Sierra Nevada Journeys was selected by NatureBridge as a top 10 environmental education leader to create industry Social and Emotional Learning framework

RENO, Nev. — December 21, 2018 — Sierra Nevada Journeys was selected by NatureBridge as one of 10 organizations that will work collaboratively to develop systems that will effectively incorporate Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) frameworks, research, and preferred practices into residential environmental education programming.

More than 65 organizations expressed interest from across the U.S. and Canada but only 10 were chosen based on our geographic reach, organizational capacity, diversity of participants served and unique perspectives on SEL. 

The Residential Environmental Education Partnership (REEP) convened on October 1, 2018, in San Francisco, California and tackled four key areas:

1. Understanding of the participating organizations’ SEL competencies.

2. Seeking SEL commonalities in similar residential school programs shared by the REEP participants.

3. Mapping program outcomes and associated practices.

4. Establishing a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.

The Partnership is scheduled to meet again in January 2019, to continue its work on building SEL frameworks.  “We’re thrilled to be involved at the ground level of this initiative.  Since the beginning, Social Emotional Learning principles have been integral to what we do at Sierra Nevada Journeys, but only recently have we been identifying and building SEL practices more intentionally in the work we do.  This partnership is a fantastic way for leaders in our industry to work collaboratively on creating common language, measurement tools and an overarching framework for what SEL does and should look like in outdoor education.  It’s exciting work, and we are so thankful to NatureBridge for recognizing our organization as a leader in the outdoor education industry, and including Sierra Nevada Journeys on this groundbreaking project.” Said Sean Hill, Education Director, Sierra Nevada Journeys.

NatureBridge is the largest residential education partner of the National Park Service offering programming in six national parks. Thank you to the S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation for funding this collaborative effort among leading outdoor environmental education organizations.

100 Young Women to Attend Girls in STEM Camp at Grizzly Creek Ranch

RENO, Nev. — November 6, 2018 — Over the weekend of Nov. 9, we’ll be hosting 100 girls, ages 10-to-14-years-old, to take their love of STEM to the next level. This innovative partnership brings industry and nonprofits together creating a jam-packed weekend at Grizzly Creek Ranch.

Using Girl Scouts of the Sierra Nevada and Sierra Nevada Journeys’ STEM programming, and Women in Tesla volunteers, this weekend camp is sure to inspire and ignite. More than 30 volunteers will support Sierra Nevada Journeys’ educators in STEM activities ranging from building geodomes to testing their skills on our challenge course.  

Additionally, thanks to the donation of a 100 robot kits by REC Foundation, Friday evening’s activities will kick off with each camper building a working robot. As part of REC’s VEX IQ Curriculum, the young women will follow assembly instructions, build, document their process, and then test the finished robots.

Moreover, the Girls in STEM Camp is paid for by a grant awarded by Tesla to Sierra Nevada Journeys, as part of their initial Nevada K-12 Education Investment Fund and there was no cost for the 100 students to attend camp other than a $25 registration processing fee. The investment by Tesla focuses on Nevada K-12 STEM and sustainability education as part of the Nevada DoE Education Gift Fund.

“We were thrilled that Tesla selected Sierra Nevada Journeys to help deliver outdoor science education to children — especially for low-income and under-served students,” said Eaton Dunkelberger, Sierra Nevada Journeys CEO. “With this investment, we hope that experiences such as the Girls in STEM Camp, could change the life trajectories of these young women and inspire future careers in the STEM field.”

Links to photos from 2018 Girls in STEM camp:

Photos shared by Girl Scouts of Northern Nevada

Sierra Nevada Journeys photo site

Sierra Nevada Journeys Hosts Fourth Annual NGSS Bootcamp for Educators

RENO, Nev. – May 16, 2018 — Sierra Nevada Journeys hosted more than 100 teachers from northern Nevada and northeastern California for the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) training. The three-day program held at our Grizzly Creek Ranch Campus in Portola, California, shared how to incorporate NGSS standards into their classrooms through outdoor-based education.

Sierra Nevada Journeys Education Director, Sean Hill, said, “It has been our best year ever with 110 attendees including teachers, specialists, administrators and pre-service teachers that represented 11 districts across two states.”

NGSS has three distinct dimensions to learning science — crosscutting concepts, science and engineering practices and disciplinary core ideas. “Many science educators are familiar with this framework but what is not commonly known are the shifts in teaching philosophy, instruction and assessment that teachers need to know in order to effectively teach students using the current research,” said Hill.

NGSS Bootcamp brings industry thought leaders together to share ideas and best practices for STEM-based programming that focuses on the outdoors. This year’s program wouldn’t be possible without supporters such as Project Learning Tree which presented all teachers with several free lessons through PLT’s new online curriculum, or “e-units”. Additional partners included: Catamount Fund, Ltd., Intel’s Folsom campus, Nevada Division of Forestry, Nevada’s Northwestern Professional Development Program for Education, Sustainable Forestry Initiative, Washoe County School District, North American Association for Environmental Education EE360 program and Desert Research Institute’s Science Alive program. Collaborations between private, public and nonprofit companies like these fuel Sierra Nevada Journeys’ mission to deliver innovative outdoor, science-based education for youth as well as educators through continuing education.

For additional information on how to support Sierra Nevada Journeys, visit sierranevadajourneys.org.

About Sierra Nevada Journeys

Sierra Nevada Journeys is a 501(c)3 nonprofit that delivers innovative outdoor, science-based education programs for youth to develop critical thinking skills and to inspire natural resource stewardship. Through multiple points of contact, our classroom-based programs, overnight science camps, professional development for teachers, and parent engagement opportunities surround students with resources they need to succeed. All programs are designed to foster higher cognition and build long-term student achievement.