Educator Spotlight: Krista Brinchek

Krista Brinchek, a science specialist at Abbotts Creek Elementary School, has completed her NC Environmental Education Certification. Krista serves more than 800 students each year! “I developed my curriculum through an environmental lens to teach the NC Science Standards and connect students to the natural world.”

When asked about her favorite part of earning her certification, Krista says the program profoundly shaped her growth as an educator. "It has deepened my knowledge of North Carolina's diverse flora, fauna, and natural systems while connecting me with an incredible network of educators across the state. Through these relationships, I have collaborated with environmental education professionals, gained valuable instructional best practices and strengthened my ability to create engaging, meaningful learning experiences that connect students with the natural world."

When asked what certification experience stands out for her, she says it was the workshops with the NC Museum of Natural Sciences. “Through the certification process I was able to attend numerous workshops with the NC Museum of Natural Sciences which not only connected me with educators from across the state but gave me a deep dive into content knowledge about our unique flora and fauna in our state. My favorite experience was attending the museums Educators of Excellence Magical Migrations trip to Mexico!”

For her community partnership project, Krista spearheaded a nature-inspired professional development workshop in Cullowhee at the NC Center for the Advancement of Teaching. “The workshop brought together a diverse team of environmental education professionals to design and deliver meaningful learning experiences for formal educators. Through this collaborative effort, teachers gained hands-on strategies, field-based experiences, and connections to local environmental resources that empowered them to integrate environmental literacy and outdoor learning into their classrooms with confidence.”

When asked how the program led to changes in her approach to teaching others, Krista says it was the skill building. “This program and the workshops attended gave me so many new skills to incorporate hands-on learning within the classroom. The instructional workshops provided ready to implement lessons that not only taught environmental education concepts but directly connected with science standards.”

 

 

Educator Spotlight: Tiffany Huffman

Tiffany Huffman, Park Superintendent at Bakers Mountain Park in Catawba County, has completed her NC Environmental Education Certification. Tiffany says she wears a lot of hats in her role. “Our staff does everything that is required to keep our parks running: maintenance, cleaning restrooms, trail work, giving directions, and more. My favorite part of the job is doing educational programming to teach others about the environment around them. The most interesting fun fact about me and my work is that I am one of four licensed hummingbird banders in the state. I enjoy all things outdoors- hiking, kayaking, walking, etc. as well as reading.”

When asked about her favorite part of earning her certification, Tiffany says she enjoyed the entire program. “My favorite part was going to workshops and learning from other educators and being able to bring back activities and ideas for my own work.”

Tiffany says the part that stands out to her is the NC Forest Service’s  week-long “Investigating Your Environment” workshop. “I often said, ‘It’s like summer camp but for adults’ because the workshop was such a fun week. The workshop gave me a ton of resources and ideas for activities that I can do with students and adults to enhance programming.”

For her community partnership project, Tiffany transformed an existing trail into a “Nature Exploration Trail.” She installed signs that can be changed out seasonally to convey an environmental message to elementary-aged students and their families. “These signs all center around a central theme and have an activity at each station to engage students. This project will provide an incentive for families and individuals to explore the trail more and learn more about their environment. It also provides a resource for teachers at the elementary school next door to use to get students outdoors without the cost of a field trip.”

When asked if the certification program led to any changes in her approach to teaching, she says it demonstrated the importance of engaging participants when teaching and the techniques for effectively capturing your audience’s attention. “ I could see the difference in how engaged participants were when I started using hands-on activities. I also learned a lot from other educators on how to do this effectively so that students were engaged, focused on the task and not distracting others. This program has taught me the importance of giving all the facts to students and participants and letting them come to their own conclusions rather than just telling them what to think.”

 

Educator Spotlight: Matt Robinson

Matt Robinson, program coordinator and camp director for Beech Mountain Parks and Recreation has completed his NC Environmental Education Certification.

Matt says his favorite part of earning his certification was the networking and friends he met in the program. “As a small parks and recreation division, being able to work with other larger organizations such as NC State Parks and Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation has been rewarding. Not only are we making great partnerships, but we are showing our citizens that we are up to snuff in our own education programs.”

When asked what certification experience stood out for Matt, he says it was the Project Learning Tree workshop. “I had the pleasure of co-hosting a Project Learning Tree course with new friends at the Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation. It stands out to me because I enjoyed working as a team to complete a common goal.”

For his community partnership project, Matt started a volunteer trail guide program on Beech Mountain. “This program has training sessions based on, flora and fauna, first aid, Beech Mountain history and environmental concerns. The guides lead hikes every other week from May to October. This has been a great program because it brings local knowledge to the town's citizens. As a result, we have better communication with local residents and more civic engagement. The people want more environmental programming now more than ever!”

Matt says as a result of the program he uses interactive games when teaching summer camp programs.  “I've learned that having fun learning with games and intrinsic questions retain better with the kids than anything.” He also says the program changed how he views environmental issues. “I think a lot more about the local ecology and financial impacts.” Matt says a good example of this connection is the hemlock woolly adelgid, an aphid-like bug that is responsible for decline of eastern and Carolina hemlock trees.  “People come to Beech Mountain for the natural beauty and healthy environment and that is connected to our economy since we are a tourism-based town.”

Educator Spotlight - Emily Behr

Emily Behr, a youth education program manager at the NC Botanical Garden, recently completed her NC Environmental Education Certification. Emily says the program allowed her to change careers. “I lead a team designing and delivering nature-based education programs for kids, from summer camps to preschool programs to school field trips. Outside of work, I co-lead a native pollinator garden restoration project at the Haw River State Natural Area, and I am on the board of Directors for EENC (Environmental Educators of North Carolina) and Friends of the Lower Haw State Natural Area. I am also a part of the NC Master Naturalist program.”

Emily says her favorite part of earning her certification was the opportunity to reflect on her role as an educator and to network. “I appreciated having a structured framework to reflect on my own growth as an educator, rather than just accumulating experience without stepping back to think through it and grow. I also really appreciated the chance to connect with other environmental educators across the state."

When asked about an experience in the program that stands out for her, she says it was the Methods of Teaching Environmental Education Workshop at Grandfather Mountain. “It helped affirm that this was the career path I wanted to pursue. I met great people and learned so much. It felt so aligned and really ignited a passion in me to follow this work and certification.”

For her community partnership project, Emily led a native pollinator garden restoration at the Haw River State Natural Area’s 15-501 access point in  partnership with the Friends of the Lower Haw River State Natural Area and NC Master Naturalists volunteers. “The project restored degraded habitat into a functioning pollinator corridor while giving volunteers hands-on ecological restoration experience — turning an overrun green space into an active site for community stewardship and environmental learning. It is a work in progress that is going to take years to complete, but one that I feel proud to be a part of. It will be an asset to the community a we integrate interpretive signage, beautiful native landscape and hands-on experiences.”

Emily says the program changed her approach to teaching. “The certification pushed me to be more intentional about outcomes first — starting with what knowledge, connection to nature or conservation mindset I want a program to build and designing backward from there. It also made me more deliberate about building in reflection and evaluation, both for my own programs and for the staff I supervise. Lastly, I learned how important unstructured moments are. They allow kids to be scientists themselves, embracing curiosity, wonder and play.”

She also says the program changed the way she views environmental issues. “I feel empowered. The certification process reinforced that environmental education is about building relationships between people and place that make conservation feel personal and applicable. It shifted how I think about impact: I feel that I now have tools to not only make an impact in my personal life, but also to encourage the next generation of environmental stewards.”