Lakeside News Summer 1996

Water Quality Laboratory
Sharing Lakeside Lab
Andrea and Norman Waitt
Friends of Lakeside Lab: President's Report
Okoboji Wetlands
Beyond Textbooks
A Student's View
Okoboji Reflections
The Wehrspann Report
Proposed 1997 Summer Courses
The Bovbjerg Lab Pledge Card

Water Quality Laboratory

Arnold van der Valk, Director

Although an amazing number of good things have happened at Lakeside since the last newsletter, including record high enrollments this summer (over 140 students), several new courses, the publication of Mike Lannoo's book, Okoboji Wetlands, the offering of courses through Iowa Lakes Community College, etc., the best news is the successful launch of the Friends' fundraising campaign for a new building, the water quality laboratory . Their goal is to raise $710,000. This new building, which will contain two research laboratories (water quality, bioindicator), a computer facility, and a classroom, was described in detail in the last Lakeside Newsletter.

The official start of the fund raising campaign was a party on June 14th at Lakeside at which President Newlin of the Board or Regents, and Tom Bedell of the University of Okoboji Foundation, as well as the presidents of Iowa State University, The University of Northern Iowa, Iowa Lakes Community College, Friends of Lakeside Lab, Inc., and the Interim Provost of the University of Iowa spoke. The highlight of the evening was, however, the announcement by Judy Thoreson, the president of the Friends of Lakeside Lab, of a $300,000 pledge by the Andrea and Norman Waitt, Jr. Foundation and a $50,000 pledge from the Iowa Lakes Community College Foundation to the water quality laboratory campaign. To date, about $450,000 has been raised, with other major gifts from the University of Okoboji Foundation and the Okoboji Protective Association.

The $300,000 pledge from the Waitt Foundation was in the form of a challenge grant. The Friends of Lakeside Lab will need to raise the remainder of the money ($410,000) needed to build the water quality laboratory by the end of 1996 in order to get this money. Already $150,000 has been raised, and the Friends' fundraising committee is confident that the remaining $260,000 can be raised in time, especially with your help. In addition to the $300,000 that the Waitt Foundation has pledged to the building campaign, an additional $200,000 has been pledged by the Waitt Foundation as an endowment to run the lab once it is constructed. In order to successfully complete the Friends' fundraising campaign by the end of 1996, Lakeside's alumni and friends will need to rise to the occasion as they have done so often in the past.

The dream of building a water quality laboratory at Lakeside originated with our previous director Dick Bovbjerg. As Dick realized, a water quality laboratory would not only significantly strengthen the teaching and research programs at Lakeside, but would also greatly strengthen our ties to the Iowa Great Lakes community. The latter is essential if Lakeside is to survive and thrive. To honor Dick Bovbjerg and his vision, we would like to raise $50,000 from Lakeside's alumni so that we can name a research laboratory in the water quality laboratory after him. (On page 7 of this Newsletter there is a pledge form that you can use to send your contribution.)

Thanks again for your past and future support of Lakeside and its programs. Without it, we couldn't survive.

Sharing Lakeside Lab

Erin Walter and Katie Groen

Iowa Lakeside Laboratory went from Iowa's best-kept secret to Iowa's best-shared secret Friday, June 14 when hundreds of Great Lakes residents gathered at Lakeside to raise money for a new water quality lab.

The Friends of Lakeside Lab had two goals in inviting local residents, university administrators and Lakeside students and faculty to this party, said Sue Richter, co-chair, with Neal Conover, of the fundraising committee. "One goal is to raise $710,000 for the water quality laboratory at Lakeside lab. The other goal was to inform the general public how important the Lakeside Lab is to the educational system and the state in general."

Richter felt the success of the outdoor event put the group well on its way to achieving both goals. The event began with tours of the Lab given by students and faculty. Guests were shown the research and teaching labs, the cabins and the waterfront, and told how the Labs' and region's natural areas allow students to get hands-on experience in their courses.

"For most people, it was the first time they had ever set foot on the property," Richter said. "The most enjoyable part was seeing people appreciate Lakeside-seeing the looks on their faces. They were just in amazement," she said.

Guests then enjoyed a buffet catered by Yesterday's of Arnolds Park, and open bar and the music of a string quartet from the Sioux City symphony. The short program began with Friends of Lakeside Lab President Judy Thoreson introducing the speakers of the evening.

Speakers included Lab director Arnold van der Valk, state Board of Regents President Owen Newlin, Iowa State University President Martin Jischke, University of Northern Iowa President Robert Koob, University of Iowa Interim Provost Samuel Becker and Iowa Lakes Community College President James Billings. Tom Bedell spoke on behalf of the University of Okoboji Foundation.

