Yuba Water Agency Introduces K-12 Yuba River Watershed Curriculum by Yuba Water Agency Aug 11, 2026 Member Submitted News As another school year gets underway, Yuba Water Agency is unveiling new science curriculum for K-12 classes, in which students can learn about flooding by studying the 1986 and 1997 floods in Yuba County, or learn chemistry by studying the waterways in their own community. The new Yuba River Watershed Curriculum, funded by Yuba Water and developed by dozens of Yuba County teachers, includes hundreds of science-based lessons, spanning from kindergarten through high school. The units were designed to meet Next Generation Science Standards. “It’s incredible to see this come together after years of hard work by our teachers, and to be able to give this gift to the community,” said Yuba Water General Manager Willie Whittlesey. “Given the financial impacts of our penstock incident that took much of our hydropower generation offline earlier this year, we’re having to cut back on non-mission critical expenses. But this program was funded before the crisis, so, it’s especially meaningful to be able to give this gift to the community right now.” The curriculum includes grade-specific units, lesson plans and supplemental resources that cover topics like human impacts on water systems, the chemistry of water sources and the effects of hydraulic mining, erosion, flooding and more. Coordinated and funded by Yuba Water, the effort was overseen by an advisory group made up of superintendents from all five Yuba County school districts, the Yuba County Office of Education, Yuba Community College District, South Yuba River Citizens League and the Yuba River Endowment. Built by local teachers, for local students From 2020 through 2022, Yuba Water contracted with Yuba County teachers to develop the curriculum. After receiving training on how to develop lessons that align with the Next Generation Science Standards, teachers worked in small grade-level groups to create units focused on local watershed topics. Teachers then spent the next two years refining the lessons, piloting them in their own classrooms and incorporating what they learned to improve the curriculum. After the curriculum development was complete, Yuba Water worked with Arroyo Research Services, an education consulting firm, to independently review the curriculum and ensure the units meet or exceed the Next Generation Science Standards. “We owe these teachers a huge debt of gratitude for the incredible work they’ve done,” said DeDe Cordell, Yuba Water’s communications manager, who served as the project manager. “One of my favorite things about this project is that year after year, the curriculum will build on itself, so that by the time these kids graduate from high school, they will not only have a really solid science education, but also, a deep appreciation of the Yuba River and the benefits that our natural resources bring to this community.” Teachers can explore the Yuba River Watershed K-12 Curriculum on Yuba Water’s website. The curriculum is available for free for any teacher to implement in their classrooms.
