Jobs Abound on N.C. Office of Environmental Education Web Site

Looking for an environmental education job or internship? The N.C. Office of Environmental Education can help.

Over the last few months, the Office has seen a large increase in the number of positions posted on its listserv and EE Jobs and Internships page. Jobs include environmental educator positions and a variety of positions in the environmental and conservation fields that require education and outreach skills.

Since 1996, the N.C. Office of Environmental Education has helped employers and potential employees connect through the North Carolina Environmental Education Listserv (NC-EE). Many environmental educators have related stories of finding great employment opportunities, and many employers have noted that they have found excellent candidates through the list. In a 2009 survey, 51 people out of the 395 that responded said they had found employment via the listserv, and 29 said they had hired someone that saw a job posting on the list. One respondent noted: "My career began from a posting I saw on the EE listserve. I have now been in that position for nine years and manage a national EE curriculum at the state level!"

In 2006, the Office expanded its job assistance role with their new Web site, http://www.eenorthcarolina.org/. This new site features a jobs and internships page that is constantly updated. The new site has been paying off for job-seekers and employers. The Office recently received this message from a major environmental education center's personnel department:

As someone who has recruited for many different types of jobs for the past 7 years, I am always on the lookout for sources of high-quality candidates. The NC-EE listserv and job site has proven many times to be the best resource for individuals who are knowledgeable and passionate about science education in North Carolina. I doubt I would see as many well-qualified candidates for education positions if I didn’t use the Office's resources. They really make my job easier!

For more information on the NC-EE listserv, visit the Office's subscription page. Employers are also free to post jobs on the listserv. Any jobs posted to the list are added to the EE Jobs and Internships listing, or employers can call 919-733-0711 or email Marty.Wiggins@ncdenr.gov for more information.

Presentations Posted from NC Outdoor Classroom Symposium

Many of the presentations and handouts from the First Annual NC Outdoor Classroom Symposium have now been posted. Just click here to take a look. The Symposium was a huge success, and we hope to host another one in Spring of 2011.

APNEP Demonstration Project Grants Open

The Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program is seeking proposals for demonstration projects. Grants will be awarded by APNEP, which protects water quality and other natural resources in a 36-county area of northeastern North Carolina and southeastern Virginia. Schools, government agencies, nonprofit organizations and institutions in the APNEP region are eligible to apply for grant money.

The projects must have a direct environmental benefit and occur on public lands in the APNEP region. They also must have a constructed component or vegetative planting on-site, feature a strong public outreach or education element, allow for permanent public access and have methods that may be applied in other locations. Past projects included outdoor classrooms, nature trails, rain gardens, green roofs and schoolyard wetlands.

Each project may receive up to $20,000 in funding from APNEP. The APNEP Citizen’s Advisory Committee will select the proposals to be funded and determine funding amounts. Prospective grant recipients are encouraged to partner with others to leverage additional funds. The application deadline is Dec. 31. Awards will be announced in January. All awards are contingent upon the availability of funds.

For more detailed information or to download an application, visit the APNEP Web site and click on “What's New - Request for Proposals.” If you have questions about the application or eligibility requirements, contact Lori Brinn, APNEP Community Specialist.

Not in the APNEP Region? Remember that more opportunities are listed on the Office of Environmental Education's Grants and Contests and Awards pages.

Register Now for the EENC Annual Conference, Nov. 5-8, 2009!

Green Spaces in Urban Places

19th Annual Conference of the
Environmental Educators of North Carolina
November 5-8, 2009 in Raleigh, NC

Environmental Education professional development at its finest! There are plenty of “mobile workshops,” workshops, and sessions to get you excited about this urban conference where we will explore Green Spaces in Urban Places. And if that’s not enough, the evening activities will be sure to impress! Come to Raleigh and explore environmental education opportunities in an urban setting!

For more information or to register, check out the EENC web site.

Update on the Office of Environmental Education

Gov. Perdue signed the state budget on Friday, August 7. The final budget includes the Office of Environmental Education; however, it eliminates the office’s administrative assistant, Sharon Springs. It also eliminates funding for the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Library, which is housed within the office. This funding includes the department’s librarian, Mary Tucker. It directs the library collection to be transferred to the State Library.

These are dire economic times and though the office is devastated by the loss of these staff members, and of the library, we feel fortunate that the remaining staff and programs will stay intact.

There are no words to adequately express the thanks that we owe our constituency for your support during this budget crisis. Our office was overwhelmed by the outpouring of grassroots support from environmental educators, citizens and organizations throughout the state.

A recent op-ed piece in the New York Times eloquently addressed the lack of time Americans spend getting outside. The columnist wrote, “One problem may be that the American environmental movement has focused so much on preserving nature that it has neglected to do enough to preserve a constituency for nature.”

North Carolina is far from lacking a constituency for the environment. Along with the state’s diverse natural heritage, we have the strongest environmental education community in the country.

Our office looks forward to continuing its work for North Carolina’s environmental educators, programs, resources and facilities.Thank you for all you have done to support the N.C. Office of Environmental Education. We feel extremely fortunate that North Carolina has such a unique and dedicated environmental education community.

Sincerely,
The staff of the N.C. Office of Environmental Education
Lisa Tolley
Rachel Smith
Sarah Yelton
Marty Wiggins
Libby Wilcox

N.C. Outdoor Classroom Symposium

Please save the date for North Carolina’s first Outdoor Classroom Symposium to be held Friday, October 23, 2009 at the North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill, NC!

The symposium will focus on techniques for creating, maintaining and using outdoor classrooms and strategies for integrating outdoor learning into the curriculum. It will feature sessions on how to create specific types of school gardens and natural areas, how to start farm-to-school programs, and how to design and use your school grounds to enhance learning across the curriculum.

Pre-symposium workshops will be offered on Thursday and mobile workshops on Saturday will give participants the opportunity to visit school and community gardens. Other highlights will include a Friday evening reception, educational exhibits and many opportunities for networking and learning!

Symposium registration is scheduled to open in August 2009. Sessions will be appropriate for educators who already have an outdoor classroom and for those who are just beginning to develop their schoolyard areas for outdoor environmental learning. Teachers can earn CEU credits and participants can earn credit towards their N.C. Environmental Education Certification.

The symposium is a partnership between the N.C. Botanical Garden, the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill; the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Program; the Environmental Education Fund; the N.C. Office of Environmental Education and the Natural Learning Initiative, N.C. State University.

This will be a great opportunity for classroom teachers, teacher assistants, school administrators, parent volunteers, and non-formal educators and those involved in design of outdoor play and learning areas from across the state!

Be Part of the New North Carolina EE Plan!

The N.C. Office of Environmental Education is pleased to announce the release of the DRAFT of the North Carolina Environmental Education Plan, and we would like your input. The staff in the office collaborated with members of the N.C. Environmental Education Advisory Council over a 16-month period to draft the goals and objectives for the plan. The N.C. Environmental Education Advisory Council is made up of representatives from the academic, business, cultural arts, agricultural and environmental communities.

We want to make sure that the state plan is representative of the entire environmental education community so we are providing the draft of the plan for review and comment. The final draft will include a table of contents, acknowledgements and an evaluation section. It will also have captions and credits on some of the photos. The plan is scheduled to be completed by June 30, and we hope to meet that deadline. We will be accepting comments until June 1.

If you would like to provide comments on the draft plan, please:

Review the draft and complete the online survey by June 1, 2009

Thank you in advance for your assistance in this process. Your participation is critical for the successful development of the plan. Please contact me directly if you have any questions about this process. A special thanks to the many people who provided photos!