One
of the most important goals of any Audubon Society chapter is to foster environmental
education. Members of
the Mesilla Valley Audubon Society are firmly committed to teaching children
and adults the importance of appreciating nature, preserving our natural resources
and protecting natural habitats. Our MVAS educators work very hard to fulfill
this mission and are having a very positive effect on the growth of environmental
awareness in the Las Cruces area. Conservation and concern for wildlife are especially
important in an environment as fragile as our Chihuahuan Desert. Through our
education programs, Mesilla Valley Audubon Society feels that it is building
greater public awareness of our surroundings and of the value of preserving natural
areas. We are gratified to know that we are helping to increase our community's
respect for and appreciation of nature. These are the highlights of MVAS's ongoing
educational projects:
1. Audubon Adventures: Our most successful school program is Audubon Adventures, which is currently made available through MVAS funding to 91 fourth grade classrooms in the south central New Mexico area, including Las Cruces, White Sands, Alamogordo, and Truth or Consequences. Lorraine Schulte and her committee work diligently every year to supply this natural history curriculum to our school children. MVAS also actively supports and contributes to the newly created New Mexico supplement to Audubon Adventures.
2. Lorraine Schulte Excellence in Teaching
Award: Each spring, MVAS presents the Lorraine Schulte Excellence
in Teaching Award to a local teacher, grades K-12, who exemplifies
excellence
in
environmental
education.
Donna Wood chairs the Award Committee. Click
here to learn about our 2004 winner
3. Federal Junior
Duck Stamp Program and Scholarship Competition: Another school
project in which MVAS is involved is the Federal Junior Duck Stamp Program
and
Scholarship
Competition. Guy Powers is our chapter
coordinator.
This program promotes "conservation through the arts" for children
K-12, by sponsoring contests for budding artists to submit their own artwork
of waterfowl in hopes of it being chosen as the illustration for the annual
Junior Federal Duck Stamp. MVAS members have made presentations to art
teachers and their classes to explain the competition and introduce the
students to
local waterfowl species and their wetland habitats. Local school participation
is growing each year. Our southern New Mexico region did extremely well
in the judging this year in early April. Almost one third of the 100 prizes
awarded statewide were given to students from Las Cruces and southern New
Mexico! Moreover, the state's top prize, the "Best of Show",
was won by Raymond Flores, a senior at Gadsden High School, located just
south of
Las Cruces. Raymond's picture of a wood duck will compete against the top
winners from the other 49 states for the honor of becoming the illustration
for the Junior Duck Stamp. Click here to see Ray's picture and the the other
winners from the Las Cruces area.
4. Basic Bird Watching Course: Do
little brown birds all look alike? Don't know a falcon from a hawk? Wonder
which binoculars to buy? Want to discover our local birding hotspots? Come
join experienced birders from the Mesilla Valley Audubon Society this October,
who will teach participating adults the fundamentals of bird watching. Topics
will
include bird identification, viewing equipment, birding books, local bird
watching locations, and backyard birding. There will be four, Tuesday evening
classroom sessions complete with slides of Southwestern birds, as well
as two Saturday field trips (10/23 & 10/30, 8am to noon) in the local area
and an all-day Saturday trip (11/6) to the Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge.
Experience the fun of this popular hobby and learn about our fascinating,
southern New Mexico birds!
Maximum # in class: 15
Presented by: Mesilla Valley Audubon Society in conjunction with the Dona Ana
Branch Community College.
Cost: $40 - Contact DABCC Community Education (505-527-7527) for registration
When: 10/19/2004-11/9/2004 - Tues. - 7:00-9:00pm
10/23/2004-11/6/2004 - Sat. Field Trips
Where: DABCC East Mesa Campus - Conference Room 205
5. Elementary Education: In the fulfillment of our educational mission, MVAS realizes how important it is to reach as many young people as possible early in their education, especially at the elementary school level. Wendy Davis and Donna Wood have for several years taught an 8 week, after-school enrichment course at Hillrise Elementary School. These courses cover a variety of topics that teach the children about nature, conservation, and the environment. This year's course was titled "Our Fine Feathered Friends". The first and second graders learned about feathers, eggs, beaks and food, nests, flying, habitats and bird feeders. Wendy and Donna hope that the knowledge and fun they share through pictures, stories and crafts will help to instill a love and respect for nature in their young students. Click here to see pictures. The Davis-Wood team also presented a special Earth Day project in 13 classrooms at Hermosa Heights Elementary School. The program combined a lesson about Earth Day and the importance of preserving the environment with the making of picture collages with environmental messages. Click here to see pictures.
6. Programs on natural history: From the time the chapter
was founded in 1978, MVAS members have visited school classrooms, civic
organizations, scout groups and retirement
facilities to give programs on a variety of natural history topics.
This year has
been no exception. Talks were given about hummingbirds, endangered
species and
local birds. Last November, Lorraine Schulte spoke about bird
migration at the
Las Cruces Museum of Natural History. We hope this will be the start
of a series of joint programs with the museum.
7. Community Events: MVAS often has the opportunity
to talk to and educate the general public at special community events.
This year the chapter participated
in the
International
Migratory Bird Day at White Sands National Monument and at the Earth
Day celebration at New Mexico State University.
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Webmaster: Rob Davis
For more information, contact
mvas@cybermesa.com