1. business and industrial
2. business operations
3. business plans

NAI National Workshop
Denver, Colorado
November 18–22, 2014
Contents/Workshop Overview
230 Cherry Street
Fort Collins, CO 80521
888-900-8283 toll-free
970-484-8283
970-484-8179 fax
www.interpnet.com
board of directors
Executive Committee
Amy Lethbridge, President
Cem Basman, VP for Administration
John C.F. Luzader, VP for Programs
Amy Burnett, Secretary
Theresa Coble, Treasurer
Board Members
Todd Bridgewater
Jose Chavez
Kevin Damstra
Jay Miller
Jeff Miller
John Miller
Jessica Moore
Tom Mullin
Linda Strand
staff
Margo Carlock, Executive Director
Paul Caputo, Deputy Director
Jamie King, Membership Manager
Deborah Tewell, Events Manager
Emily Jacobs, Certification & Training
Program Manager
Carrie Miller, Certification & Training
Coordinator
Richard Smith, Shipping Clerk
Jan Rogers, Administrative Assistant
NAI’s mission is to inspire leadership
and excellence to advance heritage
interpretation as a profession.
Interpretation is a mission-based
communication process that forges
emotional and intellectual connections
between the interests of the audience and
the meanings inherent in the resource.
Monday (Page 3)
Preworkshop Sessions
Advisory Council Meeting
Lunch for Preworkshop Participants
Tuesday (Page 3)
Registration/Check-In
Preworkshop Sessions
NAI Board Meeting
Lunch for Preworkshop Participants
First-Timers Meeting
Opening Reception at the History
Colorado Center
Wednesday (Page 4)
Early-Morning Activities
Registration/Check-In
General Session: Native American
Welcome, NAI Welcome
Keynote Address: Brigette Rouson
NAI Innovation Room
Concurrent Sessions 1 (Page 5)
Marketplace of Ideas (Page 6)
Concurrent Sessions 2 (Page 8)
Concurrent Sessions 3 (Page 9)
Nai Region Meetings
Exhibit Hall Welcome Reception
Interpretive Media Awards
Excellence in Interpretation Awards
Music Room
Know-How Exchange
Thursday (Page 10)
Early-Morning Activities
Registration/Check-In
NAI Innovation Room
Concurrent Sessions 4 (Page 11)
Coffee Break
Silent Auction
Concurrent Sessions 5 (Page 12)
Concurrent Sessions 6 (Page 13)
Lunch Buffet
Learning Lounge
Concurrent Sessions 7 (Page 14)
National Park Service Meeting
Nai Section Meetings
Bureau of Land Management Meeting
US Fish & Wildlife Service Meeting
Exhibit Hall Closing Reception
Special Events Evening
Music Room
Know-How Exchange
Friday (Page 15)
Off-Site Sessions
Integrating Local I&M Information
Meeting
Scholarship Auction
Music Room
Know-How Exchange
Saturday (Page 16)
Early-Morning Activities
Registration/Check-In
NAI Store
Town Hall Meeting
Concurrent Sessions 8 (Page 17)
Concurrent Sessions 9 (Page 18)
Concurrent Sessions 10 (Page 19)
Awards Banquet & Dance
Awards (Page 21)
Professional Award Recipients
Media Awards Recipients (Page 24)
Legacy Awards (Page 25)
Presenters (Page 26)
Exhibitors (Page 28)
Floor Plans (Page 29)
Download the NAI
2014 Mobile App!
Please go to your
respective app
store from your
mobile device
and search
for “2014 NAI
National Workshop.”
Once the app is located in
the app store, install it to
your device, and follow the
guided instructions.
Welcome to the 27th NAI National Workshop at one mile
above sea level in Denver, Colorado. This year’s amazing
team has put together a jam-packed five days of workshops,
sessions, field trips, and social events. You’ll find old
favorites such as silent and live auctions, off-site learning
opportunities, keynote speakers, the exhibit hall, and earlymorning yoga, running, and bird walks. Plus look for some
new experiences including panel presentations, The Amazing
Race–NAI Style, and your passport to the city.
