Mary Davis

What do you do? 
Currently I volunteer an average 20 hrs/week as a Central Carolinas Master Naturalist. My volunteer work takes me to schools, nature preserves and organizations such as Scouts. As a Certified Interpretive Guide, I enjoy teaching groups through hikes or special events. I live next to a nature preserve and work closely with an elementary school across the street to provide environmental education opportunities throughout the year. My Husband and I are both recently retired and we enjoy hiking, cycling, and kayaking in the VA mountains and throughout the Carolinas.

What was your favorite part of earning your certification? 
My favorite part of the certification was getting back in the classroom and teaching. The course work, along with my Master Naturalist Certification and Certified Interpretive Guide training, has helped me approach environmental education with students and community in a new way. I feel the experiences and education I have received have made me more confident in connecting with my audience.

What certification experience stands out for you? 
I was struck by the thorough resources given with each course. The Growing Up Wild course was outstanding in finding the appropriate age level materials to work with small children. I was a University administrator/teacher and had not worked with small children for some time. The courses, along with working with other teachers and sharing ideas, helped me tremendously.

What was your community partnership project and how did it affect the community? 
My community partnership project was to establish artificial nesting habitats (nest boxes) for the Brown Headed Nuthatch and teach the community about the decline of these birds, as well as get them involved in their future survival. It involved setting up nest boxes in preserves, school grounds, parks and backyards, doing presentations on bird friendly communities, training volunteers to monitor nest boxes and reporting data to Cornell Lab of Ornithology. As a result the community has become more aware of the need for natural bird habitats, and the problems of urbanization and deforestation.