The next
edition of the Pisgah Forest Institute (PFI) t-shirts, designed by Operations
Coordinator Heather Cosby, will be distributed and sold by the Cradle of
Forestry in America Interpretive Association. While the primary market for
this item is the attendees of the eight workshops being offered this Summer by the Institute, the general public will be able to
buy shirts at the Association's store at 100 South Broad Street in Brevard (828-884-5713).
Heather's design for the shirts
offered last year received considerable praise and as a result
the shirts sold very well. The new design will offer something
different for returning participants.
PFI
Operations Assistant Jessica Sharp garnered numerous awards, including a
Presidential citation, at the 2005 Brevard College graduation ceremony. She also
was among the three students with the highest grade point average. Jessica had
the primary responsibility for the organization of PFI's Decomposition
Workshop that was held on May 20-21. Like all of the
Institute's efforts, the success of the program was a result of effective
teamwork involving all the staff.
PFI is
pleased that Jayne Hall once again will be working full-time with the program
over the summer. She will be joined on a part-time basis by David Funderburk. During the academic year both Jayne and
David are full time students at Brevard College. Each consistently has
been on the Dean's List. The creativity and efficiency of these
Assistants are appreciated.
The
Institute staff congratulates USDA Cradle of Forestry in America Historical
Site Director and PFI Advisory Board member Mike Milosch
for organizing the May 16 presentation and discussion at the Cradle on Gifford Pinchot by Dr. Char Miller. It was both interesting and informative.
Dr. Miller was a major contributor to the recently released CD "The
Greatest Good", which relates the history of the USDA Forest Service.
That video will be incorporated into the July 10-15
"Elements of Nature" workshop being
offered by PFI.
AmeriCorps
program participant and PFI Distance Learning Coordinator Elizabeth Kampouris is working diligently on the Earth/Environmental
Science for Middle and High School Teachers course that will be offered for Western North Carolina residents this Fall. Anyone
interested in this distance learning course, designed for educators unable
to attend PFI's summer offering on the same subject matter,
should communicate via the e-mail address, pfi@brevard.edu.
Elizabeth also will be handling the medicinal
plants component in the June 26-28 workshop "The Good, The Bad, and The
Ugly".
At this
writing, most of the PFI summer 2005
courses are nearing enrollment capacity. However to
inquire if any openings remain, call (828) 884-8229.
A description of these workshops can be found on the Institute's website, www.brevard.edu/pfi.
PFI's
website is located at www.brevard.edu/pfi.
Realizing
that it is
now June and July will follow shortly, KceeI will be kicking into full gear to finalize plans for its
upcoming workshops. Registration is
still taking place and it is anticipated that it will increase as schools let out for the summer
months. Watershed Concepts and Geology
are both full and there is also a waiting list for each one. There is very limited space available in
Forest Stewardship and PA Land Choices, both of which
are projected to
be filled shortly.
In
other news, the Lackawanna and Wyoming
Counties Envirothon was a huge success this
year. It took place on Wednesday, May 18
and there
could not have been
better weather. There were 13 teams from
local high schools that competed in the all day event, no doubt increasing
their knowledge of their natural environment.
After
lunch, the students were treated to a presentation by Rich Pawling of History
Alive out of State College, PA. Dressed like a lumberjack from the 1800s,
Rich acted out the story of what it was like to be a "wood-hick"
way back when. He incorporated the
audience in his presentation, making it an interactive experience of life in a
logging camp. It was an excellent topic
and presentation.
This
year the winners of the Envirothonwere from Lakeland High School (Lackawanna
County) and Lackawanna Trail High School (Wyoming
County). Both teams went on to compete in the State Envirothon held at Bloomsburg University in Bloomsburg, PA. KceeI would like to
thank all the people who participated in this year's
Envirothon, Especially Keystone College, the volunteers
who participated, and the various Natural Resource Agencies: Countryside Conservancy, PA American Water
Company, DCNR Bureau of Forestry, Natural Resource Conservation Service, PA
Fish Commission, PA Game Commission, Proctor and Gamble, Lackawanna County
Conservation District, Wyoming County
Conservation District, Lackawanna State Park, and Keystone College's
Willary Water Resource Center.
Thursday,
May 19 was "Kids
College Day". Tim Eichner, of the Willary Water Resource Center, led groups of
second graders on Keystone College's
hiking trails. The students learned
about forest and wetland habitats and some of the organisms that they
support. They were awed at the sight and
feel of a salamander egg mass that Tim displayed in his hand for them to
touch. It was a highly educational day.
