2026 Appalachian Green Teachers Conference

Update #1
Thanks to support from the Ohio EPA, we have special funding available for educators this year.

On Thursday, 11/5, Rural Action will lead a special session on environmental education lessons that meet local real world problems. Educators who join will be eligible for up to $100 in substitute coverage.

On Friday, 11/6, Rural Action will lead a focus group on ensuring real world environmental education problems meet state standards. Educators who join will be eligible for a direct honorarium of $100.

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Update #2
Attendees can receive professional development certifcates for their participation, issued by Rural Action.

Thanks to our partnership with EECO and Malone University, participants can also receive a 1-hour graduate credit for participation. For more information, please visit this page of Malone University's Center for Professional Development.

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Update #3
The conference schedule is now available! See below for the full list of our sessions and times. Please note that adjustments may be made between now and the start of the conference, but that we will keep this version up to date if any changes are made.

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Please join us for the 13th annual Appalachian Green Teachers Conference November 5-6 at Camp Oty'Okwa! This Environmental Education Council of Ohio (EECO) event is organized by Rural Action and Camp Oty'Okwa.

The annual conference brings together educators, professionals, and community members around the theory and practice of environmental education. Programming will take a variety of forms, including traditional presentations, panel discussions, and curriculum sharing, and experiential sessions involving hands-on lesson demonstrations and activities that draw on Camp Oty'Okwa's woodlands, waterways, and spectacular campus.

Featured Thursday, 11/5 speaker: Jenny Richards, Naturalist, Shawnee State Park

Featured Friday, 11/6 speaker: Laura Stalder, Macroinvertebrate Biologist and former OEPA specialist

Registration includes basic lodging accommodations (see our FAQ for more info). Tickets for breakfast, lunch, and dinner will need to be purchased separately. Attendees will receive a certificate of completion for continuing education contact hours.

Discounted or complimentary registration may be available for presenters, students with full-time enrollment, current AmeriCorps service volunteers, and those in financial need. Please see the FAQ section for more information.

Thanks to our partnership with Malone University, we will again be offering college credit and contact hour certificates for use as CEUs.

Conference Schedule

Thursday, November 5

• 8:00–9:00 a.m. — Registration and Light Breakfast

• 8:45–9:00 a.m. — Welcome, Logistics, and Kickoff: Introduction to AGTC

• 9:00–10:00 a.m. — Localizing EE with Real-World Problems
  Presenter: Jamie Kelly, Program Director for Environmental Education, Rural Action
  Join us for a session on how Rural Action has worked to integrate real-world problems into its formal environmental education programs! The session will include examples of programs delivered to Trimble Middle School students on flooding and flood risk mitigation, as well as programs delivered to Tri-County Career Center students on energy conservation. Also, learn how you can borrow and use our Enviroscapes in your own classroom!
  *Thanks to support from OEPA's OEEF award, educators participating in this session are eligible for $100 in substitute coverage*

• 10:00–11:00 a.m. — Enhancing Learning
  Presenter: Jenny Hileman, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service, Ohio University
  Explore how students’ existing knowledge and experiences—their “funds of knowledge”—can support greater inclusivity and engagement in learning. Participants will receive an evaluation tool to assess how their own programs incorporate student funds of knowledge.

• 10:00 a.m.–noon — No Lab? No Problem! – Using Outdoor Spaces to Turn Local Environmental Questions into Authentic Student Research
  Presenters: Sheila Cubick, Program Coordinator, The Ohio Academy of Science; Alyson Gruber, Director of Programs, The Ohio Academy of Science; and Dennis Clement, OEEF Coordinator, OEPA
  Learn how to turn local environmental questions into authentic student research using Ohio’s communities, ecosystems, and environmental resources, without requiring specialized laboratories, expensive equipment, or university partnerships. The session will also explore opportunities for students to share their work through Regional Science Day and other public presentations, while developing skills connected to future careers.

• 11:00 a.m.–noon — Tree Core Activity
  Presenter: Jen Bowman, Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service, Ohio University and Ohio STEM Learning Network (OSLN) SE Hub Director
  Participate in a hands-on exploration of trees and forest succession. Learners will identify tree characteristics, make scientific observations, analyze tree age, and use samples to deduce forest succession. Materials will be provided, including tree cores, tree cookies, digital microscopes, and tree index sheets.

• Noon–1:30 p.m. — Lunch, Exhibit Viewing, and Hands-on Activity
  Hands-on activity led by Jenny Richards, Shawnee State Park Naturalist

• 1:30–2:30 p.m. — Featured Speaker: Jenny Richards, Shawnee State Park Naturalist

• 2:30–4:30 p.m. — Ohio Environmental Education Fund (OEEF): $$$$ Show Me the Money $$$$
  Presenter: Dennis Clement, OEEF Coordinator, OEPA
  Explore the newly revamped OEEF application process, including a shorter application and elimination of the letter of intent requirement. Formal and informal educators will learn about funding for science-related classroom and organizational projects, along with grant-writing dos and don’ts from a presenter with more than 25 years of experience on the funding side of grants.

