2009 National Project Learning Tree Outstanding Educator Honorees

The individuals below were named state PLT educators of the year in 2008:

Elizabeth Burke
Fairfax County, Virginia
Parent Volunteer and Master Naturalist

Elizabeth has been instrumental in enriching the learning environment at Wolftrap Elementary School by organizing HOWL—Helping Our World through Learning. She worked with Wolftrap administration and teachers to ensure that the enrichment program connects to state science standards. Using PLT, she trains parents to be classroom docents and conducts PLT workshops for local area teachers. She also involves Scout groups in service projects on school grounds. In her encounters with other schoolyard garden coordinators, she has been an advocate of having PLT as part of HOWL and Wolftrap’s gardening efforts. Aside from being a PLT facilitator, she is a Fairfax Master Naturalist and a certified Environmental Educator in North Carolina, where she serves on the board of the Environmental Educators of North Carolina.

Joy Cowart
Valdosta, Georgia
English to Speakers of a Second Language Teacher, Lowndes High School

Joy remembers going to her first PLT workshop in 2001 somewhat reluctantly, but once she experienced PLT, she was hooked. She now uses PLT in her Language Arts and English to Speakers of a Second Language classes. She has even used PLT activities with her family and as a Sunday school teacher. Now a PLT facilitator, she has conducted more than 25 workshops for preservice teachers at Valdosta State University. Through a GreenWorks! grant, Joy involved Hahira Middle School students in a library landscaping project. As Joy says, “I believe my students are like trees. They must receive raindrops of love in a sustainable environment. To shed light on the lessons they learn, they must be engaged. Last but not least, they need encouragement, or fertilizer, to help them grow and reach their goals.”

Sheryl Crain Holliday
Franklinton, Louisiana
6–8th Grade Science and Technology Teacher, Franklinton Vocational Education Center

Sheryl describes herself as a “science teacher at heart and always will be.” Involved with environmental education for many years, she found PLT to be a natural fit after participating in her first workshop in 2003, through the Louisiana Forestry Tour for Teachers. The next year, she was back as a volunteer and has returned on her own accord ever since. She also trains teachers at her own school and elsewhere in the district. Sheryl is an expert at using PLT activities that encourage participation and result in students experiencing academic success. She has adapted several PLT activities to use with GPS receivers, thus strengthening students’ use of this technology. As a colleague notes, her enthusiasm and creativity turn students on to math and science.

Hilary Hargrove
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
9–12th Grade Science and Honors Ecology Teacher, Riverdale High School

Hilary teaches physical science, ecology, and environmental science and is an advisor to Riverdale’s environmental club. She uses PLT in her classes as well as in preparing her students to participate as a team in the annual Envirothon. In their first two years of competition, they received top regional honors. Hilary’s first exposure to PLT was when she was a high school student herself! She went on to study science in college and became trained in PLT while student teaching. Since joining the teaching staff at Riverdale in 2003, her students have established an outdoor classroom, reclaimed wetlands on school property, improved walking trails, and planted native trees and other vegetation. Her students are oftenfound outdoors learning in the environment they help to maintain.

Michael Mansour
Auburn Hills, Michigan
Naturalist and Environmental Educator, Hawk Woods Nature Center

After a long and successful career as a science teacher, Mike still maintains his zeal for the outdoors and environmental education as a naturalist at Hawk Woods Nature Center. There, he directs a number of programs for children and adults at the city-owned facility, often drawing on PLT. Mike began his professional career as a fourth grade teacher in 1969. A year later, he organized the first Earth Day for Pontiac schools and developed creative, effective programs both inside and outside the classroom. He went on to teach middle school for more than 35 years. Through his many years of teaching, PLT has been an important resource. Mike also introduces PLT to students at Wayne State University, where he teaches an Environmental Science class, and has mentored both students and teachers in their use of PLT.

