RBHS wins Envirothon, heads to state

RHS team also plans for state competition

As the Franklin County Envirothon champion for 2017, the Red Bay High School Envirothon team is now getting prepared to take on teams from across the state.

The RBHS team claimed the top place in the local competition March 14. Their next challenge will be April 6-8 at the 4-H Center in Columbiana.

Envirothon sponsor Jarod Massey said months of studying went into preparing for this competition. The RBHS team included seniors Ethan Mobley, Dylan Pearson, Taylor Cash and Charis Murrell, junior Ethan Ray and junior Anna Jackson as alternate.

“They competed in this last year, so they had a lot of experience from last year, and they put in quite a bit of time studying and preparing for this,” said Massey.

The students competed with their contemporaries from across the county in five categories: soils, aquatics, forestry, wildlife and current issues, testing their knowledge with written tests as well as presentations on simulated scenarios. The RBHS team earned their high score in the soils category.

“I was extremely proud of them. They had worked hard,” Massey said. “Not only does it teach them about natural resources, but it’s also good because it gives them a chance to develop presentation skills, to stand in front of judge and other people and make a presentation.”

At the state level, students will face similar challenges to the local competition, undergoing written tests and then presenting on hypothetical scenarios – in a more in-depth way than at the county level.

For Red Bay, the team will compete for first place in both Envirothon as well as from an FFA perspective. Both sides of the competition will advance a winner to the next level. “We would love to win both,” Massey said.

As the second-place finishers, Phil Campbell High School Envirothon Team also qualified to compete at state. Team members are Joe Hardy, Xena Alfaro, Carley Nix, Olivia Knight, Ben Williams, Rilan Garrison and Eli Jackson.

At Russellville High School, plans for state are similarly in the works. Without having clinched the county championship, RHS must pay its own way to the state competition – to the tune of $931.

“We have done a couple of fundraisers to date, raising about $350,” said RHS Envirothon sponsor Kevin England. “If anyone would like to make a donation toward our trip they can contact me directly at 256-565-4933 or by email (kevin.england@rcs.k12.al.us).” Donations, England said, will be tax-deductible.

The Franklin County Envirothon is an educational program held each year by the Franklin County Conservation District. Partners in the event include TVA and the Natural Resources Conservation Service. Sponsors include local legislatures, the Franklin County Commission, Valley State Bank and Jack’s Restaurant.