Jischke compared the founding of the Lab in 1909 to the founding of ISU, a land-grant institution. Both schools were started by community members pooling their money for a cause they believed in, he said.

During the program it was announced that Andrea and Norm Waitt, of the Dunes, South Dakota, would be the lead donors for the water quality lab. They pledged a challenge grant of $300,000. To commemorate the event, the Waitt's were presented a signed copy of Michael Lannoo's Okoboji Wetlands.

Because the water quality lab will also have an environmental education classroom, the Waitts felt the project focused on issues that were very important to them-the environment and education, Richter said.

"We are proud to have the opportunity to work with the Friends of the Lakeside Lab in helping fund this exciting and important educational and environmental project, " Andrea Waitt said. "It will improve the quality of life for all of us in the Great Lakes region."

"We were delighted with the gift; it was a great kickoff to our campaign." said Judy Thoreson, President of the Friends of Lakeside Lab. Thoreson added that the Waitts have also pledged an additional $200,000 as an endowment after the water quality Lab is built.

Judy Thoreson stressed that this project is very important to all those who live in and visit the lakes area. "We all know the quality of our water is tied into our economic viability; that's why people come here, because we have great lakes." She added "This lab will be a vital part of the lakes region because of the constant monitoring and testing of the water quality that it will make possible."

Because the Waitt gift is in the form of a challenge grant, the Friends group needs to raise the remainder of the funds needed to build the lab by the end of the year. Everyone who attended was urged by Tom Bedell to contribute to the water quality laboratory campaign and to do so as soon as possible.

A Friends of Lakeside Lab, Inc. central planning committee, made up of Carol Lea Cotton, Mary Jean Montgomery, Michelle Goodenow and Richter, had been planning the event since last September. However, each member of the Friends of the Lakeside Lab board played a role in the success of the night., Richter said.

Andrea and Norm Waitt

Norm Waitt has experienced phenomenal business success as a co-founder of Gateway 2000. Gateway 2000, which was started in 1986 with an initial investment of $10,000, is now a Fortune 500 company with annual sales of about $3.5 billion. It is the largest direct marketer of PCs in the US. Although still a major stockholder, Norm is no longer involved in the management of Gateway 2000. He remains active in business, however, as the president of Norman Waitt Jr. Enterprises. Norm and his wife, Andrea, established their family foundation in 1991 to share their good fortune with others. They are both tireless supporters of environmental, educational and animal welfare projects as well as the arts.

Friends of Lakeside Lab, Inc.: The President's Report

Judy Thoreson

The Friends of Lakeside Lab, which was organized to support the Lab and encourage interaction between the Lab and the residents of the Iowa Great Lakes community, is excited about its increasing involvement with the Lab.

In the past two years, Lakeside students have received about 20 Friends of Lakeside Lab scholarships from our scholarship fund. All annual membership fees go into our scholarship fund.

And our fundraising campaign for the Water Quality Lab is off and running. Thanks to the very generous gift of the Waitt Foundation and several other major gifts, we feel the dream of the Water Quality Lab and trans-forming Lakeside into a year-round Environmental Center will soon become a reality.

We still have a way to go, however. We still need to match the Waitt's gift by the end of the year. We are asking all who believe in Lakeside Lab and its future to consider a commitment to our project in the form of a pledge or a gift. We especially encourage Lakeside alumni to pledge their support to the campaign to name one of the research laboratories in the water quality laboratory after Dr. Richard Bovbjerg. This would be a fitting tribute to a long-time director of Lakeside, who both alumni and many of us from Iowa Great Lakes region remember fondly. At the end of this newsletter there is both a pledge card for the water quality lab campaign and a membership application for the Friends of Lakeside lab, Inc.

We encourage you to become a member of our Friends organization and to support the water quality laboratory campaign. We must continue to demonstrate alumni and community support for Lakeside in order to ensure its future well being.

Okoboji Wetlands

Erin Walter

Lakeside Professor Dr. Michael Lannoo's book "Okoboji Wetlands: A Lesson in Natural History" (University of Iowa Press, 156 pp., Iowa City; ISBN 0-87745-532-5) is part scientific monograph, part local history, and part short essays about the condition of wetlands in northwestern Iowa.

"The book is designed to be a lot of things," Lannoo said. " It's a celebration of Lakeside Lab and the diversity of life one can find here. " Another purpose of the book is to make the Great Lakes community more familiar with the Lab and the wildlife of the region.

