Poudre Learning Center Goals

Goal:

Objectives:

To be a keystone to the other learning opportunities along the Poudre River.

To showcase the importance of the Cache la Poudre River to the wildlife, vegetation, and agricultural/municipal uses it supports.

To provide outdoor classrooms in areas of natural, cultural, and economic significance.

To establish habitats of vegetation that are representative of this region of Colorado with grasses and woody plants.

To blend all amenities and structures into the natural setting of the land.

The Poudre Learning Center will develop and offer low cost/no cost interdisciplinary education programs. These programs will help introduce and reinforce concepts presented in local school curriculums. The Learning Center will serve as a focal point for the study of the Poudre River through the use of labs, activities, and canoe trips. The Center will also be the beginning of a barrier free, wheelchair accessible, Oxbow Nature Trail. An aquatic education area will be established at the Center with a focus on such elements as water safety, aquatic ecology, and hydrology.

The Learning Center will serve as an application site for environmental learning. Activities at the Center will be designed to serve as a way for students to recognize, evaluate, and make responsible choices in their own lives. Students will learn how to take constructive actions as thoughtful, informed, and responsible inhabitants of our Poudre River basin. Natural resource topics covered at the Center will be reinforced by implementation. Students will work on implementation plans that will be incorporated into habitat projects, trail improvements, and other activities at the Poudre Learning Center.