Dear Svitek Family,
My internship with Bonnyvale Environmental Education Center enabled me to take a leadership role in both the planning and teaching aspects of environmental programing. Over the course of seven weeks I worked with a variety of age groups and interests levels. I was able to take responsibility in lead teaching my own week of camp. I planned, organized and executed a week called Emerging Naturalists for children ages 6-8 years old. The week focused on engaging the senses and exploring different natural areas. Additionally, each day was based around a different subject. The days were as follows: mammals, plants, birds and insects, tracking and aquatics.
This experience allowed me to get a feel for teaching and work through some of the challenges that I was facing in my teaching skills, specifically in finding my own voice. I was amazed by how much I enjoyed the experience and pleased with the amount of joy and learning that was shared that week.
Your gift allowed me to focus my attention on this internship without the stress of having to work two jobs. I was able to dedicate myself to becoming a better educator and sharing my passion for the environment with children. I was able to spend more time planning meaningful and engaging activities and games for each week of camp.
This internship assured me that I am pursuing the right path and has left me with enthusiasm and passion for my future in the field. Without your generous scholarship, I would have been unable to complete this internship. I am forever grateful for your kindness and generosity. If you have any other questions about my summer I would be happy to answer them!
Sincerely,
Julienna Brooks
Dear Svitek Family,
This past summer I undertook my own research project to study Mysis, a type of opossum shrimp in Lake Champlain. Mysis are an integral part of the food web of many lakes, including Lake Champlain. Many fish species feed on Mysis and Mysis have the potential to greatly affect both lower and upper food web dynamics. Mysis have been shown to engage in a diel vertical migration (DVM) to avoid predators at depth during the day and feed at the surface at night.
A recent study undertaken by a student at the University of Vermont found that there is a subset of the population of Mysis in Lake Champlain that does not engage in DVM. Before my project, no one knew the behavior of Mysis on the bottom of the lake at night that do not engage in DVM. With your generosity, I was able to fill a void of knowledge in the scientific community. I was able to build a large steel frame (pictured here) to mount a camera, battery, lasers and light system because of your financial assistance. Your kindness also allowed me to pay for boat time so that I could deploy my camera system in the bottom of Lake Champlain for 24 hours at a time.
I cannot thank you enough for your support and generosity, without which this project would not have been possible. I was able to complete my own research project this summer and am now writing a manuscript to be published in a peer-reviewed journal. Your generosity provided me with an unparalleled opportunity to show my commitment to research and exemplify myself as a competitive and independent student that excels in the realm of research. Thanks again for your wonderful gift that made this project possible!
Sincerely,
Rebecca Dillon
To the Svitek family,
Over the course of the internship, I was an integral part of the outreach development for Metta Earth Institute. The three leadership trainings that are offered throughout the summer are a main highlight of Metta’s educational retreat sector of their 501(c)(3) non-profit. My intention was not only to bring in participants, but also to build connections with partners and to develop the methods for outreach. My role in this was conducting informational sessions, having informational tables, project managing a service learning class team, consulting, and brainstorming alternative outreach methods. I’m proud to be a part of an organization like Metta Earth Institute where I have the ability to flourish and take the reigns with a majority of this internship.
The most important role that I had as an intern for Metta this semester was the connections I made with colleges and universities around the state and for managing the service learning class team. After holding eight classroom presentations, having many professors post to Blackboard about the trainings, holding an information session, sharing with Slade, and speaking to three clubs at the University of Vermont, I began seeking other connections. I tabled at St. Michael’s College, Burlington College, Green Mountain College, Middlebury, and Community College of Vermont. I really enjoyed talking with people and hearing their personal reasons for coming up to my table. Everyone had a different story and wisdom to offer. These experiences made my internship more fulfilling.
Currently, there are about 10 participants in the summer leadership trainings. I hope to continue doing outreach for Metta Earth in order to increase our participant numbers and really make an impact on potential young environmental leaders for this region. I see a huge potential for the young people of this region to play an integral role in the environmental and social justice movement that is currently spreading like wildfire throughout the globe.
Thank you again for your kindness, you have really made an impact on my future endeavors with outreach for non-profits that are providing opportunities for environmental leadership.
Sincerely,
Mandy St. Hilaire
To the Svitek Family,
The reason I asked for the award was to test, in the Forest Service lab, a new methodology for studying ground beetle dispersal. This would contribute to my study on ground beetle dispersal in sites impacted by wind damage and salvage logging. I looked into this research because I want to know if these ecological disturbances reduce the distance traveled by ground beetles, a bioindicator species, in order to better understand how wind damage and salvage logging effect northern forest ecosystems.
I went into the Forest Service lab with a lot of questions that, thanks to your award, I was able to test. Some of them were, “Would the insects pick up the fluorescent powder? Would they be able to walk with it on their bodies? Can they pick up multiple colors?” We tested each of these and to find out more check out my photo.
My original proposed thesis was to use fluorescent powder to measure beetle dispersal. After trying these methods out in the lab, my advisor, Kimberly Wallin, and I decided that, while it was an important project that we will continue researching, we still haven’t found that perfect methodology we would need to gain significant results.
During the summer we will be continuing to work on this dispersal method as a side project to my thesis. My thesis will still use ground beetles as bioindicators but will not incorporate their dispersal. This decision takes some of the pressure off my thesis because if the dispersal methods do not work in the field, it will not leave me without adequate results. In addition, if we work out dispersal methodology, I hope that another student may pick up this project and see it to fruition.
Working in a lab is an interesting experience. It seems like with each question you answer, five more questions come. My time in the lab made me a more critical thinker and pushed me to think out of the box to find answers. Thank you again for giving me this opportunity.
Wishing your family the best,
Rachel Zevin