By Jess Garby
I am so excited to officially start my role as the Education Coordinator for Flathead Audubon! Most of you know I have been an avian seasonal technician since 2019, holding a variety of education and research positions throughout Florida, Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. In each of these positions, the end date loomed over my head, yet my ideas for the programs and projects were long term. Now that I am finally in a permanent position, I can give all my efforts to the wonderful organization of Flathead Audubon Society (FAS)!
The programming that Denny Olson developed over the past eight plus years will continue to live on with the work that I do in the schools and our community. My first few days at FAS have been spent training with Denny, as well as diving into the many files, programs, and materials he left behind. I am looking forward to using his tools to build my own programming! Since receiving the job offer, I have had a flurry of ideas enter my head at all times of the day and night. I hope to spread the word of FAS and the love of birds to new audiences through my creative ideas. Some of my ideas include weekly bird themed children’s book readings at the library, creating an FAS based citizen science project, a biannual bird poetry reading, and more.
In the future, you can expect to see me in schools in and around Flathead Valley, educating students of all ages, backgrounds, and experiences. I’d like to expand our programming to include more schools in Whitefish, Columbia Falls, and the nearby reservations, in hopes to diversify our audience. I will be working with the tribes to learn what type of education programming we can help with, as well as working with Flathead Land Trust on field trips in Pablo, Ronan, and the Mission Valley. I am looking forward to leading the Birds of Northwest Montana course at Flathead Valley Community College every Friday, beginning in February. Outside of the classroom, I will be representing FAS at community events, with local organizations and non-profits, and will be involved with nature-based boards, such as the STEAM Alliance (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) and Flathead CORE (Community of Resource Educators).
I will also be working on a variety of operational tasks, such as operating the AV equipment at the monthly meetings, writing press releases, creating and sharing outreach materials, managing the monthly newsletter distribution, posting content on FAS social media sites, and coordinating group use requests at Owen Sowerwine.
I can’t wait to get into the nitty gritty of my position here at FAS. Stay tuned for monthly updates of my progress as the Education Coordinator!