Educator Spotlight: Sarina Dellinger

Sarina with a Big Leaf Magnolia at Hurley Park

Sarina Dellinger, a horticulturalist for the City of Salisbury completed her NC Environmental Education Certification. Sarina is the Public Garden Manager for Elizabeth Holmes Hurley Park, an 18-acre garden park in Salisbury where she maintains the landscape, gardens, and interacts with the public. Sarina says the certification program helped her find a job. “I work within parks and recreation, so I am always pushing to bring environmental education to new and existing programs. I am passionate about native plants, maintaining landscapes in an environmentally friendly way and sharing that knowledge with everyone I meet.”

Sarina says her favorite part of earning her certification was meeting people from across the state with similar interests. “I enjoyed getting out of my comfort zone in the programs and learning more about how environmental education connects to classroom teachers. Her time working with Mary Meyer at the US National Wildlife Center really stood out to her. “She introduced me to the world of hands-on environmental education programs, and it was great to work and learn under her direction. I received most of my teaching hours from working with the whitewater center, and I couldn’t have had a better role model.”

For her community partnership project, Sarina focused on bring multiple environmental education programs to the City of Salisbury including tours of the park and a native plant tour and swap. “It was great to see citizens interested in adding native plants to their landscape.”

When asked if the program changed her approach to teaching, Sarina says the program gave her more confidence. “It helped me to learn from more seasoned educators and gave me a new perspective on what it takes to run a successful program.”