Teacher Scholarships

It is a Summit tradition to give a teacher scholarship to one more more deserving teachers in the state where the Summit takes place.

This year's winners from the state of Missouri are:

• Gary Duncan, Moberly Middle School
• Kim Allen, Heritage Intermediate School
• Heidi Prouhet, Heritage Intermediate School

We are very excited to meet them in person!

Family Nature Summits provide a week-long environmental learning experience for all ages. In the past we had funding for one full scholarship. We can sometimes offer additional scholarships based on donations.

The full scholarship covers registration fees ($575 per adult) and room and board ($675 per adult, double occupancy) for the selected teacher and one guest. The value of this package is approximately $2,500.00. The partial scholarships cover registration fees for the selected teacher and one guest, a value of approximately $1,150.00. Partial scholarship winners will be responsible for room and board for themselves and any guests they bring. All scholarship winners will be responsible for their own transportation to and from the Summit site.

The scholarship winner will be expected to participate in the full program for the entire week, and at the end of the week to submit a written synopsis of the experience for use in future educational and promotional materials. Program offerings include hiking, fieldtrips to area attractions, classes in art and photography, birding, butterflies, orienteering and presentations on various environmental and nature topics. Many of our faculty members are nationally- renowned in their respective fields.

Scholarship winners may also bring other family members at their own expense and are encouraged to bring children since the Family Nature Summit youth programs are an integral and valued part of what we offer.

If you have questions please contact Rosanne Mistretta at 215-266-5046 or call the Summit office at 949-743-2567 or email at info@familysummits.org.

Thanks From Our Teacher Scholarship Recipients

The 2010 teacher was Jackie Del Bianco:

Hello, my name is Jackie Del Bianco and I am the recipient of the 2010 Family Nature Summit Teacher Scholarship.  From start to finish, the Family Nature Summit in Lake Tahoe, California was a wonderful program to attend, both as an educator and an outdoor enthusiast.   The people involved with the program, as well as the classes and lectures, were all outstanding.  I applied for the scholarship not really knowing much about the Family Summit organization, but by week’s end, was thrilled that I had become a part of this fantastic program and all that it offers.

As an educator of young children, I was very impressed with the many families who come year after year with young children, teens and even college-aged young adults.  Each age group has many different, exciting environmental education classes and outdoor adventure and awareness opportunities. For example, I was able to go on many beautiful hikes in the Tahoe area of California, as well as take classes from a nationally recognized expert on animal tracking, which was a definite highlight of the week.

I cannot begin to express my enthusiasm I have for the Family Summit program, and I know I will try my best to attend future Summits.  I highly recommend this program to any educator who values incorporating outdoor and environmental education into their curriculum.   I came back from the program with many wonderful ideas for classroom curriculum and ways of expanding upon my hands-on science and environmental education curriculum.  The Family Nature Summits experience gave me countless ideas that I will be exploring for a long time, as well as ideas to share with my fellow educators! To all who were involved in my receiving this scholarship, a huge thank you for this incomparable experience!!

The 2009 teachers were Shondra Hayward and P. Oliver:

Shondra wrote:

I am still in awe of your organization and the work that you do to connect people and families with nature. Thank you so much for the opportunity to participate in the 2009 Family Nature Summit through the Teacher Scholarship program. Hiking to scenic vistas, rafting down the Hudson, studying geology and mining precious garnet stones…these are but a few of the many activities that created one of the most memorable and adventurous weeks of my life!

As a direct result of your organization's efforts, I will return to work re-energized with new ideas about nature. I am already planning lessons and activities to create young geologists in my school community. Please know that the gift of this experience will help me to create a stronger curriculum and better influence the next generation of young stewards who will care for our planet.

If you’d like to get in touch with Shondra or P, please send an email to info@familysummits.org and we’ll pass your messages on to them.