• 2:30–3:30 p.m. — Brain Breaks Without Breaking Your Brain
  Presenter: Eileen Haney, Glen Helen Outdoor Education Center
  Discover the benefits of brain breaks, practice activities to add to your teaching toolkit, and consider ways to incorporate them into a busy schedule. Come ready to play, laugh, and reenergize your brain.

• 3:30–4:30 p.m. — Experience an Escape Room Box for Learning
  Presenter: Jason Cervenec, Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center
  Can you find the legal documents needed to save camp from a greedy developer before time runs out? Escape games have been around for a little over a decade, with escape rooms being the most popular variety, and may be adapted for educational applications. Using a data set collected as part of an outreach program with Camp Oty’Okwa, the Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center created an escape box. In addition to having you participate in the second draft of this escape box, this session will share resources for you to create an engaging and compelling escape game for your own audiences.

• 4:30–5:30 p.m. — EE Wellbeing: Tools from Nature Informed Therapy (NIT)
  Presenter: Madison Donohue, Manager for Education and Culture, Rural Action
  Join us for a hands-on, outdoor session and hike that brings together environmental education and wellbeing! Donohue, a certified Nature Informed Therapy practitioner, will review the basics of NIT, guide participants in examples, and lead a discussion on how to integrate NIT tools into education.

• 5:30–6:30 p.m. — Dinner

Friday, November 6

• 8:00–9:00 a.m. — Registration and Light Breakfast

• 9:00–10:00 a.m. — Working Group: Connecting EE Real-World Problems with State Standards
  Presenter: Jamie Kelly, Program Director for Environmental Education, Rural Action
  This working session continues the conversation on real-world EE problems by connecting them to state standards. Our goal will be to exit the session with clear ideas about how to integrate real-world problems into EE curricula at a variety of levels.
  *Thanks to support from OEPA's OEEF award, educators participating in this session are eligible for a direct $100 honorarium*

• 10:00 a.m.–noon — Population Education
  Presenter: Cathy Knoop, Decorated Veteran Educator
  Explore cross-curricular activities that build awareness of the connections between human population growth and natural resource use. Participants will consider how people shape the world and interact with one another. Children's literature books will be shared that compliment the activities in the session.

• 10:00–11:00 a.m. — Connecting Compost To Your Classroom
  Presenters: Mike Nicolai and Ben Shonk, Athens-Hocking Solid Waste District
  Learn ways to start a school composting program, incorporate composting into the curriculum, and compost at home.

• 11:00 a.m.–noon — Growing Leaders--a Student-Led Garden Summer Camp
  Presenters: Molly Gassaway and Community Food Initiatives Youth Mentors
  Hear directly from the middle and high school students who helped plan and lead a hands-on garden summer camp. The Garden Education Mentors will share their experiences creating activities for younger campers, including sessions with local farmers that connected gardening, food, agriculture, and environmental education. Explore what worked, what students learned, and how youth leadership, mentorship, and community collaboration can strengthen educational programs.

• Noon–1:00 p.m. — Lunch and Featured Speaker: Beavers & Bobcats & Bears, Oh My! Hidden lives of local wildlife
  Laura Stalder, Macroinvertebrate Biologist and former OEPA specialist
  A collection of trail camera videos documenting behaviors, interactions, and unique footage of common animals.

• 1:00–2:00 p.m. — Through Our Eyes: Leadership, Photography, Storytelling with Youth
  Presenters: Peggy Garcia, Becky Handa, and Lacy Davis, Appalachian Children Coalition
  Explore a youth-focused prevention initiative that uses storytelling, photography, video, and community dialogue to address mental health, substance use prevention, and resilience in Appalachian and rural communities. Presenters will discuss the project’s development, implementation, partnerships, and lessons learned, while showcasing youth-created media and community impact. Attendees will also hear firsthand from young people involved in the program’s pilot year.

• 1:00–3:00 p.m. — Into the Wild- Starting a fieldwork program from scratch
  Presenter: Jessie Clark, Steubenville High School
  Due to unforeseen circumstances, this program will not be taking place this year.

• 2:00–3:00 p.m. — Pedagogy Roundtable
  Join a group of expert panelists for a roundtable discussion on all things pedagogy! Topics will include the differences between pedagogy and curriculum, how to integrate place-based learning with one’s pedagogical approach, and what it means to build a school culture conducive of deep learning.

• 3:00–4:00 p.m. — Creating Hyper-Local Environmental Education Opportunities by Connecting with Environmental Career Ambassadors Near You
  Presenter: Harrison Fried and Hallie Stelzle, Ohio State University Environmental Professionals Network
  Explore strategies for expanding place-based environmental education through partnerships with local environmental professionals. Learn how school-specific experiences can reduce transportation barriers and connect students with natural resources in their own communities. The session will demonstrate EPN Connect, a free tool that helps educators find Environmental Career Ambassadors by county and topic, and invite feedback on future improvements, including connections to state standards.

• 3:00–4:00 p.m. — How I Met Your Mother
  Presenter: Jessie Bennet, Perry County Park District
  Animals have interesting and elaborate methods of attracting mates. Bright colors, fancy dances, beautiful songs are just a few. Come learn about some of the more bizarre techniques. This session includes a power point presentation that will leave participants awed, educated and entertained.

• 4:00–4:30 p.m. — Farewell Session