Friday,
May 20 was another day of elementary environmental education. Tim Eichner participated in the Francis Willard Elementary School's "Environmental Day"
at McDade Park in Scranton, PA. Third and Fourth graders from Francis Willard
took part in this all day event. Tim
showed students the significance of stream ecology: the organisms that live
there, the plants that grow there, and what we can do to reduce pollution. There were a number of various Natural
Resource Agencies that also contributed to the "Environmental
Day" and
all of the students
were very excited to take part in this hands-on learning experience.
Commencement
was held on Saturday, May 21. It turned
out to be a great day for it. It was a
beautiful ceremony and Keystone College was proud to send
300 students out into the world to accomplish their next goals in life. All in all, it has
been a very busy week and KceeI continues to look
forward to the coming months.
Howard Jennings, Director of KceeI,
would like to thank Vice President and Academic Dean of Keystone
College,
Charlotte Ravaioli, for her support of KceeI. After serving
nine years in this position, Dean Ravaioli is
returning to a faculty position at the College.
KceeI
would like to welcome Dr. Robert
Scott as Charlotte's
successor. Thank you and Good Luck,
Charlotte!
Just a reminder…
KceeI's website is located at www.kceei.keystone.edu.
THE PACIFIC FOREST
INSTITUTE
The ERC is pleased to
announce the formulation of Pacific Forest Institute in
Northern
California. This Institute is the newest program to be added
to the Forest Service teacher training conservation education programs and the
third of the four "corners" of the United States that Congressman
Taylor wishes to reach with these Institutes.
The
Pacific Forest Institute is based at William Jessup
University (WJU) in Rocklin, CA, which is just
outside Sacramento. The Institute will
be offering an in-service training course titled "Forest Stewardship
Education" for K-12 educators on July 17-22, 2005 with breakout
sessions for grades K-3, 4-6 and 7-12.
Topics that will be addressed include ecosystem management, soil
science, fire and fuels management as well as environmental education in California. They will incorporate materials
from Project Learning Tree, Project Wild and several other sources
recommended by the Pisgah Forest Institute in Brevard, NC. WJU's
partners include the USDA Forest Service and Feather River College in Quincy, CA. Bill Dennison serves as Project Director and
his staff consists of Mark McReynolds, Program Coordinator and Mary McFarland,
Administrative Assistant.
For
more information contact Mark
McReynolds at (916) 577-2200
or PFI@jessup.edu. Pacific
Forest Institute's website is located at http://www.jessup.edu/academics/pacificforestinstitute.
UNCA Computer
Literacy Program
Rising
seventh and eight graders from several counties in western North Carolina are eagerly
awaiting the start of the sixth annual UNCA Computer Literacy program. The boys’ camp is June 26-30th and
the girls’ camp is July 5-9th,
2005. The
initiative for the camps began as a brainchild of Congressman Charles Taylor
who sees technology as essential to the economic development of the Western Carolinas.
During
the week-long camps, 40 students learn about different types of technology
applications within the context of studying Western North
Carolina history.
Students are divided into groups of 10 and have four classes a day in
which they are exposed to activities that assist them in acquiring computer and
research skills using the American Memory
website (http://memory.loc.gov).
The
classes are varied, introducing students to publishing software which they use
to create a newsletter about a novel they read prior to camp. Students create a PowerPoint presentation
about WNC immigration and how various groups of people came to be in the mountains. They also engage in a printmaking or a clay
activity, either studying the theory that quilts were used as maps for slaves
escaping on the Underground Railroad, or producing authentic Appalachian art
such as face jugs or baskets. In the
fourth class students isolate some of their own DNA (through saliva or hair),
and learn about how law enforcement agents use DNA databases to help identify
criminals. Musical performances and
physical recreation occupy their time in the evening hours. Diversity appreciation and team-building
activities round out the curriculum.
Students
stay in UNCA residence halls supervised by a student-counselor ratio of
5:1. Anticipated enrollment is 40
students for each camp. Children from
several different ethnic/cultural groups are invited to attend. In the past, the participants were recent
immigrants from Mexico or other Latin
American countries, Russia, Moldovia or other former Soviet bloc countries and a
significant number represented the African-Americans, Cherokee and the southern
Appalachian white populations.
