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2025 Awards Ceremony

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EEA Awards

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Ruth Mead

Outstanding Service to EE by an Individual

Attending!!

Jerry – they want you to share a Ruth story as they think that would mean a lot to her.

Camilla & Bree from Phinizy will also share some words about the great work Ruth is doing with the community.

Franke too?

Ruth Mead has been instrumental in developing and implementing environmental programs at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park since she started as a volunteer in the fall of 2000 and was hired as an Environmental Educator in January 2001. She has been a Georgia Adopt-a-Stream (AAS) trainer since 2004 and currently serves on the GA AAS Advisory Board. Ruth is a Georgia Master Naturalist Coordinator and facilitates Phinizy’s annual Georgia Master Naturalist course. She also facilitates other life-long learning courses including Field Ornithology and Forest Communities. Ruth is a curriculum facilitator for Project WET, WOW! The Wonders of Wetlands, Population Education, and Healthy Water Healthy People. Prior to discovering Phinizy Swamp, Ruth received her Bachelor of Science in Forestry from North Carolina State University and worked in forest management for 10 years.

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Georgia 4-H

Outstanding Service to EE by an Organization

Attending - Melanie Biersmith (+all 4H staff) accepting

Georgia 4-H’s residential environmental education programs are such an indelible part of children’s lives in our state – serving 35,000 students every year - that it may be hard to imagine, but things are not like this everywhere. A handful of other states offer 4-H summer camps – but Georgia 4-H’s three-day / two-night school programs, offered at six environmental education centers across the state – are unique in their scope and impact. For almost 46 years, more that a million Georgia students from more than 500 schools have attended these 4-H “classrooms without walls” to participate in academic field studies and immersive nature experiences. And the benefits are far greater than increasing environmental awareness and making science come alive in real world settings. Research shows that kids who connect with nature are more likely to grow up to adopt pro-environmental attitudes and behaviors than those who learn about the environment in a classroom setting. And students who visit Georgia 4-H centers with their teachers discover how to collaborate, solve problems, and become more engaged in learning.

While Wahsega and Fortson 4-H Centers are in other parts of the state and Burton is a couple hours up the coast, we are fortunate that two of the six 4-H environmental education centers are located right here on Jekyll Island, and both of them have contributed to the success of this year’s EEA Conference. Sunday’s kayaking tour will be led by Dawn Zenkert, Coordinator of the Tidelands Center, and Rich Chewning, Director of Camp Jekyll, has loaned us Mattie Anderton, a Program Specialist who will be presenting a conference session on teaching with live animals. Also with us today is EEA Board member and ATEEG Committee Co-Chair Lauren Kuschner, who is the Environmental Education Program Director at Rock Eagle 4-H Center.

Here to accept the award to Georgia 4-H for “Outstanding Service to the Field of Environmental Education by an Organization” is State 4-H Leader Melanie Biersmith. Melanie, a Biologist with a Master’s degree in Science Education, has the distinct honor of having been Facilitator of the Year for Project Wet, Project Wild and Project Learning Tree. She is also a seasoned pro who worked here at Campy Jekyll as Environmental Education Coordinator and Center Director before her current position supervising all the 4-H residential ee centers, managing all 4-H staff training, and coordinating the entire University of Georgia 4-H program, which serves 150,000 Georgia kids a year. Please join me in welcoming Melanie to the stage to accept this award.

Learn more: https://newswire.caes.uga.edu/story/3887/environmental-education.html

and: https://georgia4h.org/about-us/staff/melanie-biersmith/

and: https://georgia4h.org/environmental-education/more-about-environmental-education/

Presenting – Jerry tell a story

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Na’Taki Osborne Jelks, Ph.D.

Pk-16 Formal Educator of the Year 2025

Attending!!

NaTa’ki Osborne Jelks - Teacher of the Year

EEA has recognized West Atlanta Watershed Alliance (WAWA) in the past. Today we recognize the visionary leader behind this grassroots-based organization that manages 335 acres of parks, as well as a 26-acre urban forest and the 50-year-old Outdoor Activity Center. WAWA provides extensive environmental education programming for kids and families; engages the surrounding community in stewardship of their greenspaces and waterways; and fosters environmental justice by advocating for sustainable development, food security, and a seat the decision-making table for people who are directly-impacted by living in environmentally-stressed neighborhoods. From incorporating Afrofuturism into the design of outdoor learning spaces to engaging residents in participatory science projects where they collect data on environmental impacts experienced every day – the work of WAWA is trailblazing in every sense of the word.