While in Denver, we hope you will find an opportunity to
enjoy some of what the city has to offer, whether your passion
is theater, museums, parks, shopping, or a trip to the nearby
mountains. There truly is something for everyone. Be sure to
let a committee member know if there is anything we can do
to make your visit more worthwhile.
Get ready to scale new heights as you reconnect with old
friends and colleagues and make new friends who share your
passions and interests. This is an amazing group of diverse and
talented individuals who all share a love of interpretation. Now
it is time to drink your water, put on some sunscreen, charge
the batteries in your electronic note-taking equipment, and
embark on an adventure that can change your life. So whether
you call the city Denver, the Mile High City, or the Queen City,
the workshop committee, along with Deb Tewell and the rest of
the NAI staff, welcomes you and hopes you have a great visit.
2014 NAI National Workshop Committee
Karin Hostetter
Workshop Chair
OnCell
Sue Kenney
Program Chair
Aly Baltrus
Publicity Chair
Welcome to NAI 2014!
NAI’s annual conference provides an opportunity for members
of the interpretation community from throughout the country
(and members from overseas) to get together for professional
development, networking, and problem-solving. This year
the Mile High City will provide a heady atmosphere for the
exchange of ideas and enhancement of skills.
We are also excited to be formally introducing the new
five-year strategic plan for the association as it seeks to
address the needs of the interpretation field today and in
the future. Over a year in the making, this plan has been
created based on countless hours and pages of input from our
members and other stakeholders. And for all of you who took
the time to let us know your thoughts—thank you! Please
plan to attend the town hall meeting general session Saturday
morning and participate in the discussion of next steps—how
to achieve the goals we have all set for ourselves and make the
plan a real road map to the future.
Not to be overlooked are the many opportunities for
recharging our creative batteries and enjoying time spent with
colleagues new and familiar. We look forward to meeting
you over the next several days, and please do feel comfortable
approaching either of us or any other member of the Board
and staff if you have any questions or concerns, or if you just
want to say hello!
Amy Lethbridge, NAI President
Margo Carlock, NAI Executive Director
AJ Chlebnik
Volunteer Chair
Amy Lethbridge
NAI President
Margo Carlock
Executive Director
November 18–22, 2014 1
WELCOME
Sponsors & Partners
Welcome to Denver!
ABOUT THE WORKSHOP
Agency Meetings
The following federal agencies will
hold meetings for their employees:
About the Workshop
Emergency Phone Number
Contact the Sheraton Denver
Downtown at 303-893-3333.
Name Tags and Tickets
Pick up your name tag when you
check in at the conference registration
desk and wear it to all events. It
guarantees entrance to all conference
meals, sessions, and special activities.
Extra tickets are needed for all off-site
sessions and some special events. Please
be prepared to show your meal tickets.
Separate tickets are needed for guests.
For information, visit the ticket-trader
table or conference registration.
Daily Newsletter
Check the workshop newsletter, Mile
High News, for schedule changes
and other information. They will be
available at the registration desk and
during plenary sessions.
Shipping
We will have The UPS Store
available in the registration area
10:00am–2:00pm Saturday to handle
shipping. So go ahead buy a big thing
at the auction, load up on books at the
NAI store, or send home your dirty
clothes. It’s all good.
Freebie Table
Drop off or gather information about
interpretive sites and programs at this
table in the registration area.
Ticket Trading
To trade, sell, or buy a ticket to a
conference special event, visit the tickettrader table located in the conference
registration area. If you need to buy
a ticket, please check with the tickettrader table. The ticket-trader table is
cash only. (Note: Ticket-trader funds not
picked up by the end of the workshop
will be considered a donation to the
scholarship auction.)
Auction Items
Drop off auction items by Friday at the
auction table to be placed in the silent
or live auction. Proceeds support the
NAI Scholarship Fund, which supports
students in the field of interpretation.
Auction items not picked up by Friday
night will be resold Saturday.
Silent Auction
Silent auctions will run Thursday and
Friday (see the schedule for specific
times). Stop by to bid on your favorite
items. Auction winners will be posted
in the registration area and in the daily
newsletter. Pay for items at registration
or at Friday night’s live auction. Pick
up items after they are paid for from
auction storage before or after the live
auction.
