Data collected by the students are used to maintain healthy living conditions in a golf course pond, where the fish are reared for restoration of the species and maintained as a backup brood stock. They have shared this enthusiasm with their parents, and that, in turn, has generated unprecedented community support for preservation of the very resource that is the economic lifeblood of the region. This multifaceted partnership between the Page School District in Arizona and Glen Canyon provides public education on Glen Canyon's fragile resources. The program reaches a high percentage of Navajo and female students who will help cultivate a diverse workforce including resource managers. Razorback suckers, endangered fish endemic to the Colorado River Basin, are being reared in the ponds to maintain a backup brood stock and to grow large enough so they are not vulnerable to predation when stocked in the wild.
Students routinely monitor water quality, fish growth, and health, and harvest fish for stocking.
Students also contributed to the collection of razorback sucker larvae in Lake Mohave, at the southern end of Lake Mead National Recreation Area, to help the Native Fish Work Group reach their projected capture rate for 1999. They also assisted with pit-tagging bonytail chub, an endangered species, for stocking. Students provide a necessary link between the local community and federal land managers. They learn the scientific basis for water quality and rangeland management decisions, both highly political and economic issues in the park. Through these courses they are given an opportunity to be involved in an internship with Utah State University, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and the Bureau of Land Management.