Leave No Trace Training for MN credits

As promised, Leave No Trace Training will be offered through Jefferson County Adult Education this spring. The class date is March 22 with the overnight to be announced at that time. Clark Dixon will be leading the session.

To register, go to the Jefferson County school website for Adult and Community Ed. On the left margin there are links to the Winter Catalog. That will bring up the entire booklet. The training is listed on page 11. There is a registration form in the booklet.

You can also find the booklet around the Jefferson County area, particularly in the schools.

If you have any questions about this course, email Clark Dixonconsultants@aol.com

2011 Class dates

For those continuing with the Master Naturalist classes this year, the TENTATIVE list of dates for 2011 is as follows. You can use this to determine when the classes you need to complete the course will be offered.


Core classes are required for you to graduate. Elective hours can be substituted hour for hour with any approved elective, but it is easier for you to plan on the ones offered.

March 19-20 Cacapon Orientation, General Ecology, Names/Classification/Identification and Soils (elective), Nature Interpretation/Teaching and Geology (elective)

April 30 Shepherd University Birds and Wildflowers/Weeds

May 21 NCTC Terrestrial Habitats and Recording/Sharing and Preserving What You Know

June 11 Cool Spring Farm Reptiles/Amphibians, Beavers (elective), Mammals

July 16 Cacapon Aquatic Habitats

August 6 NCTC Slime Molds (elective), Insects/Spiders & Such

Sept 10 Cool Spring Farm Wetland Habitats and Habitat Improvement

Oct 1 Yankauer Trees/Shrubs/Woody Wines, Service Project and Elective (elective)

Nov 5 Cacapon Service Project, Auction, and Casual Picnic

Nov 19 NCTC Annual Meeting and Presentation of Certification

Core classes are required for you to graduate.  Elective hours can be substituted hour for hour with any approved elective, but it is easier for you to plan on the ones offered.

MN Recertification

Hi All-


Now that it is after January 1, we wanted to touch base with you all and make sure you knew how MN recertification works. Since you graduated in 2010, you begin recertification in 2011. Each calendar year, you need a minimum of 8 hours of class time (in 2 different natural history topics) and 16 hours of volunteer time to remain an active Master Naturalist. Everything is based on a calendar year of January 1-December 31, so you have the full year to complete stuff. A copy of the recertification form has been emailed to you, it is to be submitted at the end of each year. Contact us if you did not receive the recertification form.
PVMN offers workshops that can be used for recertification—you should have received an email about that, but it is also available at www.potomacaudubon.org. Most of those classes are 2-3 hours each. You can also take classes at places like the Smithsonian Naturalist Center in Leesburg (or in DC) or NCTC. If you are taking a natural history class at Shepherd or another school, you can claim the class credit hours (a 3-hour class=3 hours of MN time regardless of how much time you spend in class over the semester.) PVAS monthly meetings at NCTC will also qualify. Everything is on an hour by hour basis so if you come to a PVAS monthly meeting, you’d probably be getting 45-60 minutes. Friends of the NCTC programs are usually longer. If you take Birding 101, all of the class hours count.

Volunteer projects are often arranged by the PVMN committee, but you can do things like volunteer a day or week at camp, assist with watershed field trips or other programs, work on the committee (like the Member Services subcommittee!!), volunteer at the Cacapon State Park Nature Center (Kelly will love you!), or any of the other stuff you did to initially certify.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask us!
 
Ellen and Wanda, your friendly MN Member Services folks

2011 Workshops

Hi All-

 

I have attached information about the 2011 MN Workshops that you can take for MN credit. This information will also be posted on the PVAS website very shortly.

 

The workshops are on a “first come first served” basis and we are advertising them as open to the general public, so if you see one or more that interest you, do not delay in registering.

 

Don’t forget that you can also take classes independently of those offered by PVMN. You can get an hour or maybe more credit by attending the PVAS monthly meetings or special programs presented by Friends of NCTC. The Smithsonian Naturalist Center in Leesburg also has frequent programs.

