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Student Opportunities

Opportunities to Engage with Watershed Groups

Current Student Opportunities

Students interested in immersing themselves in a meaningful project with a local watershed group can do so by signing up for courses participating in the Common Waters program, or individually by participating in WVU's RAP, SURE, or Purpose2Action programs with us as your mentor. If you're passionate about this work, please reach out the rachel.spirnak@mail.wvu.edu and we will find the best way for you to collaborate with us.

If you are currently conducting a project and would like to be connected to local groups to collaborate or share your findings with, we can help! 

MDS 489: Capstone (CS1; 10966) Spring 2025

  • Are you interested in the environment and ecological issues?
  • Do you want to gain real-world experience with local professionals and use your education and skills to help your community?
  • Are you interested in networking with professionals and building a career profile?

Then MDS 489 is your course!

This semester, students will have the opportunity to work with the Common Waters Collaborative to address key needs in the community. By partnering with watershed groups, students will not only work on a project with real-world impact, but also elevate their project through access to existing data, local knowledge, resources, and physical sites for research. Students will learn how to engage communities in research and will be exposed to potential career options.

This course will allow students the opportunity to engage in:

  • Working directly with local watershed groups
  • Traditional scientific research projects
  • Smaller-scope projects meant as a practice exercises for a specific technical application (e.g., creating a map or infographic) or topic (e.g., desktop research or interviews)
  • Creative ventures (e.g., video production, photography, art displays)

At the end of the semester, students will present their work at the NRCCE (National Research Center for Coal and Energy) at WVU to various stakeholders and community leaders.

What is a Watershed Group?

A watershed is an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers or basins.

Watershed groups are local nonprofit organizations that typically work within a specific watershed on environmental and community focused projects. Their missions differ  based on the specific issues and interests of their local watershed, however many complete tasks such as:

  • Water quality monitoring
  • Trash cleanups
  • Outdoor recreation
  • Advocacy
  • Community Engagement
  • Environmental Education

In West Virginia and Pennsylvania, there are hundreds watershed groups, as well as countless other organizations that work on water-related issues, such as waterkeepers and other environmental nonprofits.

Why do they need your help?

Watershed groups throughout West Virginia and surrounding states are typically volunteer-driven nonprofit organizations, though some have the capacity to support paid staff members. In addition, most were formed in the late 90’s and are aging out. As a result, many struggle to recruit and retain board members and volunteers, complete projects, and engage their communities. Watershed groups often have specific problems that need solved through research or technical assistance, but don’t have the personnel or expertise to tackle them.

How can you help?

Most watershed groups have technical, advocacy, and community engagement needs related to conservation and recreation. So whether you're interested in an applied research project, or an opportunity to promote local kayak trails, we have a project for you.  Some examples of potential projects include:

  • Creative ventures (e.g., video production, photography, art displays)
  • Collecting/analyzing water quality data
  • Evaluating erosion and sedimentation
  • GIS assistance
  • Researching topics in the literature, performing interviews, etc.
  • Preparing newsletters, infographics, or social media posts
  • Assisting with restoration planning
  • Sharing research findings to the general public

As a student, you'll not only be given a project with real-world impact, but also assistance elevating your project through access to existing data, local knowledge, resources, and physical sites for research. More importantly, you'll learn how to engage communities in research and be exposed to potential careers and networking opportunities.