California Waterfowl Education Coordinator Molly Maupin teaches school children about waterfowl.

We love ducks. If you're reading this, you probably love ducks too. But if we want to ensure a sustainable future for waterfowl and wetlands in California, we need a whole lot more people to be invested in the future of ducks. This is where California Waterfowl's two-person education team comes in, and we think you'll be blown away at what they've accomplished this year.

This week capped off the team's final classroom presentations of the 2017-18 school year, and the total number of students they reached this year?

11,063!

That includes:

• 8,262 kids who learned about waterfowl and got started on entries for the California Junior Duck Stamp Contest. Read more about the Junior Duck Stamp Program here.

• 2,127 kids who learned about wood ducks, an incredible species that was once on the brink of extinction but has made an amazing comeback. Learn more about California Waterfowl's California Wood Duck Program here.

• 674 kids who went on field trips to CWA's Grizzly Ranch, Gray Lodge Wildlife Area, Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, the Chickahominy property and other locales where they could check out waterfowl habitat and sometimes even see nesting wood ducks.

This came out to an average of teaching two presentations per school day for an average of 62 students per school day, and during all of these presentations, our team made sure students learned about the critical role hunters play in conservation - both through funding and direct action.

While CWA's classroom visits usually take place within a three-hour radius of the organization's Roseville headquarters, Education Coordinator Molly Maupin took her show on the road to Modoc County this month, where she conducted school-wide assemblies to teach students about waterfowl and wetlands. This trip may serve as a model for both maximizing our student reach and extending into areas of the state we have not previously reached.

While Maupin is a source of pride to the organization, she didn't conduct all these efforts on her own. Her education assistant intern for the year was Brent Romines, and CWA Camp Coordinator Taylor Byars helped constantly. They also had the support of volunteer Haley Hawkins, and CWA waterfowl biologists Brian Huber and Jason Coslovich, and Hunting Heritage Programs Supervisor George Oberstadt.

CWA's 2017-18 education assistant intern Brent Romines conducts the final classroom program of the 2017-18 school year.

While school is out (or will be soon) for most of the state, Maupin will now turn her efforts toward California Waterfowl's outstanding summer hunter conservation camps. (Looking for the best camp ever for your kids – outdoor fun, campfire songs, shooting sports and hunter education? We have openings - click here!)

If you're a teacher interested in having a California Waterfowl classroom program come to you next school year, please click here. If you're interested in field trips for your students, please click here. And if you'd like to join our education team, Maupin is already looking for her 2018-19 education assistant intern - click here for information about applying.