By
changing classes throughout the day, having meals on campus and staying in the
dorms, students experience a preview to university life. For further information, contact Dr. Elaine
Fox at (828) 232-5122. You can also visit http://www.aamprogram.org/curriculum/special_projects.aspx
and click on Computer Literacy Program under Special Projects.
Mars Hill College
On May 11th,
the AAM School Librarians Advisory Committee
met at Asheville Middle School.
Eight librarians met with AAM staff members Ed Shearin,
Wendy Fusco, Symantha
Petitt, and AnneMarie
Walter, as well as Mary Lou Daily from the NC Department of Public
Instruction. Mary Lou gave a sneak
preview of the state's
new technology plan. AnneMarie
presented the new Resources for Teachers portal on the newly redesigned LOC website, with a closer look at the Community Center. She included a CD of hotlinks so that the
librarians can easily connect with the Learning Page, American Memory, I Hear
America Singing, and other resources. Special thanks to Rhonda Clevenson, AAM Director of the
Northern Virginia Schools Partnership, for the search guide that she shared at
the recent Directors Meeting. That document was modified and distributed to the
librarians.
The
attendees discussed the knowledge and skills that librarians need to support AAM in the classroom, and brainstormed
to come up with a number of ideas and workshops that the AAM partners could provide.
On May 26
the Asheville Citizen-Times featured Bee Log School in Yancey County.
Shorewood Packing, a printing company in Weaverville, donated the
production of the school's
yearbook. All pictures for the annual were taken
by students using digital cameras earned by teachers in MHC-AAM digital storytelling program.
Congratulations
and thanks to Sandi Robertson who has been MHC-AAM's
Administrative Assistant for the past year-and-a-half. She has recently been promoted to Director of
Safety and Security/Judicial Coordinator for Mars Hill College.
Sandi recently received her master's
degree in criminal justice from East Carolina University.
Elizabeth Lang will be taking over Sandi's AAM responsibilities shortly.
Ed and AnneMarie are continuing to develop the agenda for Digital
Storytelling Level II for upcoming summer workshops. This extends the teachers'
storytelling strategies to include video.
Mars Hill's
AAM program website is located at: http://www.mhc.edu/aamind/.
Montreat College
The
Montreat partner wrapped up the spring semester with nine teachers at Emma
Elementary completing the advanced digital storytelling series and five
teachers participating in the primary source series at Marion Christian Academy. Though the attendance at MCA was
lower than expected, the teachers attending the workshop series loved the LOC website and all the activities the partner staff had them work. They are looking
forward to the fall when they can use the primary source materials in their
classrooms. Also, Montreat AAM staff will be returning to MCA in
the fall to launch a beginner level digital storytelling series.
Preparations
are in process for this year'ssummer Institutes.
Partner staff has been busy with handout materials and last-minute details.
Reminder letters were mailed out last week. Attendance numbers are good. (The registration deadline for
the June Institutes
was May 31st). The
registration deadline for the July 26-28 institute has been extended to June 30th.
Montreat's
AAM program website is located at: http://aam.montreat.edu/.
Western Carolina University
Phase II - Basic Workshop Series
Teachers
from Highlands School (Macon County), Murphy High School (Cherokee County),
Swain High School (Swain County), North Canton Elementary (Haywood County),
Andrews Middle School (Cherokee County), Murphy Middle School (Cherokee
County), and Swain County East Elementary School (Swain County) completed their
Phase II basic workshop series training during the month of May.
Teachers
from Peachtree Elementary School, Hiwassee
Dam Elementary/Middle,Ranger
Elementary/Middle, and Murphy Elementary School, all located in Cherokee County, will participate and complete
their Phase II basic workshop series training within the next two weeks.
Even though
the basic workshop series is standard at this point, activities vary based on
the needs and desires of the teachers.
Phase II - Advanced Workshop Series
Activities
are underway to pilot the first advanced workshop series this summer.
Based on workshop evaluations, a vast majority of basic workshop completed
indicate the desire for advanced training.
Phase III - Teacher Education Faculty
Two basic
workshop series for two teacher education department faculty groups will be
held this July and August. After piloting with these two workshop series,
additional workshops for other faculty will be scheduled.