But Chairing the Board of WAWA – an organization she co-founded 30 years ago – is only part of Na’Taki’s story. With a background in Chemistry and Civil Engineering, as well as a Master’s degree in Public Health and a PhD specializing in Environmental Health, Na’Taki is uniquely qualified to be an Assistant Professor of Environmental and Health Sciences at Spelman College. There, she engages students in investigating urban environmental health disparities and exploring the roles that race, place, and other factors play in affecting the health of vulnerable populations, as well as ways that low-income neighborhoods and communities of color can empower themselves to reduce local environmental hazards and improve their quality of life. We are honored to have Dr. Na’Taki Osborne Jelks with us today. Please join me in welcoming her as she comes forward to accept EEA’s Teacher of the Year Award for her outstanding contributions to the field of environmental education.

Learn more: https://www.aaas.org/membership/member-spotlight/nataki-osborne-jelks-pushes-environmental-justice-climate-change

and: https://atlanta.capitalbnews.org/wawa-community-spotlight/

Stefan presenting

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Janetta Greenwood

Pk-16 Formal Teacher of the Year - 2024

DO OVER from 2024…Per Karan, Janetta Greenwood will be attending the Conference this year so we will stage some sort of do-over for the award she did not get to accept in person last yearJanetta Greenwood is the Director of Fernbank Science Center, where she runs a district wide facility that serves all DeKalb County students with services ranging from a planetarium and exhibits, semester long courses for high school students and field trip opportunities

She was formerly the K-12 Science Coordinator for Clayton County Public Schools and the President of the Georgia Science Supervisors Association. Her core mission is to ensure that all students have access to authentic science learning experiences that fosters a healthy curiosity about the world. She is a firm believer that all students can do science and works to ensure that all students have the opportunity to engage in real world experiences to see science applied to life. With a mission to increase minority representation in science and STEM, she has designed unique summer opportunities through the lens of SummerT.I.M.E. (Thrive, Inspire, Motivate, Engage) STEM Camps and Advanced Learning for All to replace the traditional remediation summer school model to improve students' overall academic performance through experiential learning.

In addition she has also developed a district-wide initiative to address Environmental Sustainability through problem based learning to address the challenges of obesity, food deserts, climate justice, etc. in order to empower students to protect their community and address current challenges that negatively impacts them. She is a graduate of Xavier University of Louisiana where she obtained both her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology and her Masters of Arts degree in Curriculum and Instruction. She also holds a Specialist degree in Educational Leadership from the University of West Georgia and has completed 30+ hours of course work in Epidemiology. She has over 20 years of experience in Science Education and really loves increasing scientific literacy throughout local communities. Science is in everything we do and is a constant reality in our daily lives therefore it is our responsibility as educators and community leaders to ensure that we prepare children to be stewards of their community and work towards viable opportunities for environmental sustainability and societal advancements in science, technology, engineering and math.

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Georgia Forestry Commission

EEA 2025 Partner of the Year

Attending – Nick Brezel accepting, not aware - Georgia Forestry Commission

Georgia Forestry Commission is a sponsor of today’s conference. You may think of logging when you think Forestry, but Georgia Forestry Commission are also the folks who encourage tree planting across the state and grow seedlings for people to purchase for just pennies a piece.

Through the Making the Shade program, GFC encourages schools to plant trees to lower the temperature on campus and provide natural areas for student investigations. GFC shows landowners how they can restore Georgia’s native habitats by using strategies such as prescribed burns. And they provide technical assistance and grants to encourage urban forestry ranging from street trees to urban food forests. We are particularly excited about the Trees cross Georgi program, which provided a major grant for EEA that supports the conference, our COOL Schoolyards and Georgia Schoolyard Forest Network, the Guidelines for Best Practices in Outdoor Learning project, and professional learning for educators. Here with us today is Nick Brezel,, who will be presenting the Making the Shade presentation after lunch. We would also like to shout out to Seth Hawkins and Lindsaay Newmann, who have both been incredibly supportive partners in this work. Please join us in welcoming Nick to accept this award on behalf of Georgia Forestry Commission.

