Mission & Brief History

The Eastern Sierra Institute for Collaborative Education (ESICE) is a non-profit organization which supports innovative  education collaboration to address real world environmental and social issues.

ESICE was founded in 1997 at the University of California White Mountain Research Station (WMRS).  Student interns took part in the first summer program, Interagency Resource Team (IRT) internship program. 20 IRT Interns conducted field research and monitoring.The conceptual framework was recognized for its innovation in 2001 when a manuscript describing the Interagency Resource Team (IRT) was published in the academic journal, Conservation Biology.

From these beginnings ESICE programs have grown to include numerous other projects including the intensive Forest Health Monitoring Program, the Reading Intervention Program in Bishop public schools, and an expanded internship program.

In its third year, ESICE introduced a new project called Scientists in the Classroom, Students in the Field. This sixth-grade school-based outdoor science pilot program led to a countywide K-12 outdoor science education initiative that focuses on the historic rewatering of 60 miles of the Owens River. The Eastern Sierra Watershed Project approach aims to improving science education. The program includes teacher professional development, hands-on science, student engagement in the historic re-watering of a 60-mile stretch of river. A concurrent local tribal documentation project engaged tribal youth in recording traditional ecological knowledge and use of the river.

Launched in 2005, Roadside Heritage is supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and other funders, to provide the traveling public with unique audio stories, community festivals, and an interactive website featuring the science, technology, engineering and mathematics content integral to rural landscapes. Lead partners include the University of Nevada, Reno, Academy for the Environment, and the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California, Berkeley.