Interpretive Career Fair
Drop off resumes, make an appointment
for an interview, or meet a potential
employer. Look for the Career Fair
booth near conference registration.
This is hosted by NAI’s College and
University Academics Section.
US Forest Service
2:15–4:15pm, Wednesday
National Park Service
2:30–4:30pm, Thursday
Bureau of Land Management
3:45–4:45pm, Thursday
US Fish & Wildlife Service
4:00–5:30pm, Thursday
Volunteers
If you’d like to volunteer
to help out behind the
scenes, sign up at the
volunteer table in the
registration area. There
is a list of positions that
need to be filled. If you
have signed up to volunteer ahead of
time, please check in to confirm your
assignments. Those who volunteer four
or more hours will receive a volunteer
pin (pictured here at actual size).
Music Room
Bring a musical instrument, relax,
swap stories, meet new friends, sing,
and reunite with friends in the Capitol
Room after the evening’s activities
start winding down. Check the
program guide for specific hours.
Know-How Exchange
Everyone has that special little
something that they could share, or
even teach. We’re going to give you
a chance to do just that—exchange
your know-how for someone else’s.
After the day’s activities, bring your
whittling, flint knapping, knitting, or
whatever and share your know-how
or just sit and enjoy the evening
while you ply your craft. Bring all the
equipment and supplies you need plus
a little more to share.
Learning Lounge
Exhibitors will offer educational
sessions in a “Learning Lounge” set up
in the exhibit hall on Thursday. This
year, we have set aside a corner of the
hall expressly for these 15-minute
sessions. Stop by to find out what they
are ready to share.
2 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
Tuesday
Preworkshop sessions
8:00am–5:00pm
Registration/Check-In
7:00am–6:00pm, Tower, South Lobby
Interpreter’s Road Show
Meet at 8:30am for departure.
Tower Court B (Brian Thill)
Preworkshop sessions
8:00am–5:00pm
Unique Sense of Place Stories: How
to Inspire Personal Connections to
Place
Tower Court A (Erica Wheeler)
Creating Stories that Make a
Difference: Interpretive Writing
Workshop
Tower Court C (Judy Fort Brenneman)
Living History on the Santa Fe Trail:
A Night and a Day in the Life of
Bent’s Old Fort
Meet at 7:30am for departure.
Tower, South Lobby (Bill Weldon, John
C.F. Luzader, Alexa Roberts)
Advisory Council Meeting
12:00–3:00pm
Windows Room
Lunch for Preworkshop
Participants
(ticketed event)
12:00–1:00pm
Tower Court D
Interpreter’s Road Show
Meet at 8:30am for departure.
Tower Court B (Brian Thill)
Unique Sense of Place Stories: How
to Inspire Personal Connections to
Place
Tower Court A (Erica Wheeler)
Creating Stories that Make a
Difference: Interpretive Writing
Workshop
Tower Court C (Judy Fort Brenneman)
Mastering Dialogic Interpretation
Spruce Room (Doug Knapp, Brian
Forist, Eric Knackmuhs)
Interpreting Climate Change with
National Network of Ocean and
Climate Change Interpretation
Tower Court A (John Anderson, Simone
Mortan)
Keep that Cutting Edge: Reaching
Peak Facilitation
Gold Room (Denise Berkshire, Christal
Florin, Terry Joyce)
Lunch for Preworkshop
Participants
(ticketed event)
12:00–1:00pm
Tower Court D
First-Timer Meeting
4:30–5:15pm
Silver Room
Meet fellow newcomers and NAI
leaders, and learn how to make the most
of your NAI Workshop experience.
Opening Reception:
HIstory colorado center
($15 in advance, $20 day of)
5:00–7:00pm
Our group will arrive after the center
closes to the general public. We will
enjoy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar as
well as access to high-tech, hands-on
galleries that take a thematic approach
in sharing the stories and spirit of
Colorado’s people over the last 10,000
years. Buses will run on a loop from
Court Street, across from hotel
entrance, to the History Colorado
Center. Tickets are available at the
conference registration desk in the
Sheraton until 6:00.
