KAEE 2024 Conference

The Narrative 4 story exchange is a strategy for using reciprocal storytelling, deep listening, and perspective taking to foster curiosity, empathy, and meaningful connections. Storytellers share their stories with a partner and actively listen while their partner shares their story. The group gathers together and each participant retells their partner’s story in the first person. This session informs educators through experience how they can use narrative storytelling to advance the cause of environmental education by helping students see themselves in the story of their place and time.

Narrative 4 teacher-facilitators around the world use this method to provoke curiosity and drive inquiry-based learning in their classrooms in any subject or interdisciplinary effort. N4 also connects partner schools and facilitators with each other in our global network, so interested educators can build intentional collaboration across all distances and divides to bring diverse learning opportunities to their students, through the human face of story. Participants can expect to leave with a strong feeling of community and connection to their fellow educators, as well as a humanities-flavored way to bring science education to all learners.

Logistics:

• Pre-registration is required during conference registration at kaee.org/conference.

Have you ever wondered how to identify trees when there are no leaves? Join this educational hike to learn some basic winter tree identification skills such as bark patterns, bud characteristics, and branching patterns. Be sure to dress for the weather and wear comfortable, supportive shoes.

Logistics:

• Pre-registration is required during conference registration at kaee.org/conference.
• Meet at the Trailhead on MSU Campus

Developed in coordination with early childhood experts and educators, Getting Little Feet Wet is designed to help educators of young children teach about water in fun, age-appropriate ways. This book contains 11 interactive, hands-on activities for young learners to explore different aspects of water—from water properties to water sounds. Each activity offers both Pre-K and K-2 options and is correlated to educational standards.

Trees & Me: Activities for Exploring Nature with Young Children includes 12 activities and more than 250 learning experiences for families and teachers to connect children ages 1–6 to nature, with a focus on trees. Through fun, indoor and outdoor activities, toddlers and preschoolers explore nature through their senses, experience trees throughout the seasons, and connect with their community.

Participants who attend this morning workshop will receive a copy of Getting Little Feet Wet and Trees & Me

Logistics:

• Pre-registration is required during conference registration at kaee.org/conference.

This newly envisioned guide, Foundations in Water Education, from Project WET contains 12 of their most popular activities that provide a foundation to build water literacy in students. The activities and experiences address all of the Principles of Water Literacy and include topics such as properties of water, watersheds, water systems, groundwater, ecology, water use, and management of water resources.

Project WET's Climate, Water and Resilience guide will help educators teach middle and high school aged students about climate and climate change using interactive, objective, science-based experiences that students will enjoy and learn through.

Participants who attend this morning workshop will receive a copy of Foundations in Water Education and Cliamte, Water and Resilience.

Logistics:

• Pre-registration is required during conference registration at kaee.org/conference.

Like many Kentucky communities, large parts of Morehead are built in a floodplain, which means Morehead has to contend with regular flooding. On this walking tour, we will observe and discuss 4 different types of flood mitigation controls that are used for City of Morehead and how these flood controls are moving in the direction of a more harmonious relationship with Triplett Creek.

Logistics:

• Pre-registration is required during conference registration at kaee.org/conference.
• Meet at the ADUC Second Street entrance at 8:30 am.

Please meet at the Second Street Entrance of the Adron Doran University Center at 8:30 am. From there, carpooling will be arranged to visit a couple of different sites within the city limits. There will be walking in damp and brushy areas so please wear pants and boots or shoes that can get wet.

Unfortunately, the weather is looking quite rainy on Thursday morning. Please be weather aware; dress and plan accordingly. Pack an umbrella and rain jacket just in case.

An affinity group links attendees with a common purpose, identity, or interest. Each affinity group will have its first meeting in the location listed below. A second or third group meeting and location is left at the discretion of the leader and group.

