While most student research projects end up in a storage bin in the attic, one that 8th graders at Naperville’s Lincoln Junior High worked on is now state law.
Lincoln’s students spearheaded the effort to make the big, fuzzy black and gold bumblebee the official Illinois state bee.
Barb Bell is a science teacher at Lincoln Jr. High. She designed a research project for the 8th grade class, where they worked together, making a case for one of the 10 most common bee species found in Illinois.
"Whenever we can make learning more hands on," Bell said, "It absolutely makes it more meaningful for students. The fact that this was more experiential than anything is the greatest teacher ever."
Students worked in small groups to do a deep dive on one bee species. Liza Di Santo knew exactly which bee she wanted to advocate for.
"When we picked out our bees, I ran to the front of the line, so I could get the black and gold bumblebee. I was like, ‘I need the black and gold bumblebee,’ so me, Ahanna and Sofia, we ran in the front and (picked) the black and gold bumblebee right away."
Liza, Ahanna Patel and Sofia Nicoloudes were project partners from the beginning. They designed and narrated presentations which were shared with schools all across Illinois. Thousands of students all had a chance to choose the state bee. The black and gold bumblebee came out on top.
Black and gold bumblebees are native to North America. They build above-ground nests in grassland landscapes like prairies.
Elena Gratton is with the Dolezal Bee Research Lab at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She said they’re especially great pollinators for agricultural plants.
"When they get on a flower, they shake it,” she said. “It's called sonicating, and they buzz really loudly, and then they shake out all the pollen. Plants like tomatoes or peppers or blueberries all really benefit from this type of pollination."
She said their fuzziness has a lot to do with how well they pollinate.
"They just get completely head to toe covered in pollen," she said. "They've got so much hair all over them that it just sticks, and they go to the next flower, and they just roll around again."
Black and gold bumblebees aren’t a species of conservation concern in Illinois. But, because they look so similar to the very common American bumblebee, Gratton said it’s hard to collect good population data about this species.
With the student voting complete, it was time for Sofia, Ahanna and Liza to present their research at the capitol. They testified for naming the black and gold bumblebee as the Illinois state bee.
State Representative Janet Rohr introduced the bill to legislators. She supported the students through the process and got to meet them in person on the day they came to testify.
"When you shine a light on these areas, that attention is so important to helping all of us ... to turn the tide," she said.
Ahanna said it’s special to create change, especially when it comes to our natural world.
"We all really care about nature," she said. "We live in a really forest-y area, and that's a high priority in the state we live in as well. So us getting to make an impact on that in law-making was a really exciting decision."
Many students experienced a change of heart about bees through the research project, including Sofia.
"I just thought bees were an insect that stings you," she said. "But after doing all this information, I really understood how much impact it has on our environment and how much it does for the Midwest, and basically the whole world."
The bill passed in the Senate over the weekend, making the big fuzzy bug Illinois’ state bee.
