Outstanding Educators 2003

Kathryn Felder, South Carolina

Kathy Felder wears a lot of hats.  But no matter which one she wears – third grade science teacher, mother, PLT facilitator, or South Carolina PLT Steering committee member – she works tirelessly to teach kids to respect nature, observe nature, and become good stewards of the earth.

Kathy is more than a teacher at Sheridan Elementary School.  She is a leader!  She successfully started a recycling program in her school, which spread to the entire school district.  She helped develop a Carolina Fence Garden and Backyard habitat at Sheridan Elementary School, which was the first garden and outdoor classroom areas to be certified under the Habitat Steward Program sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation and the South Carolina Wildlife Federation.

Yet another PLT leader who never says “no,” Kathy was trained as a PLT facilitator in 1999 and has since conducted 12 workshops and several presentations throughout the state.  Her work with South Carolina State University has led to PLT workshops being given to pre-service and in-service educators at the University and across the state.

 All along the outdoor learning centers are different learning stations.  For instance, a section that describes the decomposition process is centered on the PLT activity “the Fallen Log”.  The different stations along the way are all directly related to various PLT activities.  The nature curriculum that Kathy developed for her school is centered on PLT and other EE programs.

Her influence has been felt throughout the community; in the amount of recycling that the county is now committed to, and in the amount of environmental education training offered through her association with South Carolina State University.

Kathy serves as an example of how environmental and conservation education, when used correctly and thoroughly, can motivate an entire school, district, and community into action.  That certainly sums up a PLT Outstanding Educator!

John Guyton, Mississippi

It’s amazing what John Guyton has accomplished in his many years of promoting and using the environment as an added dimension to education.  He began teaching a college physics course, which evolved into teaching a course on alternative energies.  Now, he’s the state Environmental Education 4-H Specialist for Mississippi State University Extension Service, where he promotes PLT activities and also trains educators to use PLT.

Integrating students with their natural environment plays a big role in John’s method of environmental education.  John has developed an outdoor classroom and nature trail survival guide entitled “Nature Trails With a Twist,” which he distributes during workshops.

John is full of excellent ideas. And for John, one idea is only the starting point.  For example, he created a statewide infrastructure for environmental education by organizing the Mississippi Environmental Education Alliance, the MEEA.  From there began Project CARE which stands for Caring Adolescents Reshaping the Environment.  Project CARE operates as a special interest group within MEEA.  In order to further integrate parents, educators, and kids, John put forth the idea of doing a PLT facilitator Training concurrent with a Project CARE Conference.  Many new facilitators commented that the conversations about environmental issues on the way home with these young people were quite stimulating.

John is always looking for new ways to get PLT into more classrooms – whether he’s training 4-H agents and environmental 4-H club leaders in PLT or assisting in recruiting and training EE center directors and naturalists in PLT.

John is not shy about promoting PLT.   Why?  Because he knows that organizing curricula around environmental concepts will improve learning across the board.  And he thinks that using the Environment as an Integrating Context has great potential for Mississippi and he knows that PLT activities are useful in getting students involved in EIC.

His passion for environmental education is consuming … and contagious.  You can’t help but catch it from him.  As a leader and a believer in PLT and quality environmental education, John Guyton is truly an outstanding PLT educator.

Wendy Oellers, New Hampshire

Wendy Oellers has been teaching in the New Hampshire public school system for over 14 years…and she still has so much energy!  She is an avid hiker, birder, and wildflower enthusiast who has always enjoyed sharing her love of the outdoors with others.  For Wendy, teaching about the environment “…is a natural hook” to get kids excited about learning.  She believes that kids are natural scientists.  And they want to know why and how.

With her students’ scientific questions in mind, Wendy takes her students on weekly exploration treks into the woods.  Before going out, Wendy asks her students to reflect on what they discovered the previous week and what they hope to find and explore this time.  She also has her students spend a few minutes each time they go outside doing what they refer to as a “Sit See.”  During this exercise students sit quietly and observe the natural world around them, recording their observations in journals.

Wendy’s love of the outdoors has rubbed off on her students as well.  When faced with the possibility of not being able to venture outdoors in the winter, Wendy’s class insisted that they were up to facing the challenges of winter conditions in New Hampshire’s Lakes Region.  With the help of snowshoes and persistence, Wendy’s students were able to continue their outdoor learning throughout the winter.

Encouraging her students to think about the environment from a new perspective has been the impetus for her newest project.  The students have decided to work together to design a trail map of the woodland for visiting community members.  In addition, they will include detailed drawings and interpretive information about the animals and plants that visitors may see when using the trails.

