one day,” Yochum said. “It bodes well for (our district) in the years ahead at the high school Envirothon.”
Fort Couch eighth grader Suhavi Singh, 13, began noticing plants native to Pennsylvania in backyards after participating.
“It was interesting to find out some common plants in our area are actually invasive or non-native species that damage the environment,” she said.
Fort Couch eighth grader Hope Waldron, 14, had fun competing.
“It was a lot of fun hanging with my friends, and something I want to try again,” she said.
First Published: May 29, 2024, 9:30 a.m.
Updated: May 30, 2024, 1:55 a.m.