WCU - Primary Source Activity Ideas
In order to
provide examples of integration of primary sources from the LOC into classroom
activities, WCU is developing an online primary source activity idea
bank. During the Phase II basic workshop series activities, teachers
modify one classroom activity to meet the following expectations:
- The activity must be one that the teacher currently
uses with her/his students.
- The activity must include digital camera utilization by
the teacher and/or by students.
- The activity must use Library of Congress primary
sources in a meaningful way.
This idea
bank will be online by July 1st and will be continually updated as teachers
submit ideas during workshops.
WCU's AAM program website is located at: http://aam.wcu.edu.
California University of Pennsylvania
AAM Workshops
Brownsville School District
On April 29th, nine elementary teachers from Brownsville School District attended two on-site workshops: "Make
It and Take It" and "Integrating
Internet Resources In a Meaningful Way". Each teacher was awarded five Act 48 credit
hours, which count towards AAM basic skills certification.
In
May, nine elementary teachers from Brownsville School District attended two
on-site workshops: "Digital Storytelling and Local History: Oral Histories
and Local Resources". Each teacher
was awarded five Act 48 credit hours. By
completing this workshop, this group of teachers attained 15 hours of AAM instruction and
received certificates. Teachers who
completed basic skills training were awarded USB flash drives for their
participation. Also in May, nine secondary level social studies teachers from Brownsville school district
formed a teacher cohort and attended two AAM workshops: "Introduction to the Library of Congress
Online Resources" and "What Are Primary Resources?" This cohort is scheduled to meet on three
successive Fridays to achieve AAM basic skills
certification. Additionally, seven secondary level social studies teachers from
Brownsville school district also
attended the "Introduction to the Library of Congress Online Resources"
and "What Are Primary Resources?"
This was the second of three scheduled days of AAM instruction for
the Brownsville participants.
Public
Libraries
Local
public librarians and teachers will tour the Library of Congress on October 18
during a visit arranged by AAM staff with the cooperation of Elizabeth Ridgway of the LOC and Melinda Tanner,
District Consultant Librarian for Washington and Greene County Library
Systems. The Library Systems collaborate
through Citizens Library, which is the district center for all libraries in
Washington and Greene counties. AAM staff gave a presentation about AAM and the LOC to the Library Networks
in January 2005. The idea for a bus
visit emerged after the presentation.
Integrating
AAM into California University of Pennsylvania
AAM staff met with Beverly Melenyzer, Professor in the Elementary/Early Childhood
department, to plan an AAM student workshop for her
Development and Organization of School Curriculum graduate level class. AAM staff will design a two-hour
workshop to demonstrate how resources other than textbooks, specifically LOC
online resources, can be used to build curriculum. The workshop will include a technology
component and will require students to develop a curriculum model with content
that adheres to Pennsylvania Academic Standards.
Veterans
Oral Histories Project (VOHP) at California University of Pennsylvania
The VOHP at
California University has commenced through a collaboration with Washington Area School District, where 31 students from the
advanced placement U.S. history classes are preparing to
collect oral histories from local veterans.
AAM developed a 1.5-hour VOHP
orientation program to familiarize students with the project and the
requirements for participating in the project.
The orientation included overviews of the Veterans History Project and
the Veterans Oral Histories Project at California University, the process for conducting oral
histories, reviews of oral histories, the information gathering process, and
the materials submission process.
The VOHP is
intended to demonstrate to school districts how skills learned in AAM workshops are applied to real life
situations. Specifically, this
application shows how oral histories can be used to create and preserve local
histories and the value of collaboration to create and preserve local history
in a broader way.
Other
Byron Holdiman, Digital Preservationist, and Cindy
Speer, AAM Administrative Assistant, compiled
a digital collection of images of university students who graduated in 1955
from California State Teachers College.
The CD includes individual and group images of students from the class
of 1955, who will be honored as 50-year alumni celebrants at the 2005 alumni
weekend celebration. The images were
culled from university yearbooks at Manderino Library
and are formatted into a PowerPoint presentation, which will play on screen as
participants enjoy dinner in the Alumni House.
Afterwards, each celebrant will receive a commemorative copy of the CD,
which includes individual and group images from 1953, 1954, and 1955. This project helps to make AAM highly visible to members of the
university community.
CUP'sAAM program website is located at: http://www.cup.edu/education/aam.
