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AEE eNews Update February 2009
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Rocky Mountain
Conference a Great Sucess!
From Beth Walker, Rocky Mountain Region Council,
Student Representative
The Rocky Mountain Regional (RMR) Conference was a huge success,
drawing more than 160 participants to Albuquerque, New Mexico. Keynote speaker
Doug Fine, author of Farewell My Subaru, kept us laughing as he shared
his experiences of making a Ford F-250 run on vegetable oil, raising goats,
going solar and working toward a more sustainable future through personal
initiatives. Conference participants flexed their networking muscles by
illustrating all of their networks with a color-coded string system called the
AEE Regional Networking Wheel (pictured). We auctioned off loads of great gear,
including a trip to Costa Rica's Rainforest Adventure Center, and raised over
$2000 for the future RMR conferences and events. We hope to continue to increase
our membership networks as we plan for next year's conference. Thank you to
everyone on the regional council for their hard work, to Colorado Mountain
College for sponsoring Doug Fine's talk, and to all of our vendors, presenters
and service crew. Finally, we send a very special thank you to Sarah
Councell, our fearless conference
convenor.
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Sargent Center for Outdoor Education is
Closing
Boston University (BU) is closing Sargent Center for Outdoor Education
(SCOE) on August 31, 2009 due to financial concerns. BU has historically
provided a subsidy to operate the Center since taking it over in 1930. With
money tight, the President has decided to eliminate a number of outlying
academic centers that are not fully self-funded to focus on undergraduate
education and research in the City of Boston. At this point, there are no plans
to sell the land, and proposals are being sought to operate the facility under
different terms. Read
more.
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Last Call for REAP
The 5th Annual Research & Evaluation of Adventure Programming (REAP)
Symposium will be taking place March 18 - 20, 2009, at the Embassy Suites Hotel
Atlanta, Georgia.
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Longest Standing Current Member of AEE
Naming the longest standing current member was a fun project and I heard
from many well-respected elders and got to have coffee with one of AEE's
founders, Ron Gager. With his help, it was determined that the
following people share the honor of longest standing current member, thus
creating a "Hall of Fame."
Congratulations to the contest winner Dennis Call with VisionQuest in Pennsylvania. He
was sent a small gift for correctly identifying Dan Garvey as one of the longest
standing current members. Another respondent also selected Dan Garvey, but did
not give their name.
Pictured in the photo (taken by Maria Snyder and provided by Dan
Garvey) are Dan Campbell, Rick Medrick, John Rhoades, Ron Gager, and Tracy
Leiweke. Look for a more comprenhensive "History of AEE" in the future.
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AEE
Thanks All Regional Conference Conveners
Your hard work is much appreciated!
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Member Profile
SafetyEd
Long time AEE Accreditation Council member, Deb Ajango, has run her own
business, SafetyEd, out of Eagle River, Alaska, for the past 6 years. SafetyEd
provides teaching, training and consulting.
"I find it ironic," said Deb, "that outdoor educators' embrace
experiential education, but oftentimes turn around and lecture to staff. Some
lecture is necessary, but if that is all there is, only a quarter of the
information taught will be retained." Read
more.
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Member
Profile
Girls Inc. of Metro Denver
Girls Inc. of Metro Denver is a
nonprofit organization that inspires girls to be Strong, Smart, and Bold. We
provide after-school programs, all-day summer programs and outreach programs to
girls ages 6 to 19. In Fiscal Year 2009, approximately 300 girls ages 6-18 will
enroll in Girls Inc. programs at our West Denver Center.
Our curriculum is designed with a focus on hands-on activities so that the
girls can learn about: Economic Literacy by opening a checking account; Math
and Science by touring facilities such as Lockheed Martin; Health and Sexuality
by cooking healthy snacks; Careers and Life Planning by shadowing professionals
in our community and much more! Read
more.
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First Wilderness Therapy Conference in
Israel
From Altman Israel
On February 11-12, 2009, 200 youth workers, social workers and field
instructors participated in the first ever wilderness therapy conference to be
held in Israel. The conference was initiated by 'Lotan's Way', an Israeli program
for youth at risk. See a short Youtube video.
My wife, Jennifer Davis-Berman, and I were recently honored to be keynote
speakers at Israel's first wilderness therapy conference. Convened in the Negev
Desert, in a Bedouin-style enclave, the conference featured an impressive array
of topics including desert expeditionary programs, farming for inner-city youth
and skills like making rope from palm fronds.
Held in honor of the
memory of Lieutenant Lotan Slevin, who died while rescuing wounded soldiers, the
conference was sponsored by Elem/Youth in Distress, an Israeli
social service agency.
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Announcements from Partners
Outdoor Prolink
Outdoor Prolink now has over 45 high-quality brands making their
products available at significant discounts to AEE members. New brands include
Big Agnes, La Sportiva, and Darn Tough. Spring items are now available at www.OutdoorProlink.com or instructions on
joining
Project Adventure
Attention programs, schools and agencies that work with at risk or
vulnerable populations. Have you ever asked yourself, how can I...
- Reduce
behavior incidents?
- Increase academic motivation and responsibility?
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Maintain students in the least restrictive environment?
- Reduce suspension,
expulsion and drop out rates?
- Improve instruction?
Take part in a FREE webinar to learn about Project Adventure's Behavior
Management Through Adventure methodology. For more information email Beth
Wonson. In the subject line write: BMTA Teleconference and you will be
emailed instructions.
