BOONE, N.C. — For three days in mid-July, 15 North Carolina high school rising juniors and seniors enrolled in the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics’ Summer Ventures in Sciences and Mathematics (SVSM) program at Appalachian State University set up camp in Edgemont — a wilderness community on the banks of Wilson Creek about 15 miles as the crow flies from Boone.

There, they sampled the river, gathering research data for an Aquatic Ecology course, one of the four science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) courses offered during their four-week Summer Ventures experience on Appalachian’s campus.

The wild and scenic Wilson Creek provided the perfect living laboratory. The headwaters of the creek rise from the slopes of Grandfather Mountain in Avery County, cascading south through the Globe area of the Pisgah National Forest. Ten or more rivers flow into Wilson Creek along the way and, in early June, a flood devastated the area.

Dr. Shea Tuberty, Appalachian professor and assistant chair for student affairs in the Department of Biology, taught the Aquatic Ecology course with assistance from a graduate student, an undergraduate research assistant and two regional high school instructors. And, according to Tuberty, this program was a win-win for everyone — the diverse group of high schoolers, undergraduate and graduate students, educators, professors, program facilitators and even a 7-year-old budding hydrologist.

From high school to high waters

The field experience for the students began with pitching their tents — for some a challenge in itself — and learning what Tuberty expected over the course of the three days. The students’ river research would test hypotheses and inform their conclusions about flood impacts, remediation, water quality and the resiliency of the river as measured by the health of the aquatic life and insects found there following the epic flood.

Navigating rocky footing in a fast-flowing current, the students — most from urban areas and unaccustomed to the ways of the wild — introduced electric current into the river to stun, then capture, classify, measure and return trout, bass and other fish species to the safety of the shallows. They combed the river rocks to gather and catalogue macroinvertebrates like caddisflies and water pennies, and, using a combination of sophisticated instrumentation and simple household items, they measured the depth, width and velocity of the creek, as well as the creek’s sediment and water quality.

On day two, they followed Lost Cove Creek from a small headwater stream at the mountain ridge below the Blue Ridge Parkway down to the Wilson Creek valley below to sample and test the hypotheses of the River Continuum Concept (RCC) — the physiological, geological and chemical interactions with living organisms in a natural stream environment. This experiment was one of five RCC projects the students conducted in different watersheds over the course of their studies.

Preparing the class for the rugged, 6-mile backcountry hike, Tuberty told students: “I want you to remember what the sample was this morning, this afternoon, what it’s going to be tonight — going from that tiny creek at the top to the big river, you will see how things change in a natural setting — not because people are living here, but because the river is getting bigger and more complex and productive. That is what the whole RCC is about. I want you to live that.”

Serious students, serious research

The Summer Ventures program, also offered at East Carolina University, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and UNC Charlotte, is highly competitive — those who apply are in the top 5% of their high school class and less than 20% were accepted into the 2019 program.

Thousands of students have participated over the program’s 35 years, and according to Tuberty, “These incredibly talented students will be the environmental leaders of tomorrow. They are enthusiastic, resourceful and hardworking. They volunteer to give up a month of their summer vacation and accept that they will be swamped with new information, physically and mentally challenged, and intentionally taken to places outside their comfort zones.”

In addition to the fieldwork at Wilson Creek and in the upper South Fork New River subbasins surrounding Boone, the class explored the human impact on the RCC: They conducted an assessment of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund’s restoration efforts at Ore Knob Copper Mine in Ashe County, which includes area streams affected by mining operations from the 1850s to 1962. The site was placed on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List (NPL) in 2009 because of contaminated surface water, groundwater, sediment and soil.

The students were also challenged in three other STEM courses taught by Appalachian faculty and research teams: Biomedical Science, Exploratory Data Analysis, and Human Physiology in Exercise Science.

At the onset of each course, students developed a research hypothesis. They conducted field and laboratory research, documenting results. Using the collected data to test the hypotheses, they completed a research paper and presented their findings at the culminating research symposium.

But learning was not limited to the program’s students — Summer Ventures afforded a number of scholars and lifelong learners robust educational opportunities.

Lifelong learners

Tuberty said Summer Ventures also benefits Appalachian and its students. “This type of collaboration,” he said, “provides my graduate students and departments across campus with invaluable research opportunities.”

Meet some of the program’s lifelong learners:

Lori Tyler

Doctoral candidate, program director

Lori Tyler, who was a participant in the Summer Ventures program 31 years ago, has directed Appalachian’s Summer Ventures program for the past 14 years. She is gathering supporting data for her research on the economic and academic impact of the program as an educational leadership doctoral candidate in Appalachian’s Reich College of Education (RCOE).

“The program has been held on as many as six UNC campuses over the years and little research has been conducted to report specific data regarding any outcomes from our state’s investment into the Summer Ventures program,” Tyler said.