NAI Board of directors
Meeting
8:00am–5:00pm
Windows Room
Interpretation & Design
1O6 GROUP
Connecting People + Place + Time
106group.com
Interpretive Planning
Graphic Design
Community Engagement
Grant Writing
Exhibits & Waysides
Cultural Tourism Planning
Video & Interactive Media
Tribal & Cultural Relations
St Paul MN
Washington
DC
Richmond
VA Colorado | November
NAI National Workshop
| Denver,
18–22, 2014
3
MONDAY–TUESDAY
Monday
WEDNESDAY
Wednesday at a Glance
Early Morning Activities
6:00am
Yoga/Stretch, Beverly Room
Birding, Meet near conference
registration desk
Run/Jog/Walk, Meet near conference
registration desk
Registration/Check-In
7:00am–4:00pm, Tower, South Lobby
GENERAL SESSION
8:00–9:45am, Grand Ballroom
Native American Welcome, NAI
Welcome, Keynote Address
Keynote Speaker
Brigette Rouson is a life strategist,
visionary, and spiritually based
activist. For more than 25 years, she
has worked to build effectiveness
toward a just society.
She focuses on building personal
and public will for a world where
all people have the resources and
opportunities to lead healthy lives
and seeking justice for all people—
women, people of color, youth, and
other groups—in support of vibrant
communities and a sustainable
planet.
Her keynote, “Embracing
Cultural Competency: Powering
Up Interpretation,” will address
the positive power of being able to
interact effectively in the context
of diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. Her work
focuses particularly on the context
of program development, human
resources, non-profit organizations,
and government agencies in relation
to their workplaces and broader
communities.
An attorney and author, Brigette
brings experience from a variety
of careers. Her current work
includes consulting to public interest
organizations, teaching, action
research, writing, and advocacy.
4 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
NAI Innovation Room
10:00am–4:30pm, Terrace Room
Curiosity. Provocation. Ideas.
Creativity. Innovation. Potential. Join
us for five minutes or five hours!
Unleash your creative spirit and help
your profession help you!
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 1
10:00–11:00am (Page 5)
MARKETPLACE OF IDEAs
10:00am–12:15pm (Page 6)
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
Block 2
11:15am–12:15pm (Page 8)
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 3
2:15–3:45pm (Page 9)
US Forest Service Meeting
2:15–4:15pm, Terrace Room
NAI Region Meetings
4:00–5:00pm
Region 1 (Northeast), Tower Court A
Region 2 (Chesapeake), Tower Court B
Region 3 (Southeast), Colorado
Region 4 (Great Lakes), Tower Court D
Region 5 (Heartland), Tower Court C
Region 6 (South Central), Windows
Region 7 (Rocky Mountain), Denver
Region 8 (Southwest), Century
Region 9 (Sierra Pacific), Spruce
Region 10 (Pacific Northwest), Gold
Exhibit Hall WELCOME
Reception
4:30–6:00pm
Meet up with colleagues and greet our
exhibitors, who will have their booths
set up tonight and tomorrow only. Wear
your ugliest sweater for the photo booth!
Interpretive Media Awards
6:00–6:45pm, Silver Room
Join us as we recognize the best
entries into NAI’s annual Interpretive
Media Competition. The entries are
non-personal interpretive media that
were released to the public during 2013.
Excellence in
Interpretation Awards
7:00–9:00pm, Silver Room
Federal agency leaders will present award
recipients. Agencies represented include
the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers, the Bureau of Land
Management, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife
Service, the U.S. Forest Service, the
National Park Service, and NAI.
Music Room
10:00pm–12:00am, Capitol Room
Bring your own instrument and jam
with other musicians or just come and
listen.
Know-How Exchange
10:00pm–12:00am, Beverly Room
Everybody knows how to do something
special. Bring your talent to share with
others, whether it be whittlin’, knittin’,
moccasin makin’, or something less
well-known.
Tweeting about
the Workshop?
Use the hash tag #NAI2014.
Follow NAI at @NAIinterpret.
