Outdoor classroom serves as Jackson teacher memorial

The Jackson Middle School outdoor classroom was dedicated Saturday in remembrance of Dee Walker, a counselor and former science teacher at the middle school who died in November.

A sign supplied by the Missouri Department of Conservation was unveiled by middle school science teacher Jason Bruns. The classroom bears Walker's name and serves as a living memorial with 50 trees and a butterfly garden.

"The outdoor classroom was a project Dee took upon herself to become a reality," Bruns told the crowd of about 80 staff members, students and relatives of Walker.

The school's opening a decade ago designated an approximate five-acre basin area for an outdoor classroom. Serving as a drainage area, the spot was ideal for aquatic study and the monitoring of erosion.

In an effort to correct erosion issues, the school applied for a Show-Me Conservation Outdoor Classroom grant in 1998. Later, the school applied for a tree-planting grant, Branch Out Missouri.

"Writing a grant is no small task, "Bruns said, "and those of you who knew Dee know that she was no one to overlook details."

Bruns and life science teacher Debbie Gregory use the classroom for teaching plant and animal identification. Feeders, an amphitheater and a bridge help students in learning about the world around them. Future plans include designing an insect population study area for graphing exercises.

The classroom is also used by advanced art classes for nature drawing, service classes for cleaning, and the physical education department.

Walker's sister, Nina Lofton of Cobden, Ill., said, "This was Dee's passion. She would come to Cobden and tell us she had to get back to water the trees. She always brought us little starts of everything."

Principal Rodney Pensel, who knew Walker for four years as a counselor while he was principal, described her as a "wonderful lady who worked very hard. She cared about kids and she worked hard for the faculty trying to keep people upbeat."

About 25 students planted coreopsis, lilacs, dianthus, service berry and crape myrtle after the ceremony.

cpagano@semissourian.com

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