Written by Heidi Jeter, Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin.
As a child, Ziah Mangin envisioned a career in environmental journalism or policy. Then she donned waders as a high school freshman to monitor the health of Duck Creek in Brown County and discovered her love for field work.
When she heads to the University of Wisconsin–Madison to study environmental sciences this September, she’ll already be well-versed in lab and field work.
All four years of high school, Mangin participated in the Lower Fox River Watershed Monitoring Program. That connection led her to become a 2025 Freshwater Summer Scholar, conducting phosphorus adsorption research. Both programs are run by the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay with support from the Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin.
Introducing young students to freshwater science research and careers is the goal behind the two UW-Green Bay high school freshwater programs — and an important component in the Freshwater Collaborative’s efforts to create a pipeline to water-related jobs in Wisconsin.
“Our programs get students out in the field to experience what it may be like to work in the field of environmental science, rather than just talk about it,” says Lynn Terrien, K-12 outreach associate at UW-Green Bay.
Monitoring the Local Watershed
Teachers and students from Green Bay Southwest High School, where Mangin graduated in June 2025, have participated in the Lower Fox River Watershed Monitoring Program since it began in 2003. The program has grown to include 12 high schools and one middle school.
Under the direction of university faculty and staff, teams monitor streams near their schools and contribute to an established database of water resource conditions. The data help local and state agencies make land use and policy decisions that ensure water quality in the watershed.
“Fox River Monitoring inspired me to pursue science in my post high school path,” Mangin says. “The field work and lab work involved creates a strong understanding of our local waterways, something that is a vital part of understanding your natural environment.”
Each year the teams present their data at UW-Green Bay’s Annual Water Symposium. It was at the symposium that Mangin learned about the Freshwater High School Scholars Program. Her high school teacher encouraged her to apply.
Conducting Independent Freshwater Research
Mangin was one of 15 scholars this summer. She worked side by side with UW-Green Bay undergraduates, conducting phosphorus research under the mentorship of Assistant Professor Erin Berns-Herrbolt. Her independent project was to develop an iron compound solution that may adsorb phosphorus from sediment. It was part of a larger research initiative involving UW-Green Bay, UW-Madison and Upham Woods Outdoor Learning Center.
“I like working with undergraduates,” Mangin says. “They’ve taken me under their wing. When my mentor isn’t here, I help them with their projects, or they show me how to use machinery in the lab. If I have questions about my project, they help.”
As a Freshwater Scholar, she also went on field trips where she learned how to collect and measure fish and helped conduct a mussel survey with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. She also conducted lab work at UW-Green Bay.
“I’m excited to have lab experience going into Madison,” she says. “All the equipment is so different from the equipment in high school, and I will already have experience with it.”
Learn more about the Freshwater Summer Scholars Program.
Written by Heidi Jeter, Freshwater Collaborative of Wisconsin.
Video: Lynn Terrien trains Holly Nowakowski, a teacher at John Dewey Academy of Learning in Green Bay, in water quality monitoring techniques for the Lower Fox River Watershed Monitoring Program (LFRWMP). Lynn got assistance from Ziah Mangin, former LFRWMP leader and Freshwater Summer Scholars. They are sampling the Fox River along the Fox River Trail on Monday, July 14. Video by Dan Larson.