BELOW THE BRIDGE NEAR THE NATIONAL HISPANIC CULTURAL CENTER IN ALBUQUERQUE ON A CHILLY NOVEMBER MORNING, STUDENTS ARE GATHERING DATA.

THE BOSQUE MONITORING PROGRAM KNOWN AS BEMP HAS BEEN AROUND FOR MORE THAN 20 YEARS.

STUDENTS MONITOR WATER AND GATHER INSECTS AND LEAVES AT DESIGNATED SITES.

DATA IS SHARED WITH SCIENTISTS AT UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO AND ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGERS OF STATE, TRIBAL AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.

I HAVE ALWAYS LIKED SCIENCE.

FIRST TIME I CAME WAS ACTUALLY BECAUSE I WAS ASSIGNED TO THE TEACHER THAT WAS IN CHARGE OF THE PROGRAM SO I JUST WENT BECAUSE I KIND OF HAVE TO, BUT, THEN, LIKE THE MORE I WENT, THE MORE I ACTUALLY LIKE STARTED COLLECTING DATA FOR THE SCIENTISTS, SO IT WAS PRETTY COOLING.

I LEARN HOW TO USE A BEEPER.

I MEASURE FOR HIM AND SO, I CAN DO THAT, AND YOU JUST DROP IT IN AND WHEN IT TOUCHES WATER, IT BEEPS.

WE WRITE DOWN THE MEASUREMENTS THAT WE GOT, SO, SINCE THIS IS THE NORTH, YOU HAVE TO WRITE 211 CENTIMETERS.

DARREN SHAW IS ONE OF CO-FOUNDERS OF THE PROGRAM AND LEADS IT TODAY.

STUDENTS DO REAL SCIENCE HERE.

THIS IS NOT JUST ANSWERING SOME QUESTION AT THE END OF A TEXTBOOK.

IT'S DISCOVERING NEW INFORMATION ABOUT THIS LIVING, CHANGING ECOSYSTEM.

AND, SO, THIS ECOSYSTEM IS GOING THROUGH TREMENDOUS CHANGES BROUGHT ABOUT BY THE ECOLOGICAL DRIVERS OF FLOOD AND FIRE AND CLIMATE AND HUMAN ALTERATION AND SO IN THAT SETTING, THESE KIDS TRACK THAT CHANGE.

WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE CHANGES WILL BE EACH YEAR BUT THE KIDS ARE DISCOVERING THOSE.

SO, A POINT ON A GRAPH THAT IS GENERATED FROM THE DATA THEY COLLECT IS NOT JUST A RANDOM POINT.

THEY HAVE A VISCERAL CONNECTION OF HAVING GONE OUT AND TESTED THE WATER LEVEL.

THERE IS NO WATER IN HERE.

I GUESS WE'LL HAVE TO CHECK IT NEXT MONTH.

BEMP HAS GROWN FROM FOUR SIGHTS IN THE 1996 SCHOOL YEAR TO MORE THAN 30 SITES TODAY.

FROM NORTHERN NEW MEXICO TO LAS CRUCES AND SHAW SAYS ALTHOUGH THE PROGRAM IS BASED AT BOSQUE SCHOOL, A PRIVATE SCHOOL IN ALBUQUERQUE, IT MOSTLY SERVES STUDENTS AND COMMUNITIES ALONG THE RIO GRANDE.

LESS THAN 1% OF OUR PARTICIPANTS ARE BOSQUE SCHOOL OR PRIVATE SCHOOL STUDENTS.

MOST EVERYBODY ARE AT SCHOOLS UP AND DOWN THE RIVER, PUBLIC SCHOOLS, CHARTER SCHOOLS AND EVEN HOME SCHOOLS INVOLVED.

ALL THOSE KIDS WITH DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS OF ALL KINDS, WE TRY TO GET SCIENCE TO KIDS THAT WOULDN'T NECESSARILY HAVE LOTS OF ACCESS TO IT.

RIGHT IN FRONT OF US, THERE IS A TRAP WHICH WE USE TO CATCH LIKE LITTLE INSECTS THAT ARE IN THIS AREA.

WE DO THIS THREE TIMES A YEAR, SPRING, SUMMER AND FALL.

THE PROGRAM FOLLOWS NATIONAL SCIENCE STANDARDS AND REQUIRES THAT STUDENTS FOLLOW SCIENTIFIC METHODOLOGY.

SO THE DATA CAN BE USED IN PEER REVIEW PAPERS OR EVEN COURT FILINGS ON WATER CONTAMINATION.

SHAW SAYS THE WORK THEY DO IN THE BOSQUE ALSO HELPS THEM CONNECT WITH BROADER ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES.

WE HAVE THE STUDENTS DEALING WITH THESE TOPICS THAT ARE SO COMPELLING FOR US AS HUMAN POPULATION AND HOW DO WE MANAGE THE RESOURCES THAT WE DEPEND UPON FOR OUR OWN SURVIVAL.

BUT ALSO WE HAVE A SHARED DEPENDENCY FOR THE WELL-BEING OF THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS AND REST OF THE ECOSYSTEM.

MANY STUDENTS WHO PARTICIPATED IN BEMP HAVE GONE ON TO EARN SCIENCE DEGREES AT UNM OR OTHER COLLEGES.

SOME HAVE EVEN RETURNED TO WORK WITH THE CURRENT GENERATION OF STUDENTS WHO ARE THINKING ABOUT WHAT THEY MIGHT DO NEXT, STUDENTS LIKE LYNETTE WHO IS INTERESTED IN A CAREER IN MEDICINE.

IT DID CHANGE MY PERSPECTIVE ON SCIENCE AND HOW I VIEW IT BECAUSE I ALWAYS THOUGHT IT WAS LIKE ALWAYS JUST LIKE NUMBERS AND FORMULAS AND STUFF LIKE THAT, BUT NOW WHEN I CAME HERE IT GAVE ME LIKE A WHOLE OTHER VIEW OF ACTUALLY HOW SCIENCE WORKS, BECAUSE, YOU'RE NOT JUST LIKE LOOKING DATA UP ON THE INTERNET, YOU ARE GOING OUT AND COLLECTING IT YOURSELF.

ALTHOUGH THE CONVERSATION ABOUT SCIENCE EDUCATION IS SOMETIMES CONTENTIOUS, BOTH IN SANTA FE AND WASHINGTON D.C., SHAW SAYS THAT MANY POLICYMAKERS HAVE RESPONDED POSITIVELY TO THE WORK BEING DONE BY STUDENTS THROUGH THE BOSQUE ECOSYSTEM MONITORING PROGRAM.

WE ARE BEING PAID TO DO SCIENCE BY AGENCIES WHO THEN USE THE STUDENT FINDINGS, SO THAT SEEMS LIKE A GOOD USE OF PUBLIC MONEY.

WHY NOT GET THE SCHOOL KIDS TO HELP GATHER THAT INFORMATION AND THEN PROVIDE IT TO THE FOLKS WHO HAVE TO USE IT AND SO, YEAH, WE GET TO FEED TWO BIRDS WITH ONE FEEDER.

THERE IS ANOTHER BENEFIT TO BRINGING STUDENTS OUTSIDE TO LEARN.

THEY DEVELOP RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR OWN WATERSHEDS AND LANDSCAPES AND KNOW WHAT IS AT STAKE WHEN IT COMES TO PROTECTING THEM.

FOR NEW MEXICO INFOCUS AND OUR LAND, I AM LAURA PASKUS.