Waynesburg College
Dr. Ann Canning, Assistant Director, has announced
her retirement from Waynesburg College effective August 2005. The College
will sorely miss her contributions. She served as Professor of Education for 14
years before accepting her current position with the AAM project. Her colleagues look
forward to her continued contributions to the project as a workshop consultant.
Dr. Canning completed many creative projects during her tenure with the AAM project and recently the team
wrapped up two teacher-student projects that exemplify that work.
Dr. Canning and Digital
Preservationist Amy Martin worked with Trinity Area teachers Mary Ann Berty, Helen Henry, Steve Sienkiel,
and Tony Voycik and their students to produce a DVD
out of still images and sound clips of the districts rich history. The teachers
and their students engaged in script writing and storyboarding, and they
recorded interviews with senior citizens who graduated from Trinity and current
faculty who once were students. The video was highlighted with LOC images and
sounds using the collections for The Coolidge Era and The Depression Era. Dr.
Canning worked at least once per week over the past two months with the
teachers and students.
The project culminated with a visit
to Waynesburg College on May 24th. Seven
students and the four teachers visited Waynesburg College to put the documents together into
a multi-media presentation focused on the 1920s and 1930s. The Trinity teachers plan to use information
and images from 1940-2005 in the fall to expand the project. On June 1st, the movie was shown at the
District Wide Arts Show. Click to view the movie at: http://wcmedia.waynesburg.edu/displayimage.php?album=200&pos=0.
The WC AAM team also completed a
multi-disciplinary project with Andi Buchanan from
the Central Greene School District. Ms. Buchanan teaches gifted and
talented students in the elementary and middle schools. The project involved
oral history interviews with community members and a photo and description of
an historic artifact. The classroom project involved working with digital
cameras, audio recorders, scanners, and a PowerPoint presentation for each
student report. Each student project
uses LOC images to tie local history to national history. The students learned
to search and properly credit the LOC images.
Amy Martin designed a front page for the project using a picture of a
historic downtown building that still stands today, the Messenger Building. Each window in the building
represents a student project. To see it,
go to the link below at http://aam.waynesburg.edu/windows/windows.html.
Plans for
three summer Institute
programs are underway. The theme for the 2005 Institute
is Visual Teaching Strategies through Digital Storytelling. The session
combines both oral history and digital storytelling. The brochure can be found
at: http://aam.waynesburg.edu/pdfs/SummerInstitute05.pdf.
Additionally, scheduling fall workshops and identifying someone to fill Dr. Canning's
position are underway.
Waynesburg's
AAM program website is located at: http://aam.waynesburg.edu
University of South Carolina Upstate
The
University of South Carolina Upstate
AAM program has been
gearing up for a busy June. Director Dr. Bob Pettis will be leading a group
of 50 teachers from the Spartanburg County, SC schools to Washington, DC for a three-day
tour. The all-expenses-paid trip is being funded by a U.S. history grant that
Spartanburg School District One received. In preparation, Dr. Pettis led
20 teachers through a Level I Digital Storytelling workshop series.
During the trip, the teachers will use their new skills (and new digital
cameras) to capture images for the creation of a digital story.
Projects will be shared at the final workshop session at the end of June.
Dr. Pettis
is also conducting two Level I workshop series in the
Instructional Use of Digital Images. One will be conducted for Spartanburg
School District Five and the other will be for the teachers at the South Carolina School for the Deaf and Blind.
A new
workshop series, Creating Virtual Fieldtrips, will begin on May 31 and
continue through out
the month of June. This 40-hour workshop series will focus on the use of
digital images, video, and sound to create virtual fieldtrips that
will enhance classroom instruction.
USCS's
AAM program website is located at:
http://www.uscupstate.edu/academics/education/adventure_mind.asp.
Northern Virginia Schools Partnership
Teachers in
Northern
Virginia
have a lot to say about the AAM NVA school-based workshop series. The
workshop series is the second-part of a three-part school-based program. There
are 57 schools and programs participating in this program. Through the workshop
series, teachers participate in 10 hours of workshops and are required to
implement at least two learning experiences with students using LOC primary
sources to deepen student understanding of the school district/state
curriculum. Teachers also come together after working with their students to
share their experiences. Here are some
comments from teachers:
I have revised the
units I've worked on as a result of your training, and feel confident that my
kids are getting better instruction and taking more ownership of their own work
as a result of the training you provided.
I learned so much
from the AAM NVA staff and from the other participants. The
workshops inspired me to use primary source research as the basis of my
technology project