Professional Development

In the ever-changing world and field of environmental education, we understand how valuable continuing education is to our members. This is why PAEE is excited and proud to announce our newly formed Professional Development Committee. This committee is devoted to bringing PAEE members meaningful, engaging and relevant monthly professional development sessions at no cost to PAEE members. Topics will vary by month and will be aligned to the NAAEE Guidelines for Excellence for Professional Development of Environmental Educators.

The PAEE Professional Development Annual Themes are: Best Practices in Teaching, Assessment and Evaluation, Promoting Inclusivity, Research in an Evolving EE Field, and Best Business Practices. They are an adaptation of the NAAEE professional development framework themes for environmental educators and were chosen to collectively represent significant realms of environmental education.

We hope this Committee’s work helps you to expand your knowledge, make connections and reflect and assess your practices. Check this page for updates as information on speakers and registration becomes available.

Professional Development Opportunities

JANUARY 30, 2023 - (Virtual) Entomology Never Sleeps: The Curious Lives of Winter-active Insects, 12 - 1:00 PM

Christmas Bird Counts are a well-known winter tradition, but what about Christmas Bug Counts? Some insects thrive in wintery conditions and can only be found during this otherwise sleepy time of year. Andrea Kautz, an entomologist at Powdermill Nature Reserve, will talk about these fascinating creatures, how to find them, and the adaptations they have evolved for such a frigid way of life.
Free for PAEE Members, $5 for nonmembers

APRIL 5, 2023 - NAAEE Community Engagement: Guidelines for Excellence @Stroud Water Research Center, 1:00 - 4:00 PM

* Limited travel stipends are available, contact Matt for more information *

PAEE will help support those who complete the Train-the-Trainer workshop to lead NAAEE Guidelines for Excellence workshops in their region and around the state. This is part of PAEE’s efforts to increase EE professional development opportunities for environmental educators. We would love to have at least one person from each of the 6 state regions be able to lead these and similar workshops regularly each year.

As environmental educators, we work in and with communities ranging from workplace teams to neighborhood or regional partnerships. During this hands-on workshop, participants will learn the structure and development process of the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) Community Engagement: Guidelines for Excellence and explore key characteristics and tools to apply in their own context. Learn more about the guidelines.

Workshop Objectives

Become familiar with the NAAEE Community Engagement Guidelines and how you can use them to improve the quality of environmental education practice.
Identify tools for fostering community engagement strategies in your home organizations and contexts.
Provide opportunities for participants to network and learn from each other.

Questions? Please contact Tara Muenz.
$10 & ACT 48 is available

MAY 2, 2023 - (Virtual) MWEEs and How Schools and EE Providers Can Partner
4:00 - 5:00 PM

Join this session for an introduction to Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences (MWEEs) and their place in the new PA academic standards in science, technology, engineering, environmental literacy, and sustainability (STEELS). Facilitators will then discuss how schools and EE providers can collaborate to fully implement MWEEs.

Free for PAEE Members, $5 for nonmembers

May 2, 2023 - (Allegheny Land Trust will host this Virtual Presentation) - NAAEE Community Engagement: Guidelines for Excellence
6:00 - 8:00 PM

Become familiar with the NAAEE Community Engagement Guidelines and how you can use them to improve the quality of environmental education practice.
Identify tools for fostering community engagement strategies in your home organizations and contexts.
Provide opportunities for participants to network and learn from each other.

Are you interested in participating in the planning of PAEE Professional Developments? Would you like to be considered as a speaker for the next round of the Professional Development Series? Please email the Professional Development Committee (Matt or Julie) with your ideas!