Facilitator: Beth Wonson, Director of Advancement, Project
Adventure and Board Member, National Alternative Education Association;
Experts: Carol James, Lead Consultant, Stillwater Residential
Treatment Facility and Harrisburg Public Schools; Paul Smith, Dir. Operational
Systems Stillwater Residential Treatment Facility; Daniel Francis, MA, Ed. S.,
NCSP, Certified School Psychologist, Harrisburg Public Schools.
Date: March 5, 2009. Time: 3:00 p.m. - 3:55
p.m. Eastern
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Survey
Contest of the Month
Which book sold the most copies in the AEE eStore during the month of
February?
The answer and a winner will be announced in the next eNews update.
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Announcements from AEE
Groups
Women's Professional Group
(WPG)
The WPG is looking for submissions to
our upcoming newsletter in May. We welcome poems, stories, blurbs about regional
conferences, research summaries---anything folks would like to share with WPG
members. If interested contact Anja Whittington.
OFA members will be presenting at the regional conferences.
- Tom Lindblade will be representing the Board and presenting a program called
"Africa Overland" at the Heartland Conference.
- Jed Williamson will be at the Northeast conference and will offer three
workshops. 1) AEE Accreditation Program, 2) Sterling College - a working Kurt
Hahn/John Dewey Model, and 3) Accidents in Outdoor Pursuits.
- JoAnna Allen will attend the Mid-Atlantic gathering and will present
"Experiential Education Inside - of Prisons."
- Tom "Raccoon" Smith is going to the Mid-South conference and
will present "Raccoon Circles" and "Beyond Dewey and Hahn." He'll stop in
Madison to pick up Laurie Frank. Watch for his special preconference in Montreal
that will train others to use Raccoon Circles in their own small
groups.
AEE Awards recognize individuals and organizations for their contributions
to experiential education. The AEE awards rely on nominations from the AEE
membership.
IF you know...
- a practitioner who demonstrates consistently high levels of performance in
working directly with students or clients;
- a teacher who demonstrates an active passion for experiential education
principles;
- a creative individual who has designed, created and/or produced experiential
education resources;
- individuals who provide servant leadership to AEE and its members (up to
three awards are given per year);
- an organization that maintains innovative and outstanding programming at
consistently high standards and demonstrates consistent commitment to and
support for the work of AEE...
...please NOMINATE that individual or organization! Remember our
international members and organizations!
Consult the AEE website for information
regarding each award and the process of making a nomination. The awards
information is located in the About AEE drop down menu. You can also contact Elaine
Hatala or Rob Rubendall if you have any questions regarding the nomination
process.
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Member
Announcements
Journal of Experiential Education (JEE)
Be on the lookout for the newest edition of the JEE--31.3--which shipped last week,
and so should be hitting member and subscriber mailboxes by mid-March. This
issue contains the abstracts from the 2008 Symposium on Experiential Education
Research, as well as four regular articles and two book reviews. There is no
better experiential education journal than the JEE, and the 3rd edition of every
volume is a perennial favorite among researchers, as it features the most recent
SEER abstracts, providing a rare overview of the state of EE research.
TeamWork and TeamPlay with Jim
Cain
Presented by Missouri Association of Extension
4-H Youth Workers. Columbia MO - March 23, St. Louis MO - March 24$100.
Contact Donald Nicholson, Phone: (573)
769-2177
Topics: Teambuilding activities; theory; sequencing
information; needs assessment; processing & debriefing
Human Kinetics
This year we've been building on our line of outdoor and adventure
education resources and textbooks. Note two new titles, Technical Skills for
Adventure Programming, edited by Mark Wagstaff and Aram Attarian, and
Teaching Adventure Education Theory, edited by Bob Stremba and
Christian Bisson.
Outdoor and Adventure Resources
brochure.
As a special offer to AEE members, we're offering 20% off any order of
$50.00 or more. Just mention code C526 when calling or enter code C526 as your
mail code when ordering online. This offer is valid until April 30, 2009.
If you have any questions or want a print brochure e-mail me at HeatherC@hkusa.com.
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NEWS
Update
Outward Bound for
Senators?
Politico.com
Andie Coller, January 6, 2009
Top Five: Favorite TED Clips
(Technology, Entertainment, Design)
Topics Education Three
Sticks
February 4, 2009
Leaf and STEM
Environmental Dad
Blog
Josh Thomas, February 9, 2009
Get Children and Families
Outside!
The Children & Nature Network
February 23,
2009
Hanahau'oli School Given $1 Million
The Honolulu Advertiser
Loren Moreno, February 23, 2009
Experiential Learning
Thoughts
from New Albany Blog
Roderick G. W. Chu, February 25, 2009
Service Learning is Experiential
Learning
Daily Commercial
February 25, 2009
Injuries and illnesses in Wilderness
Athletes
Paul Auerbach, M.D., February 11,
2009
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Membership Update January 2009
New Organizational & Institutional Members
Birmingham Public Schools-ELC, Beverly Hills, MI
Bytown Brigantine Inc., Ottawa,
Quebec, Canada
Mountain Trail Outdoor School,
Hendersonville, NC
New Vision Wilderness, Milwaukee, WI
Pine River Institute, Toronto,
Ontario, Canada
University of NM Children's Psychiatric Hospital,
Albuquerque, NM
Outward Bound Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Renewing Organizational &
Institutional Members
Aldo Leopold High School, Silver
City, NM
Allendale Association, Lake Villa,
IL
American Youth Foundation, Center
Tuftonboro, NH
Arkansas 4H Center, Little Rock,
AR
Camp Stevens, Julian, CA
Chicago
Adventure Therapy, Chicago, IL
Extreme Adventures of Vermont,
Chester, VT
Ferris
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Copyright © 2007-2012 Association for Experiential Education.
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