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Michigan Ag News Headlines |
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Environmental and Outdoor Education Leaders Recognized
Michigan Ag Connection - 10/15/2019
At the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education annual conference and awards ceremony last month in Tustin, 14 alliance members were honored for their work.
"The educators receiving awards showcase years of promoting environmental literacy in Michigan, showcasing the very mission of the alliance," said Natalie Elkins, MAEOE awards chair.
Each year, five levels of awards are opened for competitive nominations, including the two highest honors: the Julian W. Smith Excellence in Outdoor Education Award and the William B. Stapp Excellence in Environmental Education Award. This year's award
winners include:
The Julian W. Smith Excellence in Outdoor Education Award went to Margaret Holtschlag, who has had an incalculable effect on more than 30,000 students and hundreds of educators over the last 17 years through the Annie's Big Nature Lesson program that
she created and implemented.
The William B. Stapp Excellence in Environmental Education Award went to David Chapman, who retired in July 2019 after more than 43 years of teaching high school science. Chapman, who was integral in founding MAEOE and served as its first president,
annually took students on camping trips to Lake Michigan to study the dunes, wave action, astronomy, inland aquatic ecosystems and more, including going out on a research boat to sample and test water.
The President's Award is given by the outgoing MAEOE president to the person deemed instrumental to the president's success. Outgoing alliance board president Brittany Burgess chose Becky Durling, current alliance secretary and Young Fives teacher in
Williamston.
The Recognition Award honors significant contributions to the fields of environmental and outdoor education in a specialized area such as journalism, photography, curriculum development or interpretation. This year's recipients were Jonathan Schechter, nature
education writer for the Oakland County blog, and Tom Jameson, a 30-year volunteer naturalist in the Ann Arbor area.
The Appreciation Award recognizes those who have made significant contributions toward creating, delivering, managing or sustaining environmental and outdoor education programs. This year's awardees were Shawn Grose, an eco-action chairperson at
Hoover Elementary in Livonia; Catherine Harris, education specialist at the Belle Isle Aquarium; and Mike Latus, retired teacher and summer naturalist at Warren Dunes State Park.
Volunteer Service Awards honor those who give their time and skills for more than one year to a school, college, camp, outdoor center, zoo, nature center or other venue that promotes environmental or outdoor education. This year's recipients were the team of
Doris Applebaum and Sue Greenlee, Paul Cencer, Don Sasse, Wayne Gleiber and George Granderson.
During the awards ceremony, four new candidates -- Bridget Booth, Arleatha Bryant, Chelsea O'Brien and Tammy Wylie -- were certified through the nationally accredited Environmental Educator Certification program, an arduous, five-strand process.
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