EEA HISTORY 

Environmental Education Alliance Timeline

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1990s

1990

1996

• On May 4, the Georgia Environmental Education Council (the first incarnation of EEA) is created following the passage of Georgia House Bill 1412. Council members are appointed by Gov. Zell Miller.

1992

• On November 19, the Georgia Environmental Education Council changes its name to the Environmental Education Alliance (EEA) of Georgia. EEA is founded as a self-governed, non-profit organization that promotes communication and education among professionals in the field of environmental education in Georgia. 

1994

• EEA of GA holds its first annual conference in September at the Blue Ridge Outdoor Education Center in Tocca, GA.

1995

• Several EEA board members participate in a workshop on strategic planning sponsored by the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) at its annual conference in Portland, Maine. This was a crucial time in EEA's development and led to the establishment of a committee and committee structure for the board and general membership. The EEA board of directors decides that officers will serve two year terms to maintain continuity in leadership.

• ​EEA creates the Outdoor Classroom Council (OCC) to assist organizations and individuals with an interest in the design, development, maintenance, and use of outdoor classrooms. (OCC is later renamed Council of Outdoor Learning or CoOL).

• NAAEE chooses Atlanta as the site for its 1998 annual conference.

1997

• OCC holds its first symposium at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens.

1998

• EEA begins looking into establishing a state EE office and training certification program. 
• EEA partners with NAAEE on its 27th annual conference in Atlanta.
• ​​September 6 is designated by Gov. Zell Miller as Environmental Education Awareness Day in Georgia.

1999

• EEA publishes the Georgia Environmental Education Teacher Resource Guide and distributes it to all public and private schools.
• Elachee Nature Science Center becomes the first EE center in the southeast to be accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

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2000s

2000

• EEA forms the Monarchs Across Georgia committee, adapting Dr. Karen Oberhauser's Monarchs in the Classroom program to offer professional learning workshops for teachers.

2001

• EEA’s annual conference is planned in conjunction with some of the state’s major EE-providers: the GA Environmental Protection Division's GA Project WET and GA Adopt-A-Stream; GA Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Resources Division's GA Project WILD and GA Project Learning Tree; the Georgia Conservancy; and the National Wildlife Federation.
• The tradition of the “buzzard” conference scavenger hunt begins.
• Georgia is selected as a SEER state (State Education and Environmental Roundtable) by noted researcher, Dr. Gerald Lieberman. ​

2002

• EEA partners with GA EPD, Department of Community Affairs' Keep Georgia Beautiful program, and Department of Education's Georgia Learning Connections program to launch the online guide to Environmental Education in Georgia. 
• EEA partners with the GA Department of Education, GA EPD, and University of Georgia to establish "Using the Environment as an Integrating Context for Learning," a K-12 school improvement program.​
• ​EEA partners with UGA's Environmental Health Science Department and others to launch the “Georgia Project for Excellence in Environmental Education,” a voluntary certification program for environmental educators based on NAAEE’s Guidelines for Excellence. To become certified, participants complete six core classes within three years and a 40-hour final project. To maintain certification, environmental educators complete 100 hours of continuing education every five years in approved courses, workshops, or conferences.

2003

• NAAEE presents EEA with its Outstanding Affiliate Organization award.
• EEA distributes the updated Directory of Georgia EE Providers to every K-12 school in the state. 
• ​EEA begins hosting silent auctions to raise money for conference scholarships.

2004

• EEA is recognized on the floor of the Georgia House of Representatives. Gov. Sonny Perdue signs a proclamation declaring March 12, 2004 Environmental Education Day in Georgia.
• The Garden Club of Georgia presents EEA its Award of Merit.

2005

• The EEA board convenes a strategic planning meeting to look at what has been accomplished and provide direction for the future.

2006

• EEA finalizes and adopts a new strategic plan.
• EEA develops and adopts a policy concerning partnerships with outside organizations.
• EEA investigates and acquires director’s and officer’s insurance for the board of directors.
• EEA contracts with a conference registrar and hires a bookkeeper to assist with the duties of the treasurer.

2007

• EEA redesigns its website.
• EEA forms a steering committee to investigate the feasibility of and interest in a certification program for Georgia educators. Based on feedback, EEA creates the Advanced Training for Environmental Education (ATEEG) in Georgia project. The committee secures a grant from NAAEE to begin the process of developing a program for accreditation.

2008

• The ATEEG committee secures a second grant from NAAEE to continue developing the certification program and hold pilot classes.

2009

• The ATEEG committee holds certification pilot classes and works to finalize the certification program with NAAEE. 
• The board of directors drafts a job description for an executive director to handle EEA business and ATEEG. The position is advertised.

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2010s

2010

• EEA hires Paul McClendon as its first executive director.
• NAAEE approves ATEEG and the first classes are announced and held.
• EEA's member services committee begins holding regular events for members and to expand membership. 
• EEA establishes the Petey Giroux Dragonfly Grant for EE and the Arts and the first award is given. This award honors Petey's ability to bring the arts into the teaching of EE and her willingness to share with other educators. The winners receive a project grant up to $1,000.
• EEA revisits its strategic plan and each committee completes its own strategic plan and presents it to the board.
• EEA's Outdoor Classroom Council changes its name to the Council of Outdoor Learning and updates its logo. 