"Okoboji Wetlands" acquaints readers with Lakeside's scientific legacy from early field studies by its faculty and students to contemporary studies by Lannoo and his Lakeside colleagues in the Iowa Great Lakes region. The book is illustrated with historic photographs and modern color pictures by St. Anthony's nature photographer Carl Kurtz.

While Lannoo did not write the book to be controversial, a large portion of the book deals with the debate between conservationists like Lanoo and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources over the purpose and uses of Iowa wetlands. Biodiversity is the issue behind the debate.

"To teach a class, I need biodiversity. Lakeside Lab was established to foster biodiversity. Where state-run programs are trying to eliminate biodiversity, it needs to be challenged," Lanoo said. "There has been an ongoing difference of opinion. I'm of the notion that, in a state that has lost 98 percent of its wetlands, the DNR shouldn't be co-opting remaining wetlands for game fishing." Wetlands used for breeding fish are treated with toxins that kill aquatic plant life and the organisms that live off these plants, he said.

Wetlands, being a middle ground between uplands and the lakes, act as a natural filter for fertilizers and other contaminants and prevent many contaminants from reaching the lakes.

However, because the DNR installs culverts that link the lakes to the wetlands, contaminants can enter the lakes more easily. Not only do culverts put the lakes in increasing danger of Eutrophication, but they allow fish to enter the wetlands and feed on amphibian larvae.

" I try not to be anti-game fishing. My beef is not with fishing, but with the way we raise game fish. I don't think all options were seriously considered," Lannoo said. "If people knew what was going on, they'd shut it down in a minute."

"Okoboji Wetlands" does make what is happening available to people who are interested. It presents and synthesizes what's going on," he said. "The book was written for the interested lay person."

Because of articles in the Des Moines Register about "Okoboji Wetlands" and promotions done at Prairie Lights bookstore in Iowa City, Lannoo sold over 400 copies in June. On July 2, Lannoo read from "Okoboji Wetlands" on WOI AM-640 and WSUI AM-910 radio. The reading and book signing took place at Prairie Lights.

"Okoboji Wetlands: A Lesson in Natural History" is available at most bookstores in Iowa including The Bookseller in Spirit Lake, Books & Things and the Maritime Museum in Arnolds Park as well as at the Lakeside lab. The book sells for $29.95 hard cover and $14.95 paperback.

"One thing I didn't want to do is give the impression that I was profiting from controversy," Lannoo said. Because the book celebrates Lakeside lab, all proceeds from the book will go to the Lakeside Lab student scholarship fund.

Beyond Textbooks: Improving High School Biology Teaching

Erin Walter

Iowa high school biology teachers are taking their students beyond boring textbooks and outdated films, thanks to a two-week total-immersion course at Iowa Lakeside Lab.

"Teachers take back a whole arsenal of tricks and experiments," said Charlie Drewes, one of the Iowa State University Zoology and Genetics professors who teaches the Lakeside Lab course. George Brown, who is also a Zoology and Genetics professor at ISU, teaches the course with Drewes.

Drewes, who has taught the course entitled "Techniques for Biology Teaching" for four summers, feels it improves teachers' self confidence in the classroom by teaching them how to integrate observations and experiments into high school biology curricula.

Often the toughest part of teaching is gaining control of the classroom, Drewes said. With resource and time constraints, it becomes difficult for high school teachers to do involved experiments. "This class makes me think in a different way. I have to think 'how can I do this in 40 minutes?' We really adjust to their classrooms," Drewes said.

The course involves sampling many kinds of local ecosystems, studying the specimens collected, and videotaping the findings of the experiments done with these organisms, Drewes said.

Using three stations equipped with microscopes and video cameras, students examine specimens they collect from the lakes or surrounding areas.

"We collect in the morning, then do experiments and documentation in the afternoon," Drewes said. "The first day out on the lake, we found seven different phyla of organisms."

"The class is real intense. Sometimes we're in the lab until ten or eleven at night," said Diane Miller, a biology teacher from Bettendorf High School. Miller said her biggest success of the course was threading a hair through a hydra under a microscope.

"I was so proud of myself," Miller said. As each teacher has a particular interest in biology, each has a particular experiment they would like to videotape for their students. "Everybody has had their own little successes," Miller said.

While the Great Lakes region has a great diversity of organisms, Drewes and Brown had invertebrates shipped in like Horseshoe crabs and jelly fish from the Gulf coast to provide a greater diversity of organisms to study.

The class was a great learning experience, but it wasn't always easy, Miller pointed out. From looking through a microscope until her eyes were blurry to removing about 100 ticks from her body after leaving the nearby Kettle Hole, Miller has had her share of challenging episodes.

