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Feature- From Woods And Waters, At ECO Camp Paths Lead Students To Higher Learning
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Punctuated by the occasional popped wheelie, and prerequisite group photo shoot at every tumbling waterfall, the five-mile bicycle trip took the 20 students down a shade-dappled path to a little fun—and a lot more learning. (Photo: Environmental Education Specialist Ian Kindle unlocks mysteries of the stone formation that once was a canal lock alongside the Lehigh River.)
On this day in late July, Lehigh Gorge State Park served as yet another daily classroom without walls. The Industrial Revolution came to life as young campers scrambled amid remains of a canal lock and heard how a former waterway helped fuel an emerging nation. The first-time park visitors heard so much more that day:
How the coal that once was king took a deadly toll on the Lehigh River rolling before them, and how that waterway since has been reclaimed to now offer fishing, boating and dozens of scenic vistas;
How the 4,548-acre state park snaking through Carbon and Luzerne counties was preserved and protected by the unified efforts of local citizens, conservancies and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources;
How each year sees more bicyclists, hikers, boaters and anglers drawn to the clean river and the steep, hardwood-covered slopes that shade and protect it.
Welcome to Day 6 of the ninth annual Environmental Careers Outdoors (ECO) Camp, a highly successful educational effort that has steered hundreds of young people to the woods and waters around them. Assertiveness, confidence, an unquenchable thirst for answers, these are the character traits the students’ mentors have been polishing over the course of a one-week camp stay. Throw in the ability to make friends with others from all walks of life.
Then, add in a willingness to try anything new outdoors and you have just a few basic elements of that highly successful DCNR effort known as ECO Camp.
Are they working? Visit 16-year-old Rachel Bailey at Shippensburg Area High School where she’s beginning her junior year. She’s ready to tackle new challenges, overcome old fears, she says, thanks to a newly instilled confidence found at ECO Camp:
“I was really, really scared to go canoeing the one day, but after the instruction and being out there on Beltzville Lake with everyone, I was able to overcome my fears,” Rachel recalled. “Yep, after that one day, I like being out on the water a lot more now.”
The young lady, who now aspires to careers as a naturalist, or teaching environmental science at the high school level, says the camp stay helped shape her career goals and honed social skills for the upcoming social melting pot that is college life.
“Always, I knew I wanted some type of career in the environmental field, but camp really helped me focus—not only on my true interests, but also the many career opportunities that are out there,” Rachel said. “There is so much to be said for mixing it up with young people with all types of different backgrounds. Every part of the state is different, and it’s so interesting to learn what they see and experience just by talking.
“I have to say for the very first time ever in my life, I experienced the pleasure of being molded into group that was just so comfortable with each other and easygoing.”
And that, says DCNR Secretary John Quigley is exactly the intent.
“For nine summers now, ECO Camp has been most successful at honing an awareness of the outdoors and the variety of related careers available to young people,” said Secretary Quigley. “With interest comes respect and a quest for learning, and with that education comes a willingness to protect and preserve our natural world.”
Surrounded by the natural beauty that is the PA Wilds, Tom Yanak of St. Marys had that outdoors interest fueled at a very young age. Still, the young man sought career direction as he prepared to enter his senior year at Elk County Catholic High School:
“I know I plan to go on for schooling for a career in forestry or construction,” Tom said, “and I think ECO Camp helped narrow my idea of what I want to do after high school. My favorite camp activity was the forestry program and wildlife presentations.”
And what was that one “take-away” thought that stayed with him after the final daily excursion from the Kirby Episcopal House and Chapel in Glen Summit, Luzerne County?
“I learned that there are a lot of different kinds of people, and just because you’re not a country person does not mean you can’t be interested in the outdoors. The staff at Kirby House and others from DCNR are very nice, knowledgeable people, and they never stopped trying to develop that interest.”
For DCNR, entrusted with overseeing our state’s park and forestlands, the ECO Camp effort is a natural:
“These young campers always have represented a very unique pool of intelligence, spirit and commitment to environmental improvement,” Secretary Quigley said. “The camp is a worthy investment in both their future and that of our natural resources, and DCNR staffers proudly support it.”
Confidence is infectious at ECO Camp. So, too, is encouragement to pursue choices. That’s what the camps have offered no less than 350 young men and women since 2002 as they bring students together with the men and women who start their days as foresters, biologists, park managers, wildlife and waterways officers and geologists.
Sometimes, campers like Alex Wall, 16, are inclined to come back—and serve as camp student leaders. A junior at Eastern Lebanon County High School, Alex said two years at ECO Camp fueled his quest for a future career in viticulture or microbiology.
“Attending camp gave me so many different options and knowledge of other careers,” Alex said. “Also, it’s always an interesting experience just talking to people from the opposite end of the state who do things other things than what I do, yet still enjoy many of the same things I do.”
Parting thought? “I truly hope DCNR always will have funding to continue offering ECO Camp, to continue to offering the same experiences I enjoyed to other young people across the state.”
Always, camp emphasis is on drawing diverse groups of student from Pennsylvania’s largest cities and its smallest villages. Inquisitive minds and a love of nature are the catalysts that consistently meld students of different ethnic and cultural enthusiastic about exploring more of our state parks and learning more about the environment of Pennsylvania.
The ultimate goal of each camp is to introduce 20 to 25 students to conservation and environmental careers, and encourage their pursuit. From stream sampling of fish and aquatic life, to forestry skills, daily activities are planned to get students out in the field to meet and observe environmental professionals.
It’s also an excellent place to have fun. Some campers immerse themselves in scouring rocky ledges for fossils at Beltzville State Park; others savor the adrenalin rush of Lehigh Gorge’s whitewater. Usually, area state parks supply the venues, their natural resources, and the excitement.
Throughout their week, campers have the chance to ask plenty of questions and are exposed to a wide range of career experiences, including water quality assessments, geology field studies, and overnight camping experiences. There are daily opportunities to meet and talk with conservation professionals about career opportunities.
Offered without charge, instruction and activities are overseen by specialists and officials of DCNR’s bureaus of state parks, forestry, and topographic and geologic survey. Selected students usually are from grades 10 through 12.
After the camps, attendees will have a chance to seek internships, and mentoring and job-shadowing positions, and return as future camp leaders.
For ECO Camp enrollment applications and information, send email to: ECO_Camp@state.pa.us or write to ECO Camp Coordinator, Bureau of State Parks, Environmental Education and Information Division, P.O. Box 8551, Harrisburg, PA 17105-8551; or telephone 717-783-4356.
(Reprinted from the DCNR Resource online newsletter. More ECO Camp photos available online.)
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9/6/2010 |
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