Impact has several different meanings. There's the meaning in the dictionary, and then there's the figurative meaning. But for a certain group of students, the word "impact" means water quality and water conservation.
At Wagner, Impact is a group that works with the San Antonio Water System (SAWS) to come up with new ideas on water quality and water conservation. One of the team's tasks involved testing water samples for E.coli and bacteria.
"We were trying to clean up one of the lakes at a local college," junior and team member Eathan Oyerbides said. "That included testing the water, taking field trips so we could understand how the water is stored, basically how everything plays a part. And we had to find a way to clean it."
The team has put in months of preparation for a meet that took place on Tuesday, February 10th, where they showcased an original design for an improved water filtration system. And the meet had good results that made teacher Mike Kliewer, one of Impact's sponsors, happy with how it turned out.
Along with preparing for the meet, the students in the Impact group also had projects and field trips that the group went on. But for students such as senior Meghan Harms, even with all the work involved with the team over the year, Impact has not negatively affected her grades. "Last year they were helping build homes for Habitat for Humanity," Harms said. "I like the people in the group, and I also like that the team is interesting."