What is the Rivers Project?

Increasing the Scientific Literacy of High School Students Through Water Study

The Rivers Project began in February 1990 as a pilot program involving eight high schools along the Mississippi and lower Illinois River.  The Rivers Project network has grown, through the training of teachers, to include schools in most of the states and provinces across the United States and Canada.  With scientific literacy as the ultimate goal, students collect and analyze water samples from various test sites. The data collected are sent via the Internet to the Rivers Project.  Data have been transmitted to various state agencies and to the Environmental Management Technical Center (a division of the US Geological Survey) in Onalaska, WI.  In Illinois, the recipient is the Illinois EPA.  Rivers study has been extended to include historical, social and/or economic implications of the river conditions, thus involving students from classes across the curricular areas of science, mathematics, social studies, and language arts.

 The Internet and the WORLD WIDE WEB (WWW) link participating schools, support sites, and the Project headquarters while providing a technological framework for the various activities.  Rivers Project recognition has resulted in numerous awards.  At the same time, many project teachers have been recognized for their own efforts for their river.

Funding has come from a variety of sources: the Illinois State Board of Education Scientific Literacy grants, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Missouri Attorney General, Illinois Board of Higher Education -- Dwight D. Eisenhower Title II Funds, National Science Foundation, Ameritech, the Illinois EPA and Southern Illinois University.  The Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and Ameritech have continued to provide funding for printing, especially that of the student-authored publication, MEANDERINGS.