It's time once again for the Board Spotlight! This month, learn all about your EENC secretary, Tanya Poole, She is an outreach educational specialist for the Wildlife Resources Commission Pisgah Center.
Tanya started her EE Certification in college and continued to work on it while she taught 4th grade in a public school. She also worked as an education director for a camp in the summer time. Eventually, she landed a regional educator job with the NCWRC. She has a B.S. in Elementary Ed (minor in Biology) and a M.S. in Environmental Education.
The reason EE matters to Tanya has changed over the years. She started out wanting to do environmental education because she loves wildlife and being outdoors. It made her so happy, and she wanted others to experience the same enjoyment and connection to our natural world. As she's gotten older, she's experienced first-hand the health benefits from spending time outdoors, not only for herself, but for both kids and adults as well. At a recent workshop, she saw such an obvious change in everyone's mood when they went outside to play a game. Everyone was energetic and smiling and laughing. Their connection to our natural world is deep rooted and Tanya thinks many of us have strayed too far from that connection. It is our responsibility, she believes, to take care of our natural world, and we can't do that if we don't know about it and have a connection to it. We benefit as well. Clean air, clean water, and abundant and healthy wildlife and plants means better food, better living conditions, and better opportunities to refresh and reinvigorate our bodies and our minds.
Tanya chose to serve on the EENC board because Keith Bamberger is persistent! :) Ha! But seriously, she is proud of the EE network in NC. There are many states who have very little support for EE and Tanya wanted to give back to a community that has supported her and given her so much over the past 20 years. Plus, who can turn down taking notes for 6 hours?!
Tanya is spoiled with two amazing German Shepherds, Maya (1 year) and Greta (6 years) who keep her laughing, active, and covered in hair. She sometimes talks in her sleep and her husband says that when they go camping, and only when they are camping, she has often woken him up and asked him to read her a story. He always says "the end" and then she goes right back to sleep. (She'd like you to know that her husband doesn't normally read stories to her, so she has no idea where this is coming from!) And finally, Tanya's Patronus is a white stallion. Just saying, Shannon. :)