The Texas Association of Environmental Education, TAEE, has honored Brookhaven College’s Ellison Miles Geotechnology Institute with its highest honor at their fall conference in Austin, Oct. 11. The award honors members or groups who have ongoing programs, collaborate with community organizations, and create innovative, sustained and flexible education programs.
“This is a wonderful honor for the EMGI,” said Diane Brownlee, director of the EMGI. “We work hard to offer education and training opportunities for a variety of ages and skill-levels, for professionals and the public alike. To have the TAEE recognize our work is a wonderful validation.”
The EMGI was created in 2001 to promote Earth systems education for teachers, students and professional geoscientists. Teachers throughout the state have access to Earth science education modules such as “More Rocks In Your Head.” Through the “Go Project, ” the EMGI partners with area professionals to bring working geoscientists to classrooms. Geospatial technology training is available for teachers through the Community Mapping Project, CMaP. Brookhaven College School Alliances is a new educational program started this spring, partnering the EMGI with the college’s Outreach Department, to bring career speakers from the Earth sciences to every fifth-grade class in the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District.
For the past four years, the EMGI has had GIS Day activities welcoming representatives from local government agencies and schools, community members and troops from Boy Scouts of America to participate in activities to promote geographic information systems. The facility also hosts seminars focused on nanotechnology and the Barnett Shale. TAEE is an organization of teachers, administrators, college and university faculty, natural resource managers, public agency employees and private citizens who share a common interest in promoting environmental education in Texas. Find additional information at http://taee.org.