Concurrent Sessions: Block 1 Wednesday 10:00–11:00am
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Conservation Educators: Taking our
Practice to the Next Level
Connecting Teachers to Science:
A Decade of Successful Teacher
Workshops in Alaska
Open
Mandy Kirchgessner, Sarena Randall Gill
Join our discussion on conservation
education programs and how we can
take our practices and field to the next
level. Evaluation and training will be
central to discussion.
Jim Pfeiffenberger, Laurie Morrow
Alaska SeaLife Center and National
Park Service staff will share a decade
of experience and lessons learned
organizing and presenting successful
teacher workshops. Come learn and
share your own experience.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
The Roving Constructivist
Researches: Preliminary Results
from a Study of Visitor Connections
Through Informal Interpretation
Water You Know? A Look at Water
Use in the American West—Then and
Now
Marketplace of Ideas
Brian Forist
Roving interpretation is a two-way form
of communication engaging rather than
instructing visitors. Preliminary results
from a study of visitor connections
through informal interpretation in
national parks will be presented.
Kristin Libberton
Participants test their knowledge and
find out “water they know” about
water use, past and present, and how to
communicate that to audiences through
storytelling, demonstration, group
participation, and humor.
10:00am–12:15pm
Check out great projects on display and
talk to the people behind them.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
From Squeamish to Comfortable:
Interpreting and Respecting the
Misunderstood
Sex, Lies, and Rattlesnakes
Interpretation is for the Birds—and
the Flowers and the Trees!
Adrienne Amanda Thompson
Learn adaptable techniques for
interpreting feared, hated, or
misunderstood species through
experiential learning, sound, movement,
humor, and unusual and awesome
aspects that help people make a
connection.
Mary Ann Bonnell
Prepare yourself for visitor questions
about rattlesnakes with an interactive
and engaging review of the fascinating
sex lives, ecology, and biology of a
creature most are loathe to encounter.
Dorothy McLeer, Orin Gelderloos
Interpretive techniques are integrated
into Field Biology 320 instruction,
taught outdoors at the University of
Michigan-Dearborn. The campus’s
300-acre Environmental Study Area
presents opportunities for multiple
learning styles and self-teaching.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Engaging Latino Audiences in
Informal Science Education
Connecting Local Story and
Landscape in Quetico Provincial
Park
Interpretation on the Run
Susan Bonfield
Jill Legault
Tap into subtleties, anecdotes, and
the power of a place. Come learn how
Quetico Provincial Park’s past and
present became tangible and accessible
through interpreting stories of the local
community.
Nikki Hinds, Dan Albro
Interpretation for those on the run!
Share techniques, brainstorm new ideas,
and explore the use of body language to
make the most of short interactions with
visitors to your site.
November 18–22, 2014 5
Learn about some of the challenges to
engaging Latinos in programs at natural
areas and methods of improving our
outreach to this audience.
WEDNESDAY
Century Room
WEDNESDAY
Marketplace of Ideas, Silver Room
Best of the Butterfly Festival Ladies and gentlemen, and
larvae of all stages! Many interpreters have heard of the awardwinning Mount Magazine Butterfly Festival, and this is your
chance to let your imagination take flight! (Lori Spencer)
Communicating about Climate Change: Media
& Messages to Inspire Action A Climate Change
communications project using wayside exhibits, citizen science
data collection, and web-based learning (to convey primary
information, hopeful messages, and resources for personal
action). (Chip Isenhart)
Experiential Program Design Help your audience learn
more, remember more. Consider how to lead activities with an
experiential approach to learning: Experience, share, process,
generalize, and apply the information. (Robin Galloway)
Visual Thinking Strategies: The Art Education Cousin of
Facilitated Dialogue Visual Thinking Strategies, or “VTS,” is
a long-standing interpretive format used by many prestigious
museums to guide tours, particularly art tours. VTS is visitor
focused and encourages maximum audience participation.
