Costa Mesa High School Environmental Science Students Collect Samples, Data In The Back Bay

After months of research, Costa Mesa High School environmental science students returned to the Newport Beach Back Bay Science Center Tuesday to gather final data in their examinations of biodiversity in and along the estuary. The Advanced Placement students formed teams of three to five and in October began researching water quality, mud invertebrates, avian migration and other subjects. Though teachers provided a list of potential topics, students were given the opportunity to “[find] their way toward something that interests them,” said Cristen Rasmussen, an AP environmental science teacher at the high school.