The Environmental Education Association of Illinois' awards program exists to recognize and encourage excellence in the field of environmental education. Please take a moment to nominate a deserving fellow environmental educator for next year's awards (see bottom of page). Nomination forms are always available on this website and are due each year in November.

EEAI Award Recipients

Malcolm D. Swan Award for Outstanding Service
Presented for long-term, outstanding service and contribution to the field of environmental education in Illinois. The Malcolm D. Swan Award is the Association’s most prestigious honor. It is intended to recognize the efforts of those people who have had a large-scale impact in the field.

2010 Recipient: Steve Kolsto, Coordinator of Education, Surface Water Section, Illinois Environmental Protection Agency.
In his long tenure at the Illinois EPA, Steve Kolsto has been key in driving and expanding environmental education throughout the state. One of the many legacies that Steve will always be known for is his creation and implementation of a very popular grant program; the Lake Education Assistance Program (LEAP). The program provides funding up to $500 for school and other not-for-profit organizations’ participation in lake/pond watershed-related educational field trips, equipment, and activities. These critical funds have assisted thousands of students in receiving hands-on environmental education training that would have otherwise not occurred due to funding restraints. Steve was instrumental in creating the water program Dive In!, a hands-on, educational resource day that introduces hundreds of students to an up-close water field experience and the importance of protecting and conserving Illinois’ water. Steve represents the Illinois EPA on various education related committees, including the Conservation Education Advisory Board, Environmental Education Association of Illinois, and IEPA Education. Steve also is on the update committee for the Environmental Literacy Plan for Illinois. Each year, Steve presents teacher workshops which include ENTICE, Living Lands and Water, and Project WET. EEAI expresses gratitude and appreciation to Steve Kolsto for his outstanding service to environmental education.

2009 Recipient: Judy Miller, Environmental Programs Manager, Anita Purves Nature Center
2008 Recipient: Robert L. Carter, Instructor-Department of Teaching and Learning-Northern Illinois University
2006 Recipient: Nan Buckardt - Environmental Education Manager, Lake County Forest Preserve District - Deerfield, IL
2005 Recipient: Angela Smith- Director & Naturalist Sugar Grove Nature Center - McLean, IL
2004 Recipient: Mary Rice, Environmental Education Coordinator and Naturalist Schaumburg Park District's Spring Valley Nature Sanctuary.
2003 Recipient: Kathy Andrews, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Springfield, IL.
2001 Recipient: Suzanne Saric, US EPA Region 5 Environmental Education Program Manager, Chicago. IL

Environmental Educator of the Year (Two Categories)
This award is intended to give recognition to the efforts of those delivering the environmental education message to the public. This person or group may be “just doing their job” but are doing it so well as to deserve recognition from EEAI. There are two categories for this award, formal and non-formal educator.

Formal Educator (PreK-College): Presented for outstanding, ongoing effort in infusing environmental education into teaching.

2010 Recipient: Dr. Jeffrey T. Hoyer, Deerfield High School
EEAI is proud to announce Dr. Jeffrey T. Hoyer as the 2010 Formal Environmental Educator of the Year. Dr. Jeff Hoyer has been teaching high school biology and environmental science for sixteen years at Deerfield High School. He designs lesson plans that make learning a hands-on personal experience for his students. Dr. Hoyer and his students created an outdoor classroom in a prairie garden at their school. The outdoor classroom is equipped with large group stadium style seating for thirty, small group tables and chairs for thirty-two people and a large outdoor chalkboard. Dr. Hoyer and his students also created a 3-D mural of a river ecosystem on the wall of their school’s hallway. The mural paints the big picture of how matter and energy move through a river ecosystem and how living organisms are webbed together to make this happen. Students research and paint individual macroinvertebrates to add to the web of life in the mural each year. Dr. Hoyer not only focuses his attention on his students at Deerfield High School but he also shares his enthusiasm and commitment to the environment with the state of Illinois and beyond. He is involved with many organizations including, the Environmental Education Association of Illinois, National Science Teachers Association, Friends of the Chicago River and the Network of Environmental Science Teachers.

2008 Recipient: David E. Brown, 5th Grade Teacher, Baldwin Intermediate School-West
2006 Recipient: Dr. Marylin Lisowski - Professor, Eastern Illinois University, College of Education - Charleston, IL
2005 Recipient: Renae Frigo - Naturalist Supervisor/Interpreter St. Charles Park District
2004 Recipient: Jill Carter, Instructor and Science Department Chair Pekin Community High School.
2002 Recipient: Anita Scott, Teacher/Director Friendship Corner School- Schaumburg, IL
2001 Recipient: Rick Livesey, Herscher High School, Herscher, IL

Non-Formal Educator (Staff/volunteers working at nature centers, conservation/agriculture agencies, parks, zoos, museums, etc.): Presented for exhibiting innovative and exemplary effort in providing environmental education opportunities for general audiences.

2009 Recipient: Pat Sullivan, Owner of the Peace of Earth Environmental Learning Center.
2008 Recipient: Lara Darling, Environmental Educator and Volunteer Coordinator,Vermilion County Conservation District
2006 Recipient: Tara Wisnewski - Environmental Education Specialist, Forest Preserve District of Will County - Mokena, IL
2005 Recipient: Sally Patterson- Education Coordinator & Naturalist Abraham Lincoln Memorial Garden - Springfield, IL
2004 Recipient: Janet Hawes-Davis, Environmental Education Coordinator Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
2002 Recipient: Sarah Livesay, Champaign County Forest Preserve District (CCFPD)-Champaign, IL.
2001 Recipients: Jill Stites and Char Heckel of the Crane Chronicle Development Team, Lake County Forest Preserve District, Deerfield , IL

 

2001 EEAI Outstanding Service Award:

Cathy Cunningham, Champaign, IL