Images of GFC's Making the Shade program, which funds and supports tree planting on school campuses.

Dennis – presenting, make sure you mention Trees Across GA and thank Seth Hawking & Lindsay Neumann, who work on EEA's grant-funded Georgia Schoolyard Forest Network and CoOL Schoolyards.

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Susan Meyers

Dr. Eugene Odum Lifetime Service Award 2025

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Akiima Price

EE Impact Award 2025

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Graduation

EEA-Certified Environmental Educators

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Kimberly Clements

2025 Certified Environmental Educator

Planning to attend

Kimberly serves as the Lead Educator for the McDuffie Environmental Education Center (MEEC) in Dearing, Georgia, one of seven environmental education centers operated by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Resources Division. At MEEC, we host school field trips, homeschool programs, public outreach events, and offer educational programming for community organizations and businesses. Since taking on this role, her primary focus has been developing an educational fishing program and expanding access to the sport of fishing, introducing it to as many individuals as possible. Additionally, she teaches hunter education, develops new lessons to promote the conservation of Georgia's wildlife and natural resources, and continuously seeks innovative ways to engage students and the public alike. Her latest initiative involves introducing MEEC students to the fascinating world of invertebrates, further enriching their environmental educations experience.

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Kristin Lee

2025 Certified Environmental Educator

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AWARDS

from

EEA Partners�

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GA Project WET Awards

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Liz French

Jefferson City Schools

Project WET Educator of the Year

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Dr. Lacey Huffling

GA Southern University

Project WET Facilitator of the Year

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Project WET Organization of the Year

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$1,000

Conservation Education Grant

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Lyndsay Goeckeritz

Colham Ferry Elementary in Watkinsville

2024-25 Conservation Teacher of the Year

Previously awarded – image of Linda May & Anna Yellin from DNR with Ms. Goeckeritz and her students.

Lyndsay, DNR’s 2024-25 Conservation Teacher of the Year received $1,000 to fund her “Stream Sleuths” project.

The school’s 75 fourth graders are learning about water quality and stream ecology by studying nearby Porters Creek. Students will create packs of leaves and place them in the creek to collect macroinvertebrates. Identification keys will be used to determine organisms found. Because some aquatic species are more sensitive to pollution, water quality index scores can be calculated based on the presence, absence or abundance of species. This data will be reported to Georgia Adopt-a-Stream quarterly. The fourth graders also will produce publications to explain the project to other students and stakeholders. Grant funds were used to buy stream ecology kits and other supplies for the biological assessment.

This annual DNR grant award goes to a kindergarten through fifth-grade public or private school teacher in Georgia who demonstrates exceptional energy and innovation in teaching life sciences.

Funding is provided by The Environmental Resources Network, or TERN, friends group of DNR’s Wildlife Conservation Section.

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Akiima Price

2024-25 IMPACT Award

Previously awarded – image of Linda May & Anna Yellin from DNR with Ms. Goeckeritz and her students.

Lyndsay, DNR’s 2024-25 Conservation Teacher of the Year received $1,000 to fund her “Stream Sleuths” project.

The school’s 75 fourth graders are learning about water quality and stream ecology by studying nearby Porters Creek. Students will create packs of leaves and place them in the creek to collect macroinvertebrates. Identification keys will be used to determine organisms found. Because some aquatic species are more sensitive to pollution, water quality index scores can be calculated based on the presence, absence or abundance of species. This data will be reported to Georgia Adopt-a-Stream quarterly. The fourth graders also will produce publications to explain the project to other students and stakeholders. Grant funds were used to buy stream ecology kits and other supplies for the biological assessment.

This annual DNR grant award goes to a kindergarten through fifth-grade public or private school teacher in Georgia who demonstrates exceptional energy and innovation in teaching life sciences.

Funding is provided by The Environmental Resources Network, or TERN, friends group of DNR’s Wildlife Conservation Section.

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Thank You!