| May 21, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Photos available upon request
Explore Pennsylvania’s Wild Side
This time of year, as we begin to hear the birds singing, frogs croaking, and witness the first blossoms of spring, it is as if our senses awaken from a long winter nap. Satisfy your senses by getting outdoors and exploring your wild backyard with the Pennsylvania Institute for Conservation Education (PICE). PICE programs emphasize hands-on discovery and promote informed and intimate contact with the natural world. Whether for academic, professional, or personal growth, Institute programs are open to all audiences. “The idea is to get people outdoors. Not only to the tourism hotspots in Pennsylvania, but exploring their backyards and communities. Most of us just don’t take the time to do that,” said Executive Director Michele Richards. “PICE provides an opportunity for people to take time out of their schedule and get out into the natural world.”
Since its inception as a non-profit organization in 2002, the Pennsylvania Institute for Conservation Education has excelled in its mission to stimulate knowledge of, interest in, and an appreciation of natural history by providing extraordinary experiential field studies within Pennsylvania and beyond. PICE demonstrates to its varied audiences the value of getting outdoors, learning in small groups, and celebrating a sense of place through science, exploration, literature and the arts. “Everything we do is inspired by nature,” explained Richards. “We try to consider all disciplines and interests, because that’s the great thing about nature: it knows no boundaries.”
Professional scientists, field naturalists, ecologists, geologists, botanists, poets, photographers, educators, artists and writers bring their expertise to the instruction of these programs. According to Jim Brett, an instructor as well as the Institute’s President and co-founder, PICE instructors are individuals “who are profoundly in tune with the natural world; who love it; who are able to enthusiastically present what may seem as the simplest of encounters into a whole new world of discovery. To rekindle in their charges what may have been lost over the years, or, in fact, never been really thought about.”
Susan Munch, a professional botanist, instructs the Ferns & Mosses field seminar. “What makes PICE programs so special for me,” said Munch, “is the level of interest and enthusiasm of the participants.” Like the instructors, program participants come from varied backgrounds; they are students, teachers, environmental educators, conservation professionals, seniors, and others. According to secondary science teacher Kevin McCloskey, who has participated in two PICE natural history seminars, “PICE programs have given me the opportunity to network and meet professional peers in similar fields and other fields, broadening my professional contacts for ideas and other opportunities.” He notes that PICE programs differ from other programs “because of the amount of hands-on time spent investigating, exploring, demonstrating, and practicing the science at hand.”
“The programs are top notch!” McCloskey adds. “The programs, presenters, facilities, and people really make these programs both educational and personal. I would give PICE programs my highest recommendation.”
To learn more about PICE’s 2008 programs and schedule visit www.piceweb.org or contact PICE at 570-458-5227; info AT piceweb.org. Tuition scholarships are available. Graduate credits in Education are available for select programs and ACT 48 credit hours are offered for all field seminars and retreats.
Contact: Michele Richards
Pennsylvania Institute for Conservation Education
1D Teaberry Road; Bloomsburg, PA 17815
(570) 458-5227 phone/fax; naturecorp AT enter.net
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