"Sometimes we get tired, but we never get tired of what we're doing. Everyone wants to learn, " Miller said.

Students for "Techniques for Teaching Biology" had to apply to take this class. A flier about this course was sent last fall to all biology teachers in Iowa. Through an interview process, Drewes and Brown look for teachers in different size schools as well as public and private school teachers. The teachers chosen for the class had a geographical, gender and age mix.

"It is most gratifying to see the interaction and networking within the group of teachers. The younger teachers can use the older ones as role models," Drewes said.

Because teachers give up two weeks of the summer in which they could be researching, spending time with their families or making money in other ways, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, which funds educational initiatives through ISU, pays tuition, room and board and a small daily stipend for teachers taking this course. Teachers also earn two graduate credits for the course.

Teachers selected from Iowa were Keri Frommelt, Des Moines East HS (Des Moines); Mike Hale, Thomas Jefferson HS (Council Bluffs); Jeff Krause, Cedar Falls HS (Cedar Falls); Miller, Bettendorf HS (Bettendorf); Don Perschau, Hoover HS (Des Moines); Stacey Strempke, Don Bosco HS (Gilbertville); Jennifer Williams, Meredith MS (Des Moines). Selected from Nebraska was Jane Obbink, Lincoln S.E. HS (Lincoln).

A Student's View

Elizabeth Andre

At 6:45 a.m. the wake-up bell rings, or more accurately, the rim of a car wheel hanging from a tree is banged loudly with a hammer. About 40 people congregate on the porch in front of the mess hall. I hear from the Iowa Lakeside Lab regulars that this number is unusually high for breakfast this late into the term. Maybe it's the good food that keeps people getting up so early each morning. Dr. van der Valk told me he's never heard of anyone losing weight at Lakeside.

At breakfast there's the usual mix of the morning people who chat pleasantly about the upcoming day's activities and the not-morning people who stare blankly into their coffee. I'm usually one of the latter. I do, however, listen to the conversation around me. It's fascinating. Where else but at Lakeside does breakfast chat center around topics like diatoms, prairie ecology and evolution?

Class meets from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. At first I thought, " I can't stay awake for a 50 minute lecture at ISU; how am I supposed to stay interested for eight hours?" To my pleasant surprise, I enjoy class so much, I sometimes have trouble leaving the lab in time to make it to lunch! The instructors are gifted and honestly excited about the class. Their enthusiasm is catching. The intimate class size is a definite advantage. Only at Lakeside would one hear a professor mention the challenges of teaching a large class...of eight students. It's special to be able to get to know such respected faculty as friends. One of them even took my mom and me for a sailboat ride one weekend when my mom came to visit.

First session I took Environmental Geology and now I'm taking Plant Taxonomy. We spend a lot of time in the prairies, wildlife preserves and wetlands. These areas are a great habitat for ticks. Lakeside people are readily recognized by their pants legs tucked into their socks and their parfum de DEET.

Wednesday and Sunday nights there are one-hour seminars. I really enjoyed the opportunity to see Dr. Joe Tiffany's slides on Iowa archeological sites, to learn about butterflies from Dr. Diane Debinski, and to hear Dr. Lon Drake talk about his house he built from recycled materials. I've also picked up some extracurricular knowledge as a bonus. I can bait a hook and cast a fishing line. By the end of the summer, maybe I'll be able to clean a fish and fry it up.

Okoboji Reflections: Shedding Some New Light on Water Quality or What do The Sea of Galilee and West Okoboji Have in Common

Erin Walter

A group of visiting scientists at Iowa Lakeside Lab recently studied the spectral composition (color) of light given off by West Lake Okoboji and other lakes in the region. Their study will provide residents of the Iowa Great Lakes with valuable information about potentially dangerous blue-green algae as well as about the source and amount of suspended sediment in the lake. The team was at Lakeside Lab from May 31 to June 3, 1996.

"Blue-green algae, if swallowed, can cause gastric disorders, taste and odor problems and can impact the quality of aquatic life," said Dr. John Schalles, a biology professor from Creighton University, Omaha, Nebraska.

Schalles is the head of a team of biologists, geographers, a physicist and several students who used remote sensing to examine the color of light that reflected back through the water to determine the level and type of algae present in lake water.

Growth of toxic algae is increased by fertilizer run-off into the lakes. "Using these techniques, [researchers] can detect where nutrients are entering the lake, such as fertilizers," said Dr. Arnold van der Valk, director, Iowa Lakeside Laboratory.

