Despite COVID-19 impacts, Colorado TU is excited to share some successes in the Stream of Engagement programming from this fall. The youth education programs faced challenges with many schools operating in new models and group gatherings limited by public health orders. To adapt to these challenges, Colorado Trout Unlimited and chapters across the state stepped up to continue to provide high quality educational experiences focused on water and fisheries conservation. Most notably, CTU is excited to share nearly a dozen Trout in the Classroom (TIC) sites kicked off and four STREAM Girls events were held in September and October.
This year, 11 TIC sites received trout eggs from CPW in early through mid-October. This included several sites along Colorado’s Front Range, as well as sites in the San Luis Valley and Gunnison Gorge area. Of the 2020-21 TIC sites, chapters are supporting six new locations including one virtual community tank through a partnership between Denver TU and the Greenway Foundation. The 2020-21 TIC sites are listed below with their supporting TU chapters:
Academy High School – Denver TU
Angler’s Covey – Pikes Peak Chapter TU
Arvada West – Denver TU (New Site)
Cheyenne Mountain Junior High School – Pikes Peak Chapter TU (New Site)
Del Norte Jr/Sr High School – San Luis Valley TU (New Site)
Greenway Foundation Community Tank – Denver TU (New VIRTUAL Site)
Heaton Middle School – Southern Colorado Greenbacks TU
Hotchkiss High School – Gunnison Gorge TU (New Site)
Lyons Elementary School – St. Vrain Anglers TU
The Classical Academy – Pikes Peak Chapter TU (New Site)
Ute Pass Elementary – Pikes Peak Chapter TU
CTU is excited to see follow these TIC sites over the course of the year and hear what students are learning through the program! Additionally, CTU transitioned to raising trout eggs provided by Colorado Parks and Wildlife hatcheries. We hope this will increase the local partnership between sites and the state agency!
In addition to in-school programming with Trout in the Classroom, CTU hosted STREAM Girls programming through four virtual/self-guided events with the support of local chapters. To facilitate these programs, CTU staff and volunteers created and sourced instructional videos to support each of the six STREAM Girls activities. The four STREAM Girls programs engaged 59 girl scouts from across Colorado. After completing the session, Girl Scouts and Leaders have said:
“This is a great program to introduce girls to fly-fishing and knowledge of local streams. It was a well-thought out, self-guided program that covered a great deal of information. We had a fun time doing all of the steps.”
“It was really fun and would like to do it again in person. All the activities were awesome!”
A big THANK YOU goes out to Girls Scouts of Colorado, Pikes Peak Chapter, St. Vrain Anglers, Rocky Mountain Flycasters, Gunnison Gorge Anglers, Grand Valley Anglers, and all of the volunteers who helped support these events! Colorado TU was the first to pilot and host virtual/self-guided STREAM Girls events across all of Trout Unlimited. We are proud to have shared our success and lessons learned
with TU Headwaters staff and state councils. We look forward to further developing these resources to help support in-person STREAM Girls events in the future!
As we transition into the winter months, CTU will be exploring opportunities to support ongoing engagement among the TU teens. Please reach out to Geoff.Elliot@tu.org, if you have any thoughts or feedback! We are especially interested in input from youth, so feel free to ask friends and family to share their ideas.