2011

• EEA changes its logo and launches a new website. 
• EAA updates board reporting and its financial code system to better track how EEA spends its money.
• ATEEG graduates four certified environmental educators.
• The first Georgia Naturalist Rally is organized.
• EEA returns to an all-volunteer organization with no staff

2012

• ATEEG receives final accreditation by NAAEE (the first in the country) and graduates one certified environmental educator.
• In conjunction with the Southeast Environmental Education Alliance (SEEA), EEA receives an EPA grant to implement a small competitive grants program.

2013

• ATEEG graduates six certified environmental educators and receives grants from the GA DNR Foundation and TERN.
• ​MAG receives money to establish a grant program for pollinator gardens.
• COOL awards two grants for school outdoor learning center projects.

2014

• ​EEA creates regional director positions on its board.
• EPA funds additional small grants to SEEA to support more projects in Georgia and the southeast.

2015

• EEA establishes its Memorial Forest.
• SEEA hosts a leadership summit in North Carolina. Grant funds allow two Georgia leaders to attend. ​

2016

• SEEA hires Ashley Hoffman as executive director. Along with the other seven states, Georgia agrees to pay a cost share of $1,000 each for her time working on behalf of the region.

2017

• EEA hosts the SEEA Conference & Research Symposium.
• SEEA provides grant funding to support strategic planning in Georgia and EEA hires a consultant to revisit its strategic plan.

2018

• When Journey North loses funding, EEA's MAG takes ownership of the Symbolic Migration Program, an international education program that reaches over 1,200 classrooms in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico each year. 
• EEA board members train in NAAEE Guidelines for Excellence in EE at the regional SEEA conference.

2019

• Five EEA board members use grant funding to attend a SEEA leadership clinic in North Carolina. This team later develops an action plan to improve EEA operations. Project funding of $2,000 is also used to draft an operations manual.
• EEA hosts first NAAEE community engagement workshop at the EEA annual conference.
• EEA receives a NAAEE ee360 grant to send five leaders to California for training, and scholarships to attend NAAEE's annual conference in Kemtucky.
• SEEA receives a regional grant to provide support for a website overhaul and executive director recruitment and hiring.

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2020s

​2020

• EEA hires Karan Wood as part-time Executive Director. 
• EEA launches a new website.
• EEA reconnects with Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta for legal assistance, including revision of its bylaws and articles of incorporation. 
• The EEA board begins the process of envisioning the future and creating a strategic plan. ​

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EEA Conference Locations

EEA Past Presidents 

• 1994 - Blue Ridge Outdoor Education Center, Toccoa
• 1995 - Outdoor Activity Center, Atlanta
• 1996 - Oatland Island Education Center, Savannah 
• 1997 - Wahsega 4-H Center, Dahlonega
• 1998 - Oatland Island Education Center, Savannah
• 1999 - UGA Center for Continuing Education, Athens
• 2000 - Gainesville College, Oakwood
• 2001 - Rivertown Inn, Columbus
• 2002 - Unicoi State Park, Helen
• 2003 - Coastal Georgia Center, Savannah
• 2004 - GA Veterans Memorial St Pk, Lake Blackshear, 
• 2005 - Unicoi State Park, Helen
• 2006 - Simpsonwood Conference Center, Norcross
• 2007 - Jekyll Island Convention Center, Jekyll Island
• 2008 - Unicoi State Park, Helen
• 2009 - UGA Conference Center, Tifton
• 2010 - Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw
• 2011 -  Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw
• 2012 - Southwest Fulton Arts Center, Atlanta
• 2013 - The Classic Center, Athens
• 2014 - Rock Eagle 4-H Center, Eatonton
• 2015 - Rock Eagle 4-H Center, Eatonton
• 2016 - Environmental & Heritage Center, Buford
• 2017 - Environmental & Heritage Center, Buford   (Southeast Environmental Ed Alliance  Conference)
• ​2018 - Unicoi State Park, Helen
• 2019 - Merry Acres Center & Flint RiverQuarium, Albany
• 2020 - The Villas Conference Center, Jekyll Island

• 1994-1995 - Buddy Spencer, Fulton County Parks
• 1995-1996 - Jerry Hightower, National Park Service
• 1997-1998 - Marcia Daniels, Reynolds Nature Preserve
• 1998-2000 - Deron Davis, Dunwoody Nature Center
• 2000-2003 - Peter Gordon, Elachee Nature Center
• 2003-2004 - Petey Giroux, Project WET, GA DNR
• 2004-2005 - Richard Osorio, University of Georgia
• 2005-2006 - Anne Shenk,  State Botanical Garden 
• 2006-2007 - Kim Morris-Zarneke, Georgia Aquarium
• 2007-2008 - Walter Lane, GA DNR Charlie Elliott Center
• 2008-2009 - Donna Stewart, Jekyll Island 4-H Center
• 2009-2010 - Lisa Weinstein, GA DNR Nongame Conserv
• 2010-2011 - David Hedgepeth, Valdosta State University
• 2011-2012 - Jennifer McCoy, Cobb County Water Dept
• 2012-2013 - Laura Aikens, Ecological Solutions
• 2013-2014 - Kris Irwin, UGA Warnell School of Forestry 
• 2014-2016 - Robby Astrove, Davidson-Arabia Mountain 
• 2016-2017 - Cora Keber,  State Botanical Garden of GA
• 2017-2018 - Michael O'Shield, DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management
• 2018-2019 - Lauren Johnson, Oxbow Meadows
• 2019-2020 - Franke Smith, Hickory Hill & Tom Watson Birthplace