Suspended sediment can also be detected through these studies. "Inorganic, especially clay, particles can stay suspended days, even weeks, in this area," Schalles said.

While Okoboji lakes do not fill with sediment as easily as reservoirs, the filling in process, or Eutrophication, is still a problem for lakes in this area, Schalles said. This filling-in process is an issue because sediment will cause the lakes to become increasingly more shallow.

Okoboji residents are not the only ones who are interested in the results of this study. People around the world who depend on inland bodies of water for their water supply will benefit from this research, Schalles said.

During this study, algae and sediment data will also be collected from Lake Kinneret, or the Sea of Galilee, in Israel. Because of fertilizer run-off into the lake, Lake Kinneret is experiencing more blue-green algae growth than ever, he said.

"[Because] Lake Kinneret supplies water to the whole country [Israel]," it is important to be able to make early identifications of toxic algae problems, Schalles said.

This study of remote sensing of water quality in inland waters is being funded by the U.S. Israel Bi-National Science Foundation.

The Wehrspann Report

Mark and Judy Wehrspann

Lakeside continues to be an exciting place. As we pen these notes in late June, we have already completed a very rewarding three week term and are now well into the second term. A final three week term will complete this summer session at Lakeside. As last summer, new courses have brought many new students and several new faculty to Lakeside.

New equipment and facilities have made life much easier. Recently the spine of a new digital phone system was installed that connects most of the major buildings. This system currently provides only voice communications, but it can be expanded to handle data transmission and to provide an interface to the State's fiber optic system - should it ever reach here.

Recent donations from the local community include a 1983 Chevrolet station wagon, a 1965 18' Century boat with an inboard motor, and an air conditioner. All will see much use this summer. Gifts such as these are much appreciated because they reflect the kind thoughts of their donors toward the Lab.

May saw the arrival of five more small housing units from the former Brooks Beach Motel. This completes the relocation of buildings from this resort that began last year. While they arrived too late for completing all utility hookups prior to the start of the first term, we did get the electricity connected and people are enjoying their new digs.

June this year meant not only the arrival of students and faculty, but also preparations for the "big party." On a beautiful June evening, some 200+ guests came to the campus green for food, fun and fellowship. There was even a string quartet to provide soothing background music. The invited guests were privileged to hear speeches from the president of the Board of Regents, presidents of two universities(ISU and UNI) and a community college (ILCC), and an interim provost (UI), as well as the Lakeside director and president of the Friends group. The climax of the evening was the announcement of the $500,000 gift from the Waitt Foundation.

Many thanks are due to the members of the various committees of the Friends group who spent so many hours on the organization and preparation of this event. [Editor's Note: Many thanks are also due to Mark and Judy who cheerfully took on the considerable extra work involved in organizing and setting up this party. This included attending many organizational meetings, building a couple of stages and putting up decorative screens around the campus green, hauling and setting up chairs and tables, etc. Without their help and hard work this party would not have been possible, nor the success that it was.]

1997 Summer Courses

First Term (June 2-20)

Ecology
Archaeology
Environmental Geology
Insect Ecology
Freshwater Algae

Second Term (June 23- July 18)

Aquatic Ecology
Diatoms
Plant Taxonomy
Prairie Ecology
Vertebrate Ecology and Evolution

Third Term (July 21- August 8)

Evolution
Ornithology
Plant Ecology
Aquatic Plants
Restoration Ecology

Up-to-date information about these and other courses can be obtained by calling (515-294-2488), faxing (515-294-9777), e-mailing (lakeside@iastae.edu) or writing the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory, Administrative Office, 131 Bessey Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011.

The Richard Bovbjerg Laboratory Fund

I would hereby like to pledge to the Richard Bovbjerg Fund whose sole purpose is to raise $50,000 so that a research laboratory in the water quality laboratory can be named after Dick Bovbjerg. Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed under IRS section 501(c)(3).
You may either print this form and fill it out or use a facsimile.

NAME: _________________________________________________________

TOTAL GIFT: ________PAYMENT BALANCE:________PLEDGED:_______

My gift will be pledged over ____ years. (Please complete payments
by December 31, 1998)

Please bill me (circle one): Annually Semi-Annually Quarterly

Signature: _____________________________________Date: _____________
Street Address: ___________________________________________________
City, State, Zip Code: ______________________________________________
Telephone: ______________________________________________________

Please make checks payable to:
FRIENDS OF LAKESIDE LAB, INC.
and mail to
Friends of lakeside Lab, Inc.
1838 Highway 86
Milford, IA 51351