Every spring, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) sets out to stock streams and lakes across the state with trout. This routine service is primarily provided to maintain the population of trout for anglers who utilize these locations for trout fishing, but it also serves as a way for student volunteers from local schools to get hands-on experience and to learn about the process. In the Southern End, students from the Penn Manor, Solanco and Lampeter-Strasburg school districts work closely with PFBC each year to assist with stocking local bodies of water.

"Participating in the trout stocking gives our students an opportunity to serve the community, learn about teamwork and follow directions," said Michelle Wagner, a learning support teacher at Penn Manor High School. "The students love getting out of the classroom, and they take pride in knowing that they helped stock those streams."

The trout stocking is accomplished over the course of several months via scheduled sessions. This year, the first session was held on March 10. Groups of students gathered at a designated meeting place to await the arrival of a convoy of trucks carrying PFBC officers and volunteers who were transporting the trout. Once the students joined the stocking team, the coalition traveled to multiple local streams and prepared to stock them. Students and volunteers lined up and used buckets and nets to carry the trout to the water and release them.

The students who participate in the program are those in each school's life skills class. "It's a really fun learning activity for students," said Laura Norton, a job trainer at Lampeter-Strasburg High School, referring to the trout stocking. "We do a lot of community projects. Opportunities for hands-on experience like the trout stocking are very enticing to the kids."

Prior to the actual stocking procedures, a PFBC officer visited each of the participating classes to educate students on the process. Students learned about safety protocols, the importance of fish stocking, native and invasive species of trout and ecology. The officer also offered insight on different positions and career paths within PFBC.

The life skills classes focus on providing kids with disabilities with tools that will serve them in their transition into adulthood, covering anything from grocery shopping and cooking a meal to using soft skills at a place of work. "It's a lot of community-based instruction. We give the students a chance to apply the skills they learn in the classroom out in the world," said Kim Ingram, who teaches the life skills class at Lampeter-Strasburg High School."

Many life skills classes incorporate aspects of community service. In addition to assisting with the trout stocking, the students from Solanco High School work with Solanco Neighborhood Ministries to fill bags of nonperishable food once a week. The students then deliver the items to elementary schools so that the kids can bring home meals for the weekend.

"Our students love giving back to the community," said Brenda Stively, a job trainer at Solanco High School. "Many of the kids in the class will meet with the group of volunteers to help with the fish stocking even on days that we don't go as a class." Students from Solanco have assisted with each stocking session since the first day and will conclude their participation of the season with a final session on Friday, April 21.