• BIPOC — Room 310
• Young Professionals — Room 311
• Early Childhood — Room 321
• Classroom Teachers — Room 322
• LGBTQ+ — Room 325
• Organizational Leaders — Pre-Fab Area

KAEE Welcome - 12:00 - 12:15 pm
Keynote - 12:15 pm - 1:00 pm
Questions -1:00 pm - 1:15 pm

Crystal Wilkinson, a recent fellowship recipient of the Academy of American Poets, is the award-winning author of Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts, a culinary memoir; Perfect Black; a collection of poems; and three works of fiction—The Birds of Opulence, Water Street and Blackberries, Blackberries.

She is the recipient of an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Poetry, an O. Henry Prize, a USA Artists Fellowship, and an Ernest J. Gaines Prize for Literary Excellence. Named Kentucky’s Poet Laureate from 2021 to 2023, she has received recognition from the Yaddo Foundation, Hedgebrook, The Vermont Studio Center for the Arts, The Hermitage Foundation and others. Her short stories, poems and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies including most recently in The Atlantic, The Kenyon Review, STORY, Agni Literary Journal, Emergence, Oxford American and Southern Cultures. She currently teaches at the University of Kentucky where she is Bush-Holbrook Professor in Creative Writing.

Learn more at https://www.kaee.org/post/conference-wilkinson

Is your EE program stuck? Do you want to expand your programming and increase your participation but are having trouble attracting new audiences? In this session we will use The Parklands of Floyds Fork S.E.E.D. program as a case study for program growth and capacity building.

The Outdoor Classroom program at The Parklands of Floyds Fork began in 2014 serving students throughout the Louisville, KY area. However, The Parklands quickly realized they were only serving schools that were able to afford the field trip fee. Schools who could not afford this fee were generally not participating. Upon further investigation of this issue, The Parklands found that both the field trip fee and the cost of bus transportation were the primary factors preventing students in Title 1 schools from visiting The Parklands for a field trip.

To address these barriers, The Parklands started the S.E.E.D. (Stewardship, Education, Exploration, Discovery) program. Students in the S.E.E.D. program attend Title 1 schools in the Louisville area and receive at least four hands-on science programs throughout the school year at The Parklands and in their schools. The Parklands waives all program fees and pays for bus transportation to and from the park. The S.E.E.D. program started in 2016 serving 900 students and is on track to serve 11,500 students in 2024.

This program was born by directly addressing the barriers to program participation in the Louisville community. The growth of this program did not happen overnight and required effective grant writing, planning and the cultivating of deep partnerships between The Parklands and the public school system. During this session, we hope to share the story of S.E.E.D. growth with other EE programs that are looking to expand their audience, grow their program capacity, and incorporate new audiences.

Activities
1. Story of S.E.E.D.- presenting the successes, failures, and challenges during program growth
2. Small group discussion - participants work in small groups to identify barriers to program participation in their own programs and potential ideas to break down those barriers.
3. Group presentation and Q and A- small groups will present their ideas and receive feedback from the group.

Learning Objectives
1. Participants will identify barriers to program participation for their audience- including things like transportation, program cost, and access to healthy food.
2. Participants will brainstorm ideas on how to eliminate the identified barriers to program participation through dialogue and discussion between peers.
3. Through coaching, participants will form ideas on how to break down the identified barriers to take back to their organization.

Kentucky is home to at least sixteen species of bats, many of which are considered endangered, threatened, or of special concern. Researchers are racing to understand changes in population and habitat ranges, which provides both K-12 and non formal educators with an opportunity to help collect valuable data from our own neighborhoods. In this session, participants will learn how bioacoustics are being used to study bats and how you can engage your community in acoustic bat monitoring projects. Participants will get experience using high-frequency microphones and smartphone apps to collect and analyze bat calls and discus opportunities for your organization to develop a citizen science project.

Let's talk climate change education, outreach, and communication in this interactive session presented by UK Extension and the Kentucky Climate Consortium. As environmental educators, we have both the great challenge and great opportunity to communicate with our audiences about climate change, and to join them in taking hope-filled action steps to help mitigate extreme effects and risks.

