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Greater Latrobe, Burrell high schoolers take science class outdoors | TribLIVE.com
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Greater Latrobe, Burrell high schoolers take science class outdoors

Quincey Reese
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Greater Latrobe High School student Franklin Handwork helps science teacher Patrick Roberts pull frames out of the school’s bee box for students to inspect at Latrobe Rotary Community Park, located near the district’s junior high school, on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Burrell and Greater Latrobe high school students search for aquatic wildlife in Nine Mile Run near Greater Latrobe Junior High School on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Burrell High School student Jarenn Martin inspects a crayfish a classmate found in Nine Mile Run near Greater Latrobe Junior High School on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025..
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Burrell High School student Landon Myers inspects a crayfish a classmate found in Nine Mile Run near Greater Latrobe Junior High School on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Greater Latrobe High School science teacher Patrick Roberts sprays smoke on a bee box to calm the insects ahead of a demonstration for students at Latrobe Rotary Community Park, located near the district’s junior high school, on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Greater Latrobe High School science teacher Patrick Roberts displays aquatic wildlife his students found in Nine Mile Run near the district’s junior high school on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Greater Latrobe High School students await a beekeeping demonstration by their teacher at Latrobe Rotary Community Park, located near the district’s junior high school, on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.
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Quincey Reese | TribLive
Greater Latrobe High School student Franklin Handwork holds a frame from the school’s bee box at Latrobe Rotary Community Park, located near the district’s junior high school, on Thursday Oct. 9, 2025.

About 30 junior and senior students from Burrell and Greater Latrobe high schools put their science lessons into action Thursday.

As part of Greater Latrobe’s Capstone Environmental Science course, the students inspected bee boxes to assess the health of the queen bee. The bee boxes were built about a year and a half ago at Latrobe Rotary Community Park, located near Greater Latrobe Junior High School.

Students then searched nearby Nine Mile Run for wildlife such as insects and crayfish, which are indicative of a healthy aquatic ecosystem.

The Capstone Environmental Science course was started at Greater Latrobe in 1995, said teacher Patrick Roberts, who has taught the class for about four years. Burrell High School teacher Chad Clair, who completed his student teaching placement under Roberts, partnered with Greater Latrobe to expose his students to similar science opportunities.

Quincey Reese is a TribLive reporter covering the Greensburg and Hempfield areas. She also does reporting for the Penn-Trafford Star. A Penn Township native, she joined the Trib in 2023 after working as a Jim Borden Scholarship intern at the company for two summers. She can be reached at qreese@triblive.com.

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Categories: Local | Valley News Dispatch | Westmoreland
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