Watershed Alliance Teacher Researcher Partnership (WATR)

Now accepting pre-registration for the 2026 cohort! Save your spot today as spaces are limited! 

Pre-register by Dec 1, 2025 for the 2026 Cohort by send an email to akeaton [at] uvm.edu expressing your interest in taking the course for credit. The first 10 spaces are reserved for participants taking the course for credit. 

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The WATR Partnership leverages local research activities and a state-of-the-art research vessel to provide teachers with an immersive year-long professional development program related to watershed science and water quality issues. The vessel will function as a floating laboratory on Lake Champlain and be the primary vessel of watershed science research at the University of Vermont. It will be staffed with a full-time Captain and Deckhand experienced in all aspects of limnological, geological, and fisheries sampling, including: water sampling, plankton sampling, sediment coring, deploying and maintaining in situ sensors, gill netting, bottom and mid-water fish trawling, and hydroacoustic sampling. Throughout the year-long program teachers will be engaged in limnological sampling, long-term monitoring, working with large datasets, and place-based learning pedagogies. During the week-long immersive experience, teachers will gain valuable experience as researchers working alongside research faculty, staff, crew and community partners to better prepare them to re-imagine teaching rooted in place. This approach emphasizes the importance of creating learning experiences that are local and relevant to students.

Through the WATR Partnership, teachers will learn about current and emerging water quality challenges and become involved in ongoing research projects. The capstone of this experience will be partnering with a researcher to collaborate on the development of a watershed Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics (STEAM) based unit. Each participating teacher will develop a minimum of one standards-based lesson plan that uses place-based pedagogy through the integration of current watershed scientific research. Teachers can elect to receive graduate credits through the University of Vermont for participating in the program. Participating researchers will have the opportunity to extend their research topics into school communities and work with teachers to provide feedback on lesson plans and learning activities to ensure scientific accuracy. Teachers will pilot the lessons in their classrooms; these individual lessons and corresponding materials will then be compiled into a larger curriculum and finalized materials will be shared across the Watershed Alliance learning network for teachers across the Lake Champlain Basin to utilize.

Space is limited in this program due to R/V capacity. We strongly encourage teaching teams to signup together. We also aim to have a geographic distribution of teachers from across the watershed. 

Program Details

Deadline to apply: Pre-register by Dec 1, 2025 for the 2026 Cohort by sending an email to akeaton [at] uvm.edu expressing your interest in taking the course for credit. The first 10 spaces are reserved for participants taking the course for credit. 

Dates: 

  • Summer intensive (in-person): July 20 - 24, 2026, at the Rubenstein Ecosystem Science Laboratory. There will be a pre and post summer intensive virtual session (dates/timing will be set by class).
  • There will a follow-up assignment from the in-person session due by August 5th.

Course Credit: 4 credits (tuition fees apply) 

Program Costs: $400 (reach out if this is an issue; there are a few scholarships)   

Questions? contact: Ashley Eaton, akeaton [at] uvm.edu 

 

Sample Program Day

  • Morning Sessions: 
    • Arrival at Rubenstein Ecosystem Science Laboratory
    • Community Building Activity
    • Lab Tour
    • Student Research Panel 
  • Lunch 
  • Afternoon Sessions: 
    • Curriculum Planning Time 
    • Vessel Time - Trawling for Juvenile Lake Trout, Water Quality Monitoring 
    • Stream to lab 
    • End of day 

 

To request a disability-related accommodation to participate in this program, please contact Ashley Eaton at 802-391-4410 or akeaton [at] uvm.edu by May 1, 2026 so we may assist you.