In 2023, the UK Soil & Water Extension team and the Kentucky Climate Consortium administered a state-wide survey of Extension personnel aimed at better understanding the gaps and goals identified by these professionals regarding climate change communication. Although the survey had an Extension specific audience, the findings and gap-filling resources being developed, can be applied to any audience. Session presenters will share survey results, overview ways they are working to fill identified gaps, and get YOUR valuable feedback to see how the university can better support all Kentuckians as we work toward building a more resilient future.

Walk away with new climate education resources and communication strategies aimed at increased climate awareness, engagement, and action.

Red Oaks Forest School has developed a model of nature-based programming that addresses important themes in EE such as STEM learning, community science, advocacy, diversity, climate, and more from early childhood through adolescents. A key component of this programming has been the collaboration with community partners to act as hosts and provide access to diverse landscapes across Central and Eastern Kentucky. In this session, Red Oaks will spotlight programs that feature various stages of childhood development, partners, and curriculum insights we have developed that can be adaptable to a variety of settings. Red Oaks will provide specific examples of program goals, tools, outcomes, and suggestions on how to adapt these programs to a traditional school model if desired. Nature-immersion is a core value of Red Oaks so while ideas and takeaways are adaptable to a variety of school settings, they do require access to the outdoors in some way. A sneak peek into the programs Red Oaks will discuss include STEM and community science for grades k-6, building resilience while learning about historical and current BIPOC leaders in Kentucky for grades 2-5, and environmental advocacy in adolescents.

Each person is unique, as are their interests. However, the landscape of EE is dominated by science-based learning—a subject that doesn’t appeal to everyone. In this workshop, we will discuss the value of interdisciplinary studies in EE programming and practice (through case studies and provided mock lessons) incorporating not just science, but history, math, literacy, the arts, and physical/mental health and wellbeing. While this session will be geared primarily towards youth programming, there can be important take-aways for programs of any demographic. Participants are welcome to bring their own program guides and lesson plans as well.

Kentucky is home to at least sixteen species of bats, many of which are considered endangered, threatened, or of special concern. Researchers are racing to understand changes in population and habitat ranges, which provides both K-12 and non formal educators with an opportunity to help collect valuable data from our own neighborhoods. In this session, participants will learn how bioacoustics are being used to study bats and how you can engage your community in acoustic bat monitoring projects. Participants will get experience using high-frequency microphones and smartphone apps to collect and analyze bat calls and discus opportunities for your organization to develop a citizen science project.

This poster session will discuss the research project, “Anthropogenic Litter in Urban Waterways: An Analysis of Litter, Urbanization, and the Emerging Role of Citizen Science in Beargrass Creek, Louisville, KY” and explore the significant environmental education opportunities presented through the results of the data. The findings support the incredible necessity of integrating community engagement, sustainability education, and effective technology together to reconnect neighborhoods with their urban waterways and restore these streams- so that all have equal access to healthy environments and outdoor recreation across the city.

To put research into action, the project addressed the ever-growing presence and persistence of anthropogenic litter (AL) in urban waterways. AL has been studied in marine environments, but research gaps exist in riverine ecosystems. Most of the AL that reaches the Earth’s oceans is carried by urban rivers, so understanding the relationship between these waterways and AL is critical in effectively fighting AL accumulation, especially for legacy plastic pollutants. This study explored fifteen sites throughout Beargrass Creek and recorded the quantity and type of AL present throughout the summer and fall of 2023. The National Geographic Marine Debris Tracker app was employed to successfully accomplish this analysis. This is a powerful tool designed to engage citizens with the streams running through their neighborhoods. The results of this project revealed the interconnected relationship between urbanization and AL accumulation in waterways, and advocates for the crucial change possible through participatory science.

The conclusions found from the project present endless potential for education in practice and exploratory activities that support students’ holistic growth. The human awareness and perception of a stream has an extraordinary impact on AL pollution and the overall health of the waterway. The more communities can engage with their local creeks and streams, the greater environmental change becomes possible. The study revealed the strengths of using technology like the National Geographic Marine Debris Tracker. This app makes data collection much more accessible to any level of scientific experience. It generates data tables and figures, collects geographic coordinates for spatial analysis, and creates an easy system for tracking the quantity and type of AL observed.