Jeannine May
Jackson, Mississippi
Public Affairs Officer, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

Jeannine, a former high school science teacher, has worked for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for 25 years. She works with K-12 and college students, blending the agency mission of “Helping people help the land” with environmental education. She was trained at the first PLT facilitators’ workshop held in Mississippi in the 1980s. She has developed a water education program for Mississippi youth, as well as a popular mascot named Sam E. Soil. Using PLT, she has formed a team of resource specialists and educators to look at how environmental education can improve student learning in Mississippi, drawing on the experience of Oil City Elementary Magnet School in neighboring Louisiana. She facilitates PLT workshops and also spreads the PLT message through her agency’s 82 offices throughout the state. 

Jonathan Nute
Hillsborough County, New Hampshire
Forest Resources Extension Educator, University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension

Jon is a professional forester who uses PLT to make the connection between natural resources and education. After growing up in New Hampshire’s forests, he earned an undergraduate degree in history and considered a career in law before returning to the woods. He worked as a logger for seven years and then earned a graduate degree in forestry. In his current position, Jon leads nature walks, works with urban youth in a summer program, and trains teachers in how to use PLT in their classrooms, among  many other initiatives. He draws on PLT in his work with preservice teachers, landowners, and community stakeholders. Jon promotes PLT to other foresters across the state, encouraging them to use PLT’s resources in their forest education programs. He continually embodies PLT’s goals in his work while modeling its effective use to students and parents.

Jay Schneider
Mountainburg, Arkansas
Interpreter, Lake Fort Smith State Park

Jay has worked as either an educator or naturalist in four different state parks. In each, he has found that PLT aligns with state-specific standards and other educational frameworks. In addition, he says, PLT’s hands-on learning approach works well with people of all ages. Since 2005, Jay has facilitated an average of eight workshops a year. In 2008, he began planning and offering secondary module workshops for educators. A school district employee recently commented on how seamlessly Jay can share ways to utilize and integrate PLT with teachers at all grade levels and subject areas. Jay also supervises the seasonal park interpreters and uses PLT in training with them. As a result, PLT is now commonplace in Arkansas state park programming. He notes, “Being outside where the students and teachers can experience nature firsthand is the only way to teach about it. PLT is a great partner for this type of education.”

Deborah Todd
Worthington, Ohio
5th Grade Language Arts and Science Teacher, Slate Hill Elementary School,

Deb teaches language arts and science at Slate Hill Elementary, where she created an outdoor learning lab that she and other teachers now actively use with their students. Her students often make field trips to the lab to conduct water and wildlife monitoring, sharing what they learn with students at other schools or with younger students at their own school. She currently co-facilitates an online class through Miami University of Ohio that focuses on how the use of PLT impacts students’ academic achievement. She also makes presentations and teaches how to use PLT in many other state and national settings. As a member of the Ohio PLT Board, Deb has developed new and improved evaluation tools for PLT workshops, strengthened facilitator mentoring, and began a facilitator blog.

Jane Ulrich
Issaquah, Washington
4th Grade Teacher, Sunny Hills Elementary School

Jane is a leader in integrating PLT throughout her school district. She has been a member of the district environmental education committee since it began in 1998. In 1995, she co-chaired a committee that integrated PLT and Project WILD into curriculum frameworks. As a result, all fourth graders study local forest ecosystems, third graders study salmon, and second graders study habitat. At Sunny Hills, Jane planned and coordinated the creation of a trail and garden on the school grounds
that are a source of pride for students and teachers alike. A unit she developed involving nature photography and Haikus has transformed and enriched the lives of her students. She has taught other teachers how to use photography with their students, as well as how to use PLT in a variety of ways.

Pam Wilson
Corvallis, Oregon
K-8th Grade Substitute Teacher and Facilitator, Oregon Natural Resources Program

Pam, a former classroom teacher and Forest Service interpreter,  continues to use PLT activities as a substitute teacher with grades K-8.  She also volunteers with Oregon Trout’s Salmon Watch program, often to teach about local watershed issues. She is also a well respected facilitator of the Oregon Natural Resources Education Program. Once she “found” PLT in the mid-1980s, she became an enthusiastic facilitator and has since used PLT with both kids and adults. Her experience and enthusiasm to share award her the titles of mentor, “master” facilitator, and respected educator. She currently teaches new generations of teachers about PLT at Linn Benton Community College and at Oregon State University.