USD Magazine, Summer 1996

By Michael R. Haskins

DovVJ!\ to Ea~+h P.,-ofesso1•s aV\d sh,de"ts so1V1efones felt like i"frt1de1·s whe,, they ve1,hwed i,,to Tecolote CaV\yoV\ Nah1l"a! Pa.,-k, en, e l'\vi.-01'\IV1ental p1•esel"ve jt1st Gelow LASD's hilltop ca111pt1s. As teC\chel's aV\d pC\l'k ,·etJl"eseV'ltotives got to know each othe.,., howeve1•, they fot1V\d c om1V1011 91'01,md in r.:wojects that v,,ill e ducate sh,dents a11d, a t the sn1V1c ti 111e 1 pl"esel've the nah,.,.al habited l"i9ht outside the trnive1·sity's bock doo.-.

When San Diego Park Ranger Tracey Walker took over super– vision of Tecolote Canyon Natural Park, a meandering 970-acre natural preserve that hugs the northern base of USD's hilltop campus, he hoped he would soon have the chance to meet some USD students. The first meeting, however, was more than he bargained for. "My first contact with USD came through the NROTC stu– dents," laughs the burly park ranger. "I walked into the canyon one day, looked up and saw about 20 people with rifles crawling through the brush and coming straight at me." Walker wisely retreated and called for reinforcements, and when the police arrived the misunderstanding was cleared up. Far from being angry, Walker took the incident in stride. "I told the students I didn't mind them using the canyon for their exercises," he says, "but I did ask them to let me know when they're going to be out here." The ROTC students are by no means the only people from USD to be found in Tecolote Canyon. Since Walker began working in Tecolote Canyon two years ago, he's seen many USD professors and students visit the park to observe the habi– tat, conduct field studies and experiments for biology, geology and other natural science classes, or just enjoy one of the few large open spaces left in San Diego County.

Tecolote (an Indian word for "owl") Canyon, which years ago was slated to become a landfill, was dedicated for use as a natural park in 1978 after local residents fought to preserve the area. Until Walker's arrival and construction of the nature cen– ter was completed last year, however, USD students and pro– fessors sometimes felt they were intruding in the canyon. Walker and the contingent of local residents who volunteer at the park dispelled their fears by welcoming the visitors from the hilltop with open arms, encouraging them to work and study in the canyon as much as possible._ The relationship became more formal last December, when eight USD professors met with park representatives to discuss several joint projects. The meeting acted as a starting gun of sorts, and professors and students quickly sprinted from the blocks, dreaming up countless ways to use Tecolote Canyon for educational experiences and, at the same time, provide volun– teer work for the park and the new Tecolote Canyon Nature Center. Instead of gazing down on the canyon from the mesa where USD sits, students and teachers are making their way down the hillside to work in the natural environment right out– side their back door.

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