Portland Active Living Partnership Teams with Local High School for Trail Improvement and Use

Portland's Active Living by Design community partnership has connected with Marshall High School Campus to integrate stewardship of the Springwater Trail into the curriculum. The program engages students to learn about, work on and use the trail that passes through the Lents neighborhood, combining the schools curriculum goals of service learning, math, civics and geography with 'active' outdoor trail maintenance. The partnership has inspired the students' interest in active living and has them frequenting a trail that most never knew existed.

Working with the Johnson Creek Watershed Council, the students visited the trail in groups to learn about the plant life and test out their new pedometers. The students identified native and invasive plant species along the trail, returning later to clear out non-native species and prepare areas for new plantings. With their step lengths calculated and pedometers in full stride, the teams of teens measured the trail and marked off their results. After receiving their pedometers and learning how to use them, students were given a homework assignment where they had to walk 5 routes in their neighborhood, record the number of steps, calculate mileage, and make comments on how easy or difficult the environment made it for them to get around.

The program culminated in a 'trail day' full of fun activities and trail maintenance. Riding bikes donated by a local shop, the students explored the Springwater Trail and saw all the destinations that were connected. With the trash picked up and new plantings in place, Marshall High School has left the trail in better shape than the way they found it. To celebrate the success of the first year program connecting the school with the trail, the students biked to a nearby park and had a well-deserved party. An extensive survey, conducted by the Portland Active Living community partnership, asked the students about their trail usage, physical activity habits, and any barriers to an active lifestyle that they face. The results show modest awareness about the trail from the initial survey, along with some evidence of usage for exercise and fun. Although there are still significant obstacles to physical fitness for students in the Lents neighborhood, Portland Active Living has begun a partnership that links Marshall High School Campus' desire to serve the community with an important physical activity resource that needs their continued stewardship and usage.

The Portland Active Living community partnership will use a Special Opportunity Grant, additional funding given by the Active Living by Design program, to plant new trees in the areas prepared by the students and to develop a walking program with several routes through the Lents neighborhood. The routes, to be planned by the students and measured out with their pedometers, provide a safe and local way for residents to get more physical activity.

In addition, Marshall High School has been selected as a Coordinating School for Healthy Children (Action for Healthy Schools) and will receive a grant to promote physical activity and nutrition. With the trail stewardship's success in the curriculum, the partnership hopes continue the relationship with the help of the new grant.

Resources

Marshall High School Survey Results