Sixteen students participated in the 2024 Fall Forestry Challenge held in Mountain Meadow Camp near Shingletown, Shasta County this past week. Students participated in a extremely competitive weekend that has two parts: 40% of their overall score is based on a field test of forestry skills and use of tools, and 60% or their scores are based on a presentation that they create and give to a panel of judges. Competing against 30 teams, two teams finished in the top ten, specifically 5th and 7th places. The fifth place team members were seniors Avery DeGennaro, Mason Johnson, Jesus Moncada, and junior Brayden Bowersox. The seventh place team members were seniors Madelyn Freer, Carnegie Hall, Sierra Johnson, and junior Cheyenne Stephens.
"Some schools have classes dedicated to learning forestry skills. Hence, I am extremely proud of our Forestry Challenge teams for their hard work and am thankful to our district for making it work to get us up there to compete," shared Mr. Castro, advisor.
The students were challenged to use data to persuade an audience of judges of a proposed solution to an ecological issue of forest management. The students were extremely busy but also had time to enjoy the outdoors with hikes, stargazing, campfires, and such.
To learn more about the Forestry Challenge, visit https://forestrychallenge.org/. Photo courtesy of Mr. Castro.