For students in the new Durango High School Interdisciplinary Studies in Southwest Conservation course, learning extends far beyond the classroom.
Earlier this month, the class trekked out to the open space by the Old Fort near Hesperus to track discarded wildlife collars left behind by elk – one of many adventures the class has embarked on since the course was rolled out in fall 2025.
The course for juniors and seniors, which is co-taught by DHS teachers Jacob Branch-Boyle and Sam Travis, combines outdoor fieldwork with professional mentorship with guest speakers and in-classroom academic study.
“We’re such an environment-oriented community that a Southwest Conservation class (seemed like it) would be a really cool opportunity,” Travis said.
Travis and Branch-Boyle try to get the 41-student class outside at least once a month on smaller field trips to places like the Durango School District SOIL Lab and the Durango Fish Hatchery, Travis said.
Several bigger field trips farther from campus – like the wildlife collar search, a tour of the Old One Hundred Mine in Silverton and plans for an upcoming trip to an ethical, conservation-based bison ranch in Hesperus – are also sprinkled into the curriculum.
Experts from Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Southern Ute Indian Tribe Division of Wildlife Resource Management accompanied the class on their collar hunt March 5.
The collars were placed on elk from various herds in the county in 2022 and were programmed to automatically fall off this month after the tracking study was completed, according to CPW and SUIT experts accompanying the students.
Two devices were used by students to track the collars left behind by the elk – a smartphone GPS and a more rustic-looking hand-held radio telemetry device.
The class ended up finding two discarded collars during the search.
Senior Jack Naffziger took control of the telemetry device while a classmate followed the smartphone GPS.
Jack said the on-the-ground experiences offered in the class make it unlike any other he’s taken at the school.
“It’s a really cool class,” he said while following the beeps emanating from the telemetry device. “I really enjoyed the time when we went to Navajo and worked with CPW on the salmon spawning. … They squeezed the eggs out of the salmon and then squeezed the milk out, (and) we got to see how that works.”
The course has attracted a mixture of conservation enthusiasts with an eye toward careers in the field and students with little to no experience with the class content, Travis said.
Senior Derek Caudle, who has a long-held interest in conservation, said the course reaffirmed his passion for the field. He hopes to be a district wildlife manager or an aquatic biologist after he graduates.
“It’s given me a good idea of what I want to do in the future,” he said. “I like being outside, and I’m really passionate about wildlife and what we can do to let future generations enjoy what we’re enjoying.”
Senior Juliana McKown, in contrast, knew little about conservation before taking the course and said the curriculum has helped her learn about La Plata County’s environment.
“I didn't know much about conservation before taking the class,” she said. “... I didn’t know there were so many jobs within conservation, and how much it affects everything.”
She said the hands-on learning has been a highlight of the course.
“It’s just made the experience a little more fun, being able to actually experience things instead of just talking about it in the classroom,” she said.
A priority of the class is studying the rich conservation history of the state and connecting students with professionals in and adjacent to the field, Travis said.
“Some of the biggest things covered are water and water usage, water scarcity, but also the way in which governments work – the state government, the federal government, the counties – and the local businesses and local organizations,” he said. “... Anything to do with the way that we can conserve resources and be very intentional.”
Become a mentor for next year’s class
Sam Travis and Jacob Branch-Boyle are seeking professionals in a range of careers to be student mentors in next year’s Interdisciplinary Studies in Southwest Conservation course. If you feel your career lends itself to studies in conservation, economics, civics or English-language arts, and you have an interest in mentoring students in the course, reach out to Travis or Branch-Boyle at stravis@durangoschools.org or jbranch-boyle@durangoschools.org
Each student is paired with a community mentor and meets with them multiple times per semester, Travis said. Guest speakers so far this year have included nonprofit leaders, professional writers, ranchers, historians, real estate agents, CPW officers, biologists and museum curators.
The unseasonably warm weather this year has provided an interesting additional study element to the course, Travis said.
“It’s lent itself well to the class,” he said. “We’ve been focusing on water and the Colorado River Compact and drought. We’re focusing on the upcoming potential fire season too. ... It’s something we can look at closely.”
The course has already been approved for renewal next year, and 65 students have expressed interest, Travis said – around 20 more than the class can accept.
Travis and Branch-Boyle are working to add several new projects and field trips to next year’s curriculum, including an overnight camping trip and additional mentorship opportunities.
Because the class is so new, making the curriculum happen each day can be like putting together a plane while flying, Travis said – but that structure has created valuable moments of spontaneity.
“Last semester, we were planning on writing an essay one night talking about tourism and the role that plays in the economy, and we get a call from the CPW saying, ‘Hey, they just trapped a bear – would we like to have our class come and see it?’” he said. “... We're constantly shifting our plans to try to get an experience.”
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