Since 2010, the Water Resources Agency and the Brandywine Conservancy have been working in collaboration to implement the Shad in Schools program in the Brandywine, White Clay Creek, and Red Clay Creek watersheds in Delaware and Pennsylvania. The Shad in Schools program, an education and outreach tool, is part of the larger efforts in the Brandywine and White Clay Creeks to restore shad and migratory fish passage and habitat, increase spawning areas, and benefit the resident fish in the watersheds.
The Shad in Schools program is an applied experience that educates students, teachers, and the public about the history, problems/decline, and life cycle of American shad while teaching math and science concepts through the balance of water conditions and temperature. The program has a distinct timeline that must be followed each year in order to mimic the natural conditions in the stream and prepare for the arrival of the American shad eggs. The students conduct water-quality tests on the system, eggs are collected from mature shad in the streams and then introduced to the student’s tanks and finally the fry are released in the creeks where they will continue to grow. They will remain in the ocean for 4-6 years before returning to the river they were released in for their first spawn.
WRA’s Martha Corrozi Narvaez and the Brandywine Conservancy serve as the leads for the Shad in Schools program. For more information about this project, contact Martha Corrozi Narvaez (mcorrozi@udel.edu).