The purpose of this poster session is to give educators the background knowledge to plan and carry out effective real-world learning to encourage a sustainable future. Educators will be introduced to the National Geographic Marine Debris Tracker, a potentially powerful tool for classrooms. With the use of the tracker, thematic investigations could begin as simply as recording trash in the school site/school’s watershed area. Through teacher led instruction, students can develop and implement an action project in which every student can participate. The project can grow in complexity with the development of students over grade levels, as well as involving parents, civic organizations, and community leaders providing holistic learning experiences. This technological aid gives educators the platform to teach about the history of stream alteration, aquatic habitat health, land use/ land cover interactions within watersheds- in addition to giving students the opportunity to observe AL firsthand in their local streams, developing investigation skills, inclusion, teamwork, and engaging with the waterways in positive and meaningful ways that promote sustainability practices for the future.

The Kentucky Green School (KGS) program provides students in grades K - 12 opportunities to form Green Teams with teachers, school staff, and community members to investigate the sustainability of their school buildings and grounds. Based on these investigations, Green Teams analyze their findings and take action toward improvement. In essence, the KGS program gives students opportunities to practice the kind of collaborative problem solving needed to conserve energy and natural resources across the Commonwealth.
In this presentation we highlight some successful action projects undertaken by KGS Green Teams over the past year, with an emphasis on roles played by community partners to ensure successful outcomes. Examples come from each of the five thematic KGS investigation areas: Energy, School Environment (indoors), School Site (outdoors), Waste & Recycling, and Water.
We hope those who join us for this session will gain an appreciation for the power of KY Green Schools to improve environmental education not only for students but also for their families and partner organizations, as we all learn with and from each other.

At 21 years old, I spearheaded the development of an innovative curriculum for 5th grade teachers across Coastal Central California. This initiative, designed in collaboration with Earth Echo International and the Northern Chumash Tribal Council, aims to deepen students' understanding of Indigenous tribes, national marine sanctuaries, and the rich biodiversity of their local ocean ecosystems.

Our project marks a significant effort to enhance knowledge of the world's first tribally nominated marine sanctuary from an early age. This curriculum is designed to shift the educational focus from the predominantly Eurocentric narratives taught in 4th grade about California Missions and Native American tribes, towards a more comprehensive and respectful exploration of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary.

The curriculum is structured around three main pillars: Chumash tribal knowledge and traditions, the biodiversity and biomechanics of local ocean ecosystems, and practical stewardship practices. Our goal is to furnish students with a comprehensive understanding of their local environment intertwined with the cultural heritage that has nurtured it through the ages. This approach not only honors and revitalizes tribal knowledge but also prepares students to be proactive environmental stewards.

During the session, I will detail the curriculum development process, highlighting our collaborative efforts with tribal leaders and environmental scientists to ensure both cultural sensitivity and scientific accuracy. I will discuss the strategies employed to seamlessly integrate this enriched content into the existing educational frameworks, making it both accessible and engaging for young learners.

Moreover, the session will emphasize the broader implications of our work, discussing how each individual can contribute to enhancing our next generation's environmental education. Attendees will leave with valuable insights into how traditional ecological knowledge can be integrated into modern educational systems, thereby nurturing a generation of well-informed and motivated environmental stewards. We will also explore practical ways for attendees to adapt these principles to their own educational settings, thus extending the influence and impact of this vital educational initiative.

In spring 2024, students from Rockcastle County High School’s Gifted and Talented program and Eastern Kentucky University’s (EKU) Center for Environmental Education partnered on the students-teaching-students program "Environmental Days at Maywoods." This initiative involved EKU college students working closely with Rockcastle County High School students to deliver environmental education programs to 1st-3rd grade students from Madison and Rockcastle County elementary schools. The program provided significant leadership opportunities for both college and high school students and increased the potential for inspiring future environmental educators by engaging participants as active learners. The initiative also allowed high school students to interact directly with college students, fostering peer mentorship and collaboration. The success of this initiative highlights the value of partnerships between higher education and K-12 schools in increasing opportunities for active environmental education experiences. Moving forward, we aim to expand such collaborations to provide more opportunities for students-teaching-students initiatives in Kentucky, including an environmental education leadership camp for college and high school students. This session will provide an overview and summary of our experiences but will primarily serve as an interactive forum. Participants will share experiences, engage in brainstorming activities, and discuss opportunities for similar collaborative initiatives in K-12 and higher education settings across the state.

