Mesa now used as educational tool

Teachers searching for ways to expand their classroom activities can look outside their windows to the Whitney Mesa Natural Preserve.

On top of the mesa in Henderson sits developed sites, like the Southern Nevada Vocational Trade Center high school. However, 360 acres of the mesa have been preserved for study by pupils in elementary and middle schools across the Las Vegas Valley.

The mesa's educational benefits were discovered in 1992 when the Clark County Health Department demanded an area cleanup. During the sweep, 47 car bodies were taken out of the mesa's canyons.

"It had been used as a dump for years," said John Duggan, Clark County School District project manager for the preserve. "Once they got it cleaned up and fenced up, they were able to use it for education."

In the eight years since, volunteers from UNLV, the school district and the Eagle Scouts -- those reaching the highest level of scouting -- have built bridges, shade structures and an amphitheater to make navigating the mesa easier. Currently, Duggan has six Eagle Scouts planning projects to add more of the same and include more trails and benches.

The mesa's educational uses are twofold.

"It helps the district so we can get things done, and it helps the Boy Scouts get their Eagle projects done," Duggan said.

Teachers looking to expand their pupils' horizons must first undergo 16 hours of professional development training. A guide and CD-ROM to help teachers ready their classes for the trip will be available in November.

The mesa's trails cover about half a mile of easy to moderate terrain, where students can examine plant and animal life, as well as environmental issues and geology.

"There needs to be education for the teachers before they take their classes out there, because it's not contained within four walls," said Candace Thompson, CCSD Southeast science coordinator.

"It's a natural preserve. We don't want the kids going out there and thinking there's a paved sidewalk for them to walk on."

Thompson also coordinates the McCaw School of Mines at McCaw and the Marine Lab at McDoniel elementary schools, which are usually booked for field trips months in advance.

"This is so different than the rest of the sites," Thompson said. "Because it's outdoors, scheduling is easier."

For pupils to get the full effect of the mesa, Thompson suggests two trips per school year, which illustrates the mesa in different seasons when vegetation and animals change.

Because of the ground water, small mammals such as mice, jack and cotton tail rabbits, lizards and pack rats inhabit the area. In the spring, pupils may see water running when, in the fall, the leaves are changing.

Even though the mesa is located in the heart of Green Valley, there is no threat of commercial or residential development.

Teachers interested in the program should call Candace Thompson at 799-5417, Ext. 359. Volunteers interested in helping enhance the natural preserve can call John Duggan at 799-0990.