 

Ellen and Wanda

 

(Your friendly MN Member Services group)
 
_________________________________________________________________


The Potomac Valley Master Naturalist Program, under the auspices of the Potomac Valley Audubon Society, will offer a series of nature workshops that have both classroom and field segments. All workshops are open to members of the general public on a “first come, first served” basis. These workshops also count as “elective courses” for PVMN certified members and for PVMN members who have been accepted for the 2011 certification program.

 

There is a maximum enrollment of 20 students for each workshop. You may register for one or more workshops on one application. Full payment for all workshops chosen must be included with the application. Checks should be made payable to the Potomac Valley Audubon Society.

• A registration confirmation will be sent by email. Directions will be included.
• Refunds will not be made except when a course is cancelled.
• A fee paid for a cancelled workshop can be transferred to another workshop.

Applications must be received no later than two weeks before the date of the workshop to reserve your space. Late applications can be accepted if space is available, but instructors may not have enough materials for a late applicant.

 

Students must make their own arrangements for snacks, drinks, and lunch. (For workshops at the National Conservation Training Center, the Commons cafeteria might not be available. There are vending machines and a restaurant at Cacapon State Park.)

 

If you have questions, contact Wanda Miller at 304-263-7320 or PVMN54@gmail.com or Ellen Murphy at 304-676-8739 or pvasprograms@comcast.net.

_________________________________________________________________

EMERGING CONTAMINANT ISSUES AND FISH HEALTH


January 15, 2011, 9 a.m.-12 noon

Dr. Vicki Blazer, Fisheries Biologist

USGS National Fish Health Research Laboratory, Kearneysville WV


NATURE PROGRAMS WITH CHILDREN

February 5, 2011, 9 a.m.-3 p.m. (including lunch break)

Cacapon State Park (Main Lodge), Berkeley Springs WV

Nancy Little, Ellen Murphy, Wanda Miller


BATS

May 14, 2011, 7 p.m.-10 p.m.

(This date and time is tentative and may need to be changed because of instructor availability.)

Cool Spring Farm, Lloyd Rd, Charles Town WV

Kieran O’Malley, WVDNR Biologist


FALL WILDFLOWERS

September 24, 2011, 9 a.m.-12 noon

NCTC

Phil King, NCTC Staff


MONARCH WATCH

August 20, 2011, 1 p.m.-4 p.m.

Cool Spring Farm, Lloyd Rd, Charles Town WV

Clark Dixon


LEAVE NO TRACE (LNT) TRAINER WORKSHOP

Late April/Early May

Clark Dixon (certified LNT Trainer)

For Love of Children Outdoor Education Center, Mission Road, Charles Town WV

Registration for this program MUST go through the Jefferson County Adult and Community Education Program at http://boe.jeff.k12.wv.us/ . Fees for this program are higher.

_________________________________________________________________



For more information and registration form please visit the Potomac Valley Audubon Society's website.

Upcoming 2011 Workshops

Hi All

Here’s a heads-up on the Master Naturalist sponsored workshops for 2011. We are getting instructors and places set, but don’t have everything in place quite yet. However, we wanted you to know what was in the works and to let you know that information will be up on the PVAS website soon. If you have a workshop that you would like to offer, let us know!

Ellen and Wanda

(Your Friendly PVMN Member Services Folks)


EMERGING CONTAMINANT ISSUES AND FISH HEALTH January 15, 2011 [This is definite!]

USGS National Fish Health Research Laboratory, 11649 Leetown Road, Kearneysville WV

Nature Programs With Children (tentatively set for February)

Leave No Trace Trainer Workshop (through Jefferson County Adult Continuing Education)

Bats (very tentatively set for May)

Forest Succession (August)

Fall Wildflowers (very tentative, possibly September)

Monarch Watch (August)



Other workshops that we are hoping to offer include:

Geology Field Trip with Ed Snyder

Butterflies

Project Underground

Crows