Come learn how to bring America's best idea to your classroom or school! OutSCIder Classroom (https://www.youtube.com/@OutSCIderClassroom) is a web-based video series that teaches students science concepts and environmental stewardship through videos and paired instructional materials. Our goal is to Impact student science learning outcomes, increase student interest in STEM careers, inspire the next generation of scientists and conservationists. Participants will partake in a OutSCIder inquiry-based lesson and learn how to access instructional materials for implementation in the classroom.

Environmental stewardship with opportunities for community involvement abound, but urban, community-based stewardship projects also experience high failure rates. Labor requirements, lack of appropriate experience, resources, and lack of long-term planning leads to low quality implementation and lack of continued interest. This session will describe two successful environmental stewardship projects with different levels of community involvement. Participants will be asked to describe their own experiences, and presenters will provide their formula for improving environmental stewardship projects.

The Frankfort/Franklin County Joint Task Force on Invasives was formed in 2021 with a goal to develop a structured invasive species plan and framework for regular community and agency activity on the issue. This community led initiative has resulted in an approved city plan, mapping of county-wide priority areas, fundraising, and planning for paid positions with partnering agencies to address task force needs.

Olmsted Parks Conservancy in partnership with Kentucky State University began a brush management demonstration trail in 2022 in Louisville, KY to address citizen and agency questions about whether using small ruminant livestock (goats) can be an efficient, sustainable habitat management tool compared to traditional, herbicide-based methods. Preliminary results and the methods used to address community interest have generated additional support toward expanding natural areas management while also addressing community concerns.

Successful, long-term environmental stewardship requires experience, evidence-based methods, and a structured process. Sustainable community engagement requires persistent efforts, immersive opportunities, and a focus on community needs. Although these two can be at odds, they can be effectively combined with a structured approach.

The Envirothon competition is a natural resource competition for high school students. This outdoor, hands-on contest lets students work in teams to learn more about Kentucky's forests, wildlife, water, and soils, as well as a current issue, which changes every year. Recent current issues have included renewable energy, climate changes, creating resources from waste, and water resource management. This session will include information about starting an Envirothon team and the kinds of things the students learn in this program.

Envirothon events are held outdoors each spring in locations across the state. Students will have their hands in the soil while answering questions about the soil's characteristics and quality. They will be feeling pelts and holding skulls as they answer questions about native species, habitat needs, and conservation practices. They will be in the woods answering questions about tree species, pests, and the economic value of the trees. They will be sampling water or looking at macroinvertebrates while answering questions about watersheds, nutrients, indicator species, and best management practices.

Since 2004, over 280 environmental educators have built their knowledge of environmental education best practices through Kentucky’s Professional Environmental Educator Certification course. One of only six courses in the nation accredited by the North American Association for Environmental Education, this immersive series of four workshops provides participants with a thorough understanding of the best practices of environmental education, a cohort of fellow educators to network with, and dozens of hands-on learning experiences to use in their own work. Participants who complete the course requirements receive the designation, "Certified Professional Environmental Educator". KEEC staff will give a brief overview of the course content and structure, then answer questions about the course.

This presentation will outline the Nature Explorer Program: A supplemental environmental education program for homeschool families provided by extension staff at Kentucky State University’s Environmental Education and Research Center (EERC). During this 10 month program, home school groups from Franklin and surrounding counties are able to visit Kentucky State’s EERC on a biweekly basis to engage in collaborative and experiential opportunities in Kentucky’s natural areas. This informational session will allow participants to walk through the process of building their own long-term, nature-focused homeschool program from start to finish, including but not limited to: curriculum building, community engagement, and assessments.

