Bowling Green, Ky. - Dr. Terry Wilson, director of Western Kentucky University’s Center for Mathematics, Science and Environmental Education, has received environmental education’s highest honor.

Dr. Wilson received the Walter E. Jeske Award from the North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) in recognition of his 36 years of work in environmental education.

“I feel incredibly honored to receive this award,” Dr. Wilson said. “When I look back at the list of former recipients of the Jeske Award, I am blown away by the list of giants in the field. I am truly humbled by this recognition.”

The award, presented Oct. 13 at the group’s annual conference in St. Paul, Minn., is given each year to recognize an individual’s service to NAAEE and for leadership within the field of environmental education. NAAEE is the professional association for the field of environmental education and has members from North America and 55 countries. (A list of Jeske Award winners is available online at http://www.naaee.org/programs-and-initiatives/awards/the-walter-e-jeske-award.)
Dr. Wilson, who served as president of NAAEE in 2002, represented the group on the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education, a coalition of more than 30 organizations that sets professional standards for colleges and universities that prepare teachers and other personnel for work in elementary and secondary schools.

He is actively involved in research as well as training educators and community resource people to work with scientists in doing water quality monitoring in their communities. He is one of the principal agents in creating a new environmental education endorsement for the certification of teachers in Kentucky.
He has contributed to the development of print materials and multimedia productions related to environmental issues for government agencies and state organizations and has been a frequent contributor to the Journal of Environmental Education.

In 2005, Dr. Wilson added Earth Force “GREEN Partner” to his list of credentials and has worked to build environmental partnerships among local schools systems, corporate partners, including General Motors, and WKU.

Dr. Wilson received a mathematics degree from Ohio University in 1970 and earned his doctorate in science and environmental education from Ohio State University in 1988. He has been the environmental education coordinator for the Kentucky Department of Education; director of Murray State University’s Center for Environmental Education and a member of numerous state, national and international organizations.

He was the first recipient of the Environmental Education College Teacher of the Year, presented by the Kentucky Association for Environmental Education, and has served as editor and publisher of The Environmental Communicator.

In announcing Wilson as the 2006 Jeske Award winner, last year’s recipient Elaine Andrews said:

“Dr. Terry Wilson is being honored for his tireless, long-standing efforts on behalf of the field of environmental education and NAAEE. He is an exemplary teacher who has been actively engaged in helping people understand environmental concepts for more than thirty-five years. A colleague often shares that Terry is the most naturally gifted teacher he has ever known. Dr. Wilson creates for all learners an atmosphere of adventure, inquiry, and a love for learning. He believes in the power of teaching and learning, in the concept and practice of community building, of nurturing and listening. To him the path is not only more important than the endpoint, but the road to making our earth a better place is through environmental education that is personally meaningful.

“Beyond his teaching prowess is a vast network of connections to improve the field that has been critical in elevating environmental education. His work and commitment with NCATE and the revised environmental education standards, his work with the Non-Formal Certification in Kentucky, the Centers for Environmental Education across the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and his work with Project WILD, PLT, Project WET, Project Food Land and People, and numerous other programs and projects demonstrate his commitment to improving environmental education. He achieves success by using his teaching lens, trusting in the power of people to change, and acknowledging others in positive and meaningful ways. His success lies in his ability to bring his teaching skill to all aspects of his professional life.

“His service to teaching about and for the environment, and making numerous contributions to the field of environmental education is distinguished and makes him worthy of the Walter Jeske Award for 2006.”

More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
For information, contact Terry Wilson at (270) 745-4671.

-WKU-
"A leading American university with international reach"

Office of Media Relations
Western Kentucky University
1906 College Heights Blvd., Bowling Green, Ky. 42101-3576
Phone: (270)745-4295 - Fax: (270)7455387 - E-Mail: western@wku.edu