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• Green Step Schools Gathering

  • When
    May 04, 2023
  •  
    5:00 PM - 6:30 PM
  • Location
    Clarendon County Clemson Extension Office, Manning

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  Clarendon County Clemson Extension Office
  21 W Rigby Street
  Manning, SC 29102

  Current and prospective teachers and project mentors are invited to attend this gathering to learn how the Green Step Schools program can bring simple, student-led conservation projects into the classroom. See how students learn, do and teach others about environmental issues while having fun, improving their environment and earning Green Step awards! Attendees will leave with a door prize to jumpstart a school Green Step project. 

  The SC Green Step Schools program encourages and empowers SC educators and students to plan, establish and sustain projects that enhance the environment. The program provides support for student-led conservation projects such as school gardens, wildlife habitat, composting, recycling, upcycling, rain barrels, and more.

  Questions? Contact Green Step Schools program coordinator Jane Hiller at janehiller@gmail.com.

  SC Green Step Schools is supported, in part, by an Environmental Education & Stewardship grant from Dominion Energy.
  

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• Pre-Conference Event: Waddell Mariculture Center Tour

  • When
    June 21, 2023
  •  
    1:30 PM - 3:00 PM
  • Location
    Waddell Mariculture Center, 211 Sawmill Creek Rd, Bluffton, SC 29910

  Register

  
  

  Pre-Conference Event:
  Waddell Mariculture Center Tour
  211 Sawmill Creek Rd. ● Bluffton, SC 29910
  Wednesday, June 21, 2023 ● 1:30-3:00pm

  During this behind-the-scenes tour, Waddell Mariculture Center biologist and manager Erin Levesque will share the history of the Waddell Mariculture Center and will describe ongoing research initiatives. The tour will begin on the bluff of the Colleton River--the source of all of of the Center's saltwater--where participants will view the native plants garden. From there, participants will travel to the ponds where the Center produces cobia and red drum for release along the coast of SC. The Tour will end in the hatchery where participants can see adult cobia, tripletail and southern flounder as well as other species. Levesque will provide information on the Center's stock enhancement research program as well as other ongoing projects.

  Closed-toed shoes are REQUIRED in the hatchery; sandals and flip flops will not be admitted. Sneakers or shoes with a slip-resistant rubber sole are recommended. Bring sunscreen, bug spray, a hat, and sunglasses, as much of the tour will be conducted out-of-doors. 

  About the Tour Guide: Erin Levesque received a B. S. in Marine Science from Eckerd College (1996) and a M. S. in Marine Biology from the College of Charleston (2000) where she completed a thesis on the biology of diamondback terrapins. She has been a Marine Resources Division Biologist (SCDNR) since 2000, beginning with the Inshore Fisheries Research Section working on population dynamics of estuarine finfishes. Currently, Erin works for the Mariculture Research Section at the Waddell Mariculture Center.

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• Pre-Conference Event: History Tour by Queen Quet

  • When
    June 22, 2023
  •  
    10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
  • Location
    Beaufort, SC

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  Pre-Conference Event:
  History Tour by Queen Quet
  Thursday, June 22, 2023 • 10am-Noon
  $10/person; includes lunch

  This walking/driving tour will begin at the Reconstruction Era National Historic Park at 706 Craven St, Beaufort, SC 29902. Queen Quet, Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation, will lead participants on a walking tour of the Harriet Tubman Monument and Tabernacle Baptist Church. 

  From there, participants will drive to the Penn Center at 16 Penn Center Cir E, St Helena Island, SC 29920. From the parking area near Frissell Hall, Queen Quet will guide participants through the campus of the former Penn School, one of the nation’s first schools for formerly enslaved people. The tour will conclude at noon at the St. Helena Branch Library, where a buffet lunch will be served. 

  Those registered for the EEASC annual conference can walk or carpool from the Library to Frissell Hall to join the opening conference session at 1pm. 

  About Queen Quet: Queen Quet Marquetta L. Goodwine is the Chieftess of the Gullah/Geechee Nation. She is a published author, computer scientist, lecturer, mathematician, historian, columnist, preservationist, environmental justice advocate, environmentalist, film consultant, and “The Art-ivist.” She is the founder of the premiere advocacy organization for the continuation of Gullah/Geechee culture, the Gullah/Geechee Sea Island Coalition. Learn more about Queen Quet at www.queenquet.com. 

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• Pre-Conference Event: Take Action SC & Green Step Schools Training

  • When
    June 22, 2023
  •  
    10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
  • Location
    St. Helena Branch - Beaufort County Library

  Register

  
  

  Pre-Conference Event:
  Take Action SC & Green Step Schools Training
  Thursday, June 22, 2023
  10am-Noon • Lunch Provided

  St. Helena Branch - Beaufort County Library
  6355 Jonathan Francis Senior Rd.
  St. Helena Island, SC 29920

  Event Flyer

  Action for a Cleaner Tomorrow is an award-winning, interdisciplinary, activity-based curriculum supplement that provides an introduction to solid waste, recycling and composting to kindergarten through twelfth-grade students. 