Forest schooling is an emerging educational approach that takes place primarily outdoors in natural settings (Boileau & Dabaha, 2020). Forest Schooling has gained popularity recently due to its numerous benefits for children's physical, emotional, and cognitive development (NAAEE, 2020). However, there is limited research on how children perceive forest schooling and the impact it has on their learning experiences (Bradley & Male, 2017). This session aims to explore children's perceptions of forest schooling, a crucial aspect that could significantly influence their well-being and development, through the following questions;
1. How do young children without disabilities perceive Forest School and the type of play they engage in within Forest School?
2. How do young children with disabilities perceive Forest School and the type of play they engage in within Forest School?
The research questions are addressed through a qualitative case study children aged 3-6 (n=10). The participants attend a Forest School situated in a Nature Park and are subjects as well active contributors to the research. The delivery of Forest School occurs in sessions ranging from 2 to 4 days a week for 3 hours over several months. The study utilizes observations, artifact collection, and interviews with the children. Observation data was collected through video recording and artifact collection using photo stories. Semi-structured interviews about forest school and play were conducted with the children at three different time points, the beginning of the program, middle of the program, and end of the program. Children were shown photos they took to help deepen the conversation. Photo stories provide the children spaces for reflection and sharing perspectives and experiences. (Varvantakis & Nolas, 2021). Truong (2024) used photo stories to find that children enjoyed painted rocks, mud and climbing rocks while in nature at a Canadian nature preserve.

My study adds to the prior research that has been conducted using parents and equators perceptions of forest schooling (Olliff-Cooper et al., 2021) by focusing on children’s perspectives. The session offers a unique opportunity to explore the perceptions of preschool-aged students in forest schools, shedding light on the impact of nature-based learning on young children's development.

Probes are a way of better understanding people’s metacognition (internal thinking). Page Keeley created several books based on research of misconceptions found in science. Her ideas were used to create three different probes to elicit student understanding about karst and caves. Three checklist probes about karst and cave misconceptions were created and tested on future elementary teachers. In addition, students write explanations about their reasoning for what items they checked. Understanding their reasoning helps to improve teaching. This idea can be recreated in other places where nonformal education occurs. This poster will discuss how to create probes to assess learning at places where nonformal learning occurs.

Nonformal education sites offer enriching educational experiences for students. The McDowell Farm School (MFS) exemplifies this by providing students with immersive encounters in a working farm environment. Despite their educational value, many nonformal education sites lack sufficient evidence of their impact. This session presents a research study aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of MFS programs on visiting students. By utilizing pre-visit/post-visit surveys and interviews, this study provides valuable insights into program efficacy and offers transferable evaluation methods for similar nonformal education programs. This session will explore the study’s methodology, findings, and implications to contribute to a deeper understanding of program evaluation in nonformal education contexts. This will be done using results and survey responses taken from the visit to the MFS that document the program’s impact on participants’ knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. By showcasing the positive impact of MFS on students and providing transferable evaluation methods, the session advances our understanding of the value of experiential learning beyond traditional educational settings.
The research study utilized the EE21 survey as part of the program evaluation to document program impacts of the MPS on visiting students. The EE21 is available for other EE program providers to use. Researchers will share how the survey can be validated and used for program evaluations of conference attendees allowing them to include this valuable tool in their own program evaluations.

Brian has a Ph.D. and M.S. in Biology from Florida State University and a B.S. in Evolution and Ecology from the University of California, Davis. With some 20 years of experience working as an aquatic ecologist, Brian brings a whole-systems approach to his position as the Licking River Basin Coordinator, working with the stakeholders, scientists, volunteers, government entities, engineers, and communities, to improve and care for Kentucky waterways.

Many communities are reengaging and reinvesting in their local waterways. In this informative presentation, I will discuss the role of Basin Coordinators, our liaison activities between local communities and the state, and specifically, the Maysville Limestone Creek revitalization efforts.

Johnson Elementary School's Eco Club, in collaboration with our school's administration, is excited to propose a session for the upcoming annual conference titled "Empowering Students to Lead Sustainable Practices." Our proposal aligns with the conference theme of Forging Paths for Environmental Education: Community, Connections, and Creativity and specifically addresses the strands of Education in Practice and Community Engagement.

