A total of twenty-seven students in grades 8-12, along with teachers and chaperones, from seven schools in the western UP will be attending the 15th biennial Lake Superior Youth Symposium April 20-23 at Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin.  The symposium draws students from the Lake Superior watershed, including MI, WI, MN, and Ontario. 

Students attending the symposium come from Lake Linden-Hubbell, Dollar Bay-TC, Houghton-Portage, Ewen-Trout Creek and Ironwood School Districts, Community Alliance for Progressive Education, and Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College.

Students will explore the science, art, history, and unique features of Lake Superior, while meeting new friends and considering how they can steward this important global resource in the places where they live. Field trips include visits to the Red Cliff Fishery, Copper Falls Geology, Apostle Islands Lakeshore Sea Caves, Organic Food Production & Composting Tour, Ashland Art & Murals by Bike, and Water Quality Testing, along with engaging workshops, such as Spring Foraging, Geoheritage of Buffalo Reef, Wolf Ecology, and Slowing Stormwater Runoff, plus many inspiring presenters and recreational activities!

The Symposium began at Northland College in 1995, and is conducted biennially at educational institutions around Lake Superior in MI, WI, MN, and Ontario. Local students have attended each symposium since 1999. The symposium was hosted at Michigan Tech in 2001 and 2013.

The cost to attend the symposium is approximately $325/person for registration (all programming and field trips) 3 nights lodging, meals, and roundtrip transportation on a coach bus. 

All students’ and chaperones’ expenses have been covered by the generous contributions of many  local donors, including, 

• Friends of the Land of Keweenaw (FOLK)

• The Nitrate Elimination Co, Inc

• Private Individuals and Community Organizations through the Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative: Patricia Heiden, Sally Santeford, Sarah Green, 

• Copper Country Trout Unlimited

• MiSTEM Network grant through the Michigan Department of Education 

• Michigan Tech University’s Center for Science & Environmental Outreach

• National Science Foundation grant to MTU Award# 2136139 

• Keweenaw Area Community Foundation (grant)

• Herman Gundlach Fund at Keweenaw Area Community Foundation. 

The following also helped to make this exciting opportunity available to all students in grades 8-12 in the western Upper Peninsula: 

• Copper Country Intermediate School District 

• Lake Superior Stewardship Initiative

• Western UP MiSTEM Network

• Community Alliance for Progressive Education

• Participating School Districts: Houghton, Lake Linden-Hubbell, Ewen-Trout Creek, Dollar-Bay Tamarack City, and Ironwood Area Schools

To find out more about the 2023 Symposium, visit the website: https://learnsymposium.weebly.com/.