  The SC Green Step Schools program encourages and empowers SC educators and students to plan, establish and sustain projects that enhance the environment. The program provides support for student-led conservation projects such as school gardens, wildlife habitat, composting, recycling, upcycling, rain barrels, and more.

  In this workshop we will:
  

  • Recognize 2023 SC Green Step Schools Award Winners
  • Show current and prospective teachers and project mentors how to begin Green Step projects with lessons from the "Action for a Cleaner Tomorrow" curriculum
  • Demonstrate how students can learn, do and teach others about environmental issues while having fun, improving their environment, and earning awards

  Attendees will receive a copy of the new "Action in the Classroom Curriculum" and a door prize to jumpstart a school Green Step project.

  Instructors:
  

  • Mary Margaret Mendenhall works with DHEC’s Office of Recycling as the presenter for the curriculum, Action For A Cleaner Tomorrow. Her passion and enthusiasm for recycling is evident in the way she presents pertinent information to teachers. Mary Margaret graduated from Winthrop University and taught Kindergarten and First Grade for six years. For the past 28 years, she has been traveling South Carolina training teachers on the "Action" curriculum.
  • Jane Hiller is the SC Green Step Schools program coordinator, Environmental Education Association of SC (EEASC) board member and central section director, and winner of the 2020 SC Environmental Awareness Award. Hiller is a former classroom teacher who understands the challenges teachers face as they seek to provide meaningful learning experiences about environmental stewardship within their schools.

  Additional Notes

  Lunch will be provided for all participants registered for this workshop. If you have any questions about the workshop, contact Green Step Schools program coordinator Jane Hiller at janehiller@gmail.com.

  Thursday, June 22, 2023
  10am-Noon • Lunch Provided

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• 2023 Conference: InclusivitEE

  • Start
    June 22, 2023
  •  
    12:00 PM
  • End
    June 24, 2023
  •  
    12:00 PM
  • Location
    Penn Center, Beaufort, SC
  • Spaces left
    53

  Register

  
  

  June 22-24, 2023
  16 Penn Center Circle East
  St Helena Island, SC 29920

  Conference Agenda

  Lodging:
  

  • SpringHill Suites at 2227 Boundary St., Beaufort, SC offers rooms for conference attendees at $169-179/night. A continental breakfast is included. Click here to book your group rate, or call 843-379-1124 and mention the code EEA. 
  • Holiday Inn & Suites at 2225 Boundary St, Beaufort, SC offers rooms for conference attendees at $139/night. To book a room, contact the hotel at (843) 379-3100 and request the EEASC group rate. 

  Meals: Conference registration includes light breakfast/snacks, lunch, and dinner on Friday, June 23. Other meals will be on your own.

  Keynote Speaker: Jory Fleming, Climate Scientist, Education Specialist, and author of How to be Human: An Autistic Man's Guide to Life. Learn more about Jory at www.joryfleming.com. 

  Special Features:

  • "The Wasness of the Is" by Tom Mancke 
  • Project WET Facilitator Meetup + Dinner
  • SC Marine Education Association Symposium 
  • ...and more!

  Pre-Conference Events - REGISTER SEPARATELY:

  • Wednesday, June 21, 1:30-3:00pm: Waddell Mariculture Center Tour
  • Thursday, June 22, 10am-noon: Take Action SC & Green Step Schools Training (includes lunch)
  • Thursday, June 22, 10am-noon: History Tour by Queen Quet ($10 fee; includes lunch)

  Field Trips (Saturday, June 24, 2023):

  Option A: Hunting Island (9am-Noon): Join rangers Mike Walker and Rachel Dunn for a hike through the maritime forest, over the lagoon, and out onto the boneyard beach to explore one of the most dynamic barrier islands on the east coast. Along the way, learn about Hunting Island's legendary erosion and ways humans have attempted to deal with the issue.

  The program will cover 3 miles (round trip) in 3 hours. Wear clothes and shoes to get wet and muddy. Bring sunscreen, drinking water, and insect repellant. A towel and change of clothes are recommended if you want to help pull the seine net in the lagoon. Restrooms are available at the Nature Center/fishing pier. 

  Meet at the Hunting Island Nature Center parking lot at the end of Hwy. 21, just before the bridge to Fripp Island. 

  Option B: Port Royal Sound Foundation Tour (10am-Noon): Join Port Royal Sound Foundation Naturalist/Education Coordinator Jessica Kochman for a tour of the Maritime Center and a nature hike through a maritime forest and salt marsh. The program will cover 1.5 miles (round trip).

  Meet at the Port Royal Sound Foundation, 310 Okatie Highway, Okatie, SC 29909. 

  Plus lots of hands-on professional development and networking opportunities for teachers and informal educators. Don't miss this event!

  Conference Agenda

  Add a conference t-shirt to your registration for $20, or purchase your shirt separately in the EEASC Store (click here). T-shirt orders must be placed by May 25.
  *same color t-shirt, variations due to photo lighting

  
  

  Many thanks to our 2023 EEASC Conference Sponsors!

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