“I also hope to explore the impact on various stakeholders, including implicit and/or explicit outcomes of the program, such as aspects that support students’ career and college readiness. My intent is for my dissertation to be more than a program evaluation, but evaluation factors needed to further support Summer Ventures’ ongoing funding and future,” she added.

She first worked at Appalachian in 1991, in the former Residence Life program and as an instructor. She jokingly calls herself the “poster child for Summer Ventures,” since she has been involved with the program most of her life.

“I don’t consider my job with Summer Ventures as work; it is my passion and I am privileged to be able to collaborate with high-ability high school students, STEM high school teachers, community college instructors and university faculty,” she said. “I was a 1988 North Carolina Teaching Fellow and I believe I have been fortunate to continue to be an educator beyond my years teaching secondary mathematics.”

Cristina Sanders

Graduate student, lab assistant and mom

Cristina Sanders, a U.S. Army veteran and mother from Taylorsville, is a biology graduate student and assistant in Tuberty’s laboratory. During the Summer Ventures experience, she was able to gather data important to her research and also school her 7-year-old son, who tagged along, in aquatic sciences.

Sanders is a nontraditional student who earned her undergraduate degree online. She said Appalachian was her first brick-and-mortar experience, and that choosing Boone for her studies was a no-brainer.

“I am based where there is nature everywhere,” she said of the surrounding Boone community. “There are five headwaters within 20 minutes of my lab. If you like studying anything environmental, this is the place to be.”

“Cristina came in with a degree in environmental science,” Tuberty said. “She had more related coursework under her belt than most. She’s older, has started a family, knows what she wants to be. She survived boot camp and several years in the Reserves — that taught her a lot of resourceful tricks.” And, he added, “Her son is the most knowledgeable aquatic ecologist at 7 I’ve ever met.”

Kelly Ruff ’97 and Scott Taylor

High school instructors

Kelly Ruff ’97, an Appalachian alumnus who teaches biology at East Burke High School in Burke County, has been working in the Summer Ventures program for the past 14 years. He said the program gives him a different perspective on teaching and skills, as well as exercises he can take back to the classroom.

“Learning real research skills is a challenge for the students,” he said. “It’s hard when they don’t get the answer they expect. ‘I did all this work and I got unexpected results,’ they think. When, really, they are simply learning good methodology. This type of learning is critical for the next generation of scientists and doctors.”

Ruff’s co-instructor, Scott Taylor, is a retired science teacher who has worked with Summer Ventures since 1991. He said the program’s experiences are particularly powerful for students who come from urban areas and have never been in the wilderness.

“These students are extremely tech savvy,” he said. “They can do things with computers I never dreamed of. Still, they are naive about being in the outdoors. This is an opportunity to learn to be resilient and resourceful.”

Megan Aeschleman

Undergraduate and resident advisor

As a program facilitator, Appalachian senior Megan Aeschleman, of Oak Park, Illinois, helps Tyler stay two steps ahead of the students, assisting with logistics, food and scheduling throughout the program.

Through the university’s Accelerated Admission program, which is offered by Appalachian’s Cratis D. Williams School of Graduate Studies, Aeschleman is simultaneously earning her B.S. in middle grades education and her master’s in reading education from the RCOE. She plans to teach and coach soccer after graduating from Appalachian.

Aeschleman said during her first year of high school, her mother read that Appalachian was listed as one of the best universities for an affordable education. The accelerated master’s program is saving her money on tuition, Aeschleman said, while her work as a resident advisor and in the Summer Ventures program is giving her real-time experience working with students.

Community outreach

Even the Edgemont community benefits from the program. For the last several years, Tuberty has shared data on water quality and flood remediation with members at the annual meeting of the Edgemont Limited, a hunting and fishing club that maintains woodlands and trails in the designated wild and scenic Edgemont community and regularly stocks Wilson Creek with trout.

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About the Department of Biology

The Department of Biology is a community of teacher-scholars, with faculty representing the full breadth of biological specializations — from molecular genetics to landscape/ecosystem ecology. The department seeks to produce graduates with sound scientific knowledge, the skills to create new knowledge, and the excitement and appreciation of scientific discovery. Learn more at https://biology.appstate.edu.

About the College of Arts and Sciences

The College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) at Appalachian State University is home to 17 academic departments, two centers and one residential college. These units span the humanities and the social, mathematical and natural sciences. CAS aims to develop a distinctive identity built upon our university's strengths, traditions and locations. The college’s values lie not only in service to the university and local community, but through inspiring, training, educating and sustaining the development of its students as global citizens. More than 6,800 student majors are enrolled in the college. As the college is also largely responsible for implementing App State’s general education curriculum, it is heavily involved in the education of all students at the university, including those pursuing majors in other colleges. Learn more at https://cas.appstate.edu.

About Appalachian State University

As a premier public institution, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives. App State is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System, with a national reputation for innovative teaching and opening access to a high-quality, affordable education for all. The university enrolls more than 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and 80 graduate majors at its Boone and Hickory campuses and through App State Online. Learn more at https://www.appstate.edu.