Spreading the good word of PLT is another area where Wendy excels by example.  She encourages other teachers to become trained in PLT.  She offers them insight on how to effectively integrate PLT activities to address standards and accomplish the school’s existing goals and objectives.  Wendy has also become an outspoken advocate within her school and the larger education community for PLT’s effectiveness in teaching environmental education. 

Wendy is equally passionate for children, learning, and the natural world.  Her masterful ability to bring these three loves together is a gift to all she reaches.  She leads by example and generously supports those who follow her lead, be they students or inspired colleagues.

Janis Stewart, Alabama

Janis Stewart is the principal of Meadowview Elementary School in Selma, Alabama.  She is a true leader. She was the first principal in Alabama to become PLT trained.  She also committed to having all the teachers at her school become PLT trained.  This commitment to PLT made Meadowview Elementary School Alabama’s first Certified Alabama Project Learning Tree School. 

Janis is committed to her school and staff.  She is extremely involved in environmental education groups throughout Alabama.  As the president of the Alabama Science Teachers Association, she has helped foster and encourage other schools in Alabama to participate in and utilize PLT activities as well.

Recognizing public concern about Alabama’s wildfires, Janis seized the opportunity to create a service-learning project for her entire school.  Called “Burning to Learn, Learning to Burn,” it’s a GreenWorks! project that is a partnership between the U.S. Forest Service, the Alabama Forestry Association, and her school.  This project encourages students to learn about and further understand the causes and solutions of wildfires.  The service-learning component gets them involved in their community.

Of course, PLT doesn’t just happen.  People have to hear about it.  And Janis makes sure they do.  Janis scheduled two workshops at the Alabama Science Teachers Association annual conference.  These workshops created a unique opportunity for many teachers to receive PLT training that haven’t been able to attend previous workshops due to tight travel budgets.  She has also received grant money from the Alabama Forests Forever Foundation to build and maintain two outdoor classrooms at her school, which teachers use to conduct PLT activities. 

With an elementary school to oversee, the Alabama Science Teachers Association to run, and countless other commitments, you’d think she’d have enough.  But Janis doesn’t stop there.  She, along with other educators from Selma, Alabama, traveled to Washington, DC to lobby Congressman Arthur Davis for Environmental Education in Science—taking her pursuits outside of Alabama.  Janis also volunteered to serve as her PLT School Coordinator—successfully training 100 percent of the teaching faculty—and is monitoring the ongoing service-learning project.  It’s this kind of tireless commitment that made Janis an obvious choice for outstanding PLT educator in 2003.

Peggy Vaughn, Colorado

Peggy Vaughn has been an environmental educator almost from the beginning of her career.  She worked for the U.S. Forest Service for 4 years, prior to teaching.  She’s been teaching for 25 years at the elementary level and part-time at the college level since 1990.  Since 1984, she has been bringing PLT into her classroom and has been a PLT facilitator for the last 3 years.

Environmental education has been a big part of Peggy’s lesson plans since she began teaching.  Having many environmental service-learning projects on her resume, here are a few she’s overseen:  “Shade the Playground,” a project to plant trees at her school; science fair, classroom mini-farm, a bird migratory map, and a school science park and outdoor classroom where she wrote a grant to purchase 5 acres of condemned land to help students in cleaning it up and developing a nature trail.

Although Peggy has used PLT activities throughout her career, two of her current projects caught our attention.  Her Classroom Aquarium Program is a joint effort with the Colorado Division of Wildlife, the U.S. Division of Wildlife Upper Colorado Endangered Fish Recovery Project, and public and private organizations.  This program involves students raising fish in Peggy’s classroom while also raising awareness and understanding of the Colorado River ecosystem.

Another note-worthy service-learning project that Peggy’s class started is a native garden outside their school.  Peggy spear-headed a group of interested teachers and parents to develop a plan, and then wrote two grants, one a GreenWorks! Grant and the other a Youth Garden grant, to help fund the project.

Promoting PLT is a major part of Peggy’s activities.  She taught an 8 week workshop in her school called “Wild Wednesdays” where she trained her staff and other school district teachers to use PLT and other environmental education programs.

Throughout Peggy’s career, she has worked to create awareness of environmental issues and concerns, to stimulate thinking, to create hands-on learning opportunities, and to encourage her colleagues to get involved in environmental education curriculum and activities.  It’s no wonder why Peggy Vaughn is being recognized as an outstanding PLT educator in 2003.  Clearly her students see her that way!