STORY BY
Erik Cassano Cody York
PHOTOS BY
AN OUTDOOR CLASSROOM
WESTSHORE CAMPUS STUDENTS AND FACULTY SEEK TO REINTRODUCE AND PRESERVE NATIVE HABITATS AFTER CONSTRUCTION When traveling to Cuyahoga Community College’s Westshore Campus in Westlake, one thing stands out immediately: There are a lot of trees. Both driveways into Tri-C’s newest campus weave through thick woods that partially obscure the buildings from Clemens Road. The setting reflects the time in which the campus was built. It’s a product of an era of conservation, when maintaining surrounding natural habitats was of increasing importance to the College and the surrounding community. One goal and requirement for the original construction a decade ago was to maintain native natural habitats as they would have existed on the site hundreds of years ago, before the area was settled, farmed and urbanized. Some of the tree growth is original, while other portions consist of reclaimed forestation. The property was a vineyard prior to campus construction, and parts of the land still indicate where rows of grapes once stood. Since purchasing the land, the College has successfully merged reclaimed land with native forestation to create an educational environment unique among Tri-C’s campuses. It’s why members of the Westshore Campus community seek to further the preservation of these natural habitats and native species and utilize them for education on campus.
“WE HAD ALL OF THIS NATURAL SPACE, AND WE WANTED TO USE IT INSTEAD OF JUST TEACHING BIOLOGY INDOORS, IN LABS AND CLASSROOMS. THAT’S WHERE THIS ALL KIND OF STARTED.” —Erica Stevenson, associate professor, biology
20
TRI-C TIMES