At Johnson Elementary School, our Eco Club members have taken the lead in implementing various sustainability initiatives within our school and community. These initiatives include whole-school recycling, Terra cycling, composting, electrical energy conservation, water conservation efforts, and the development and maintenance of an outdoor classroom. Through these efforts, we have not only transformed our school into the first US Department of Education Green Ribbon School in Northern Kentucky but have also created a culture of environmental stewardship and synergy among our students and staff.

In our proposed session, we will share the successes, challenges, and lessons learned from our journey towards sustainability. We will discuss how student leadership has been instrumental in driving change within our school, fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility among our students. Additionally, we will highlight our plans to grow food for our cafeteria and enhance our nature trail with native pollinator-friendly plant species.

Our session will provide practical insights and strategies for educators and environmental advocates looking to empower students to lead sustainable practices in their schools and communities. We believe that our experience at Johnson Elementary School serves as a valuable case study for promoting environmental education, equity, and inclusion, as well as fostering community engagement and capacity building.

We are excited about the opportunity to share our story and hopefully inspire others to act towards a more sustainable future within their own buildings. We look forward to contributing to the conference program and engaging with fellow educators and environmental advocates. Thank you for considering our proposal.

In spring 2024, students from Rockcastle County High School’s Gifted and Talented program and Eastern Kentucky University’s (EKU) Center for Environmental Education partnered on the students-teaching-students program "Environmental Days at Maywoods." This initiative involved EKU college students working closely with Rockcastle County High School students to deliver environmental education programs to 1st-3rd grade students from Madison and Rockcastle County elementary schools. The program provided significant leadership opportunities for both college and high school students and increased the potential for inspiring future environmental educators by engaging participants as active learners. The initiative also allowed high school students to interact directly with college students, fostering peer mentorship and collaboration. The success of this initiative highlights the value of partnerships between higher education and K-12 schools in increasing opportunities for active environmental education experiences. Moving forward, we aim to expand such collaborations to provide more opportunities for students-teaching-students initiatives in Kentucky, including an environmental education leadership camp for college and high school students. This session will provide an overview and summary of our experiences but will primarily serve as an interactive forum. Participants will share experiences, engage in brainstorming activities, and discuss opportunities for similar collaborative initiatives in K-12 and higher education settings across the state.

This presentation will outline the Nature Explorer Program: A supplemental environmental education program for homeschool families provided by extension staff at Kentucky State University’s Environmental Education and Research Center (EERC). During this 10 month program, home school groups from Franklin and surrounding counties are able to visit Kentucky State’s EERC on a biweekly basis to engage in collaborative and experiential opportunities in Kentucky’s natural areas. This informational session will allow participants to walk through the process of building their own long-term, nature-focused homeschool program from start to finish, including but not limited to: curriculum building, community engagement, and assessments.

THURSDAY EVENING ACTIVITIES
Sponsored by Far Off Cows Dental Ceramics
Join us for the most exciting part of the conference! Enjoy an amazing dinner, great music, networking opportunities, a silent and live auction, and the unmissable Dash for Cash.

LIVE AUCTION
Don’t miss our live auction following dinner. Bid on our unique, locally-made artwork, educational materials, books, vacation getaways, and more. With so many great items and fun people in one place, it’s bound to be a good time!

DASH FOR CASH
Easily the most entertaining three minutes in EE—the annual Dash for Cash. KAEE Staff and Conference Co-Chairs face off to raise the most cash for KAEE. Whoever collects the least cash during the Thursday night dash will have a bucket of ice water poured on their head during the conference closing. Bring your dollars and decide which team you plan to support.

MUSIC
Entertainment will be provided by Jeri Howell & Nat Colten. Born and raised in Frankfort, Howell and Colten grew up on bluegrass, Appalachian, country, classical, and world musical traditions, and they sow seeds of each into their own lyrics and melodies to create a signature Folk/Americana sound. With Howell on guitar and Colten playing banjo, their vocals pour out like bourbon and Ale-8—a sweet burn, mixed well and meant to be.