Elizabeth Vernon (E.V.) Bell, the Consortium’s marine education specialist, won the 2023 S.C. Environmental Awareness Award for her efforts to develop and implement the Palmetto Environmental Education Certification (PEEC) program, the only such program in the state of South Carolina. Bell was honored at a reception on February 2, 2024 hosted by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR).
“Ms. Bell is just one individual – but through creative partnerships, networking, and training, she’s been able to amplify positive impacts through the thousands of people she has taught and mentored over the years,” said Shannon Bobertz, SCDNR’s chief of staff, who presented the award.
Photo courtesy of Erin Weeks, S.C. Department of Natural Resources.
In 2018, the Consortium launched the PEEC program in partnership with a 14-member steering committee comprised of classroom teachers, nonformal educators, college professors, and ecotourism professionals. As the state’s first and only environmental education certification for educators, the two-year program engages participants in a series of in-person training workshops, online modules and group discussions, individualized outdoor explorations, and culminates in capstone projects designed to fine-tune skills for effective environmental education. PEEC is endorsed by the S.C. Department of Education for 120 renewal credits, and the latest cohort of 14 educators is expected to graduate with their certification in August 2024.
The S.C. Environmental Awareness Award was established by the legislature in 1992 to recognize outstanding contributions toward the conservation of South Carolina’s environment. Committee members include representatives of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources, S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, S.C. Sea Grant Consortium, and S.C. Forestry Commission. Nominations are rated by the committee based on excellence in innovation, leadership, and accomplishments that influence positive changes affecting the state’s natural air, land, water, and coastal resources.
For more information about the award and nomination process, contact April Turner at (843) 953-2073 or Susannah Sheldon at (843) 953-2083.