Each year the VCR-LTER hosts a variety of Professional Development Programs at UVA’s Coastal Research Center for area teachers/educators.  Several of these programs are run in conjunction with The Nature Conservancy. We hope to add new programs each year and schedules may change to accommodate new programs/activities so please check this page frequently to look for new programs and schedule changes.

SciGen Teacher Dashboard

What: Teacher “tune-ups” on scientific topics + curriculum content

Why: Simple reminders, best practices, and curriculum content can help renew science teaching strategies and learning experiences between PD opportunities.

Photo of Nature Camp 2018, courtesy of The Nature Conservancy.

Art and Ecology

Observational Drawing (Spring)

The purpose of this class is to provide local teachers with an opportunity to learn and practice the techniques used in Observational Drawing along with an introduction to the ecology and environmental issues impacting the diverse habitats of the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The program will combined class-based lectures on art techniques and basic ecology with visits to scenic natural areas where participants will have the opportunity to receive one-on-one instruction and practice Observational Drawing techniques.  All required art supplies will be provided, but participants are encouraged to bring their favorite drawing tools if they have them.

Plein Aire Landscape Painting (Fall)

The purpose of this class is to provide local teachers with an opportunity to learn and practice the techniques used in Plein Aire Landscape Painting along with an introduction to the ecology and environmental issues impacting salt marshes on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. The program will combined class based lectures on art techniques and basic ecology with visits to areas overlooking local salt marshes where participants will have the opportunity to receive one-on-one instruction and practice Plein Aire landscape Paiting techniques. Plein Aire easles, oil paints, brushes and all other required art supplies will be provided, but participants are encouraged to bring their own oil paint brushes and tools if they have them.

• Art and Ecology classes are co-instructed by ecologists from the UVa Department of Environmental Sciences and Alice McEnerney Cook, an artist based in New Jersey with multiple years of experience teaching Observational Drawing and Plein Air painting techniques to art teachers. For examples of Alice’s artwork please see her web site www.mcenerneycook.com.
• Class size is limited to 14 participants.  Tuition is $100.00 which includes art supplies, meals and lodging at the ABCRC.  Participants are also required to submit one piece created during the workshop and a brief artist statement for use in art exhibitions.  Upon completion, teachers receive 16 hours of Recertification Credits.
• For more information or to register for programs, please contact Donna Fauber (dhf4k@virginia.edu) at the ABCRC.

Oyster Gardening Workshop

Teachers attending the workshop will receive all the materials and instructions needed to participate in the VA Oyster Gardening program enabling them to raise a batch of native oysters with their students for release onto an Oyster Sanctuary Reef. This program, run through a partnership with Laurie Sorabella from Virginia Oyster Reef Keepers, is funded through the VCR-LTER School Yard Activities Program and is free to the first 5 Eastern Shore teachers who register. Class groups that join the Oyster Gardening Program will be provided funding for a field trip to release their oysters on a nearby sanctuary reef.

• The workshop is held one Sunday in late October or early November.
• Past participants wishing to continue in the program should stop by the ABCRC after each workshop to pick up their new supply of baby oysters.
• For more information or to register for programs, please contact Donna Fauber (dhf4k@virginia.edu) at the ABCRC.

Workshops in partnership with The Nature Conservancy

Coastal Bay Ecology (Spring)

Formal activities begin Friday evening with a lecture introducing the history and ecology of the VA Eastern Shore.  Saturday activities include a “water cycle” field trip hiking through a typical Eastern Shore watershed from an agricultural field, through a forest and along a stream that runs into a saltmarsh before emptying into Oyster Harbor.  In the afternoon the group will board a research boat for a trip to Hog Island, one of the barrier islands off the VA Coast.  The group will hike across the island through a variety of coastal habitats including back barrier salt-marsh, salt pans, maritime shrub/forest, fresh water ponds, sand dunes and barrier island beach.  Saturday evening concludes with dinner and a tour of the Barrier Islands Center Museum in Machipongo where the group will learn about the towns and people who once inhabited the VA barrier islands.  Sunday begins with an optional early morning bird walk around the ABCRC and Oyster Harbor, followed by a kayak paddle to observe local osyter restoration sites.  The class concludes with a debate/discussion about environmental issues and human activities impacting the ecology of the VA Eastern Shore.

• Class size is limited to 12 participants.  Tuition is $100.00 which includes meals and lodging at the ABCRC.   Educators completing the program will receive 16 hours of Recertification Credits.
• For more information or to register for programs, please contact Donna Fauber (dhf4k@virginia.edu) at the ABCRC.

Fall Migration and Conservation on the Eastern Shore (Fall)

This program introduces the participants to the role the VA Eastern Shore plays in the fall migration of neo-tropical birds, butterflies, hawks and other birds.  The program includes trips to a variety of different wildlife habitats common to the Eastern Shore with discussions of the environmental issues affecting these habitats and the plant and animal communities that rely on them.  The program may begin with an optional kayak paddle on Friday afternoon and concludes on Sunday afternoon after a visit to the bird banding station at Kiptopeke Park.

• Class size is limited to 15 participants.  Tuition is $100.00 which includes meals and lodging at the ABCRC.  The first 3 teachers/educators from the Eastern Shore who register will receive a “scholarship” covering all tuition expenses.  Educators completing the program will receive 16 hours of Recertification Credits.
• For more information or to register for programs, please contact Donna Fauber (dhf4k@virginia.edu) at the ABCRC.

Visit www.chesapeakeexperience.org for more information and to register for this program.