(Ronald Woodall)
Sustainability Issues and Visitors Learn how to incorporate
sustainability issues into your interaction with visitors so it
informs but doesn’t lecture by playing games, giving them
challenges, etc. (Keith Denton)
Project Edubat Edubat! Engage visitors with bats! Bats are
fascinating animals that are vital to our environment. We are
rapidly losing millions of our bats to a disease called white-nose
syndrome. (Diane Joop)
Interpreting Play: Beyond the Ball It is important to
interpret playful experiences, to make sure participants don’t
consider them “silly.” To interpret play, look at the beginning and
the ending—the briefing and the debriefing. (Toya Jervay)
Art You Glad They Came? Discover how you can utilize the
Junior Duck Stamp program to connect your visitors to the
nation’s amazing water birds and inspire their participation in
an artistic celebration of wildlife. (Aubrey Hall)
A Digital Renaissance: Reinventing NPS.gov The NPS.gov
experience is undergoing a significant makeover to improve
visitor satisfaction, connection, discoverability, particularly for
programs, parks, and stories that are lesser known. (Tim Cash)
Developing a Guest Services Training Program for Staff,
Volunteers, and Vendors Learn how to develop, implement,
6 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
and evaluate a five-star guest service program for all staff,
volunteers, and vendors so your guest will have a “Best Day
Ever” experience. (Marsha Celesta)
Time to Excel at Interpretation Are you interested in
improving as a seasonal interpreter or as a supervisor of seasonal
interpreters looking for ways to help them excel in the world of
interpretation? (Shelley Flanary, Tära Gillanders)
Promoting Wellness & Life Satisfaction through Travel,
Recreation, and Community Engagement Learn about
the importance of full participant/whole community inclusion
at interpretive sites for success with volunteers, staff, advisory
boards, and visitors, that happen to have a functional or access
need. (Jennifer Byerly)
Wednesday, 10:00am–12:15pm
Booker Bootcamp: Children Learn by Doing with Hands,
Head, and Heart Learn about a boot camp that motivates
children to be active learners while performing the jobs Booker
T. Washington had as an enslaved person. (Betsy Haynes)
Creating Themes, Connecting Corridors Explore a
theme-based approach to addressing the challenges of creating
meaningful partnerships along a corridor. (Regine Kennedy)
Creating Sustainable Communities through Positively
Themed Interpretation Sustainable living is often framed as an
unappealing reduction in standard of living. Positively themed
principles reveal sustainable living as a major increase in quality
of life. (Richard Jurin)
Working Together for Wildlife: Partners in Black-Footed
Ferret Recovery Legislation recently passed to reintroduce
endangered black-footed ferrets in Colorado. The U.S. Fish &
Wildlife Service partners with various agencies and landowners
to release them back into the wild. (Kimberly Tamkun)
Interpretive Accommodations for Visitors Who Are Deaf
or Hard of Hearing in the National Park Service
Learn about interpretive accommodations provided to visitors
who are deaf or hard of hearing in the National Park Service,
including guidance for and barriers of provision. (Elsa Hansen)
Project WET and National Parks: Partnerships in the
Midwest Project WET and the National Park Service have a
partnership that encourages using research data for classrooms
and interpretive programming. We will discuss programs and let
participants share ideas. (Theresa Johnson)
Forging New Partnerships in Pursuit of the Next
Generation of Interpreters Connecting youth with history
isn’t easy! A recent partnership between Fountain Valley School
and Bent’s Old Fort NHS illustrates ways to share sites, history,
and the power of interpretation. (Heather Domangue)
Doug Elliott’s Woodslore and Wildwoods Wisdom:
Interpretive Materials and Ideas Doug Elliott will be sharing
his Woodslore, Weeds, Baskets, Bees, Books, Recordings,
Demonstrations, Stories, Songs, Natural History Interpretive
Ideas, Wildwoods Wisdom, Belly Laughs, and Woodchuckles.
Come check it all out. (Doug Elliott)
Send Your Outreach Message Home! Make your outreach
message stick! Customized button machine magnets send your
message home. When designs are colored by kids, your message
will live on the refrigerator forever. Inner Child Approved.
(Susan Neel-Goodsir)
Reflecting on Practice: A Professional Development
Program for Informal Science Educators This session
advances the conversation about how the field can prepare
its professionals through a discussion on the implications
of institutional investments in its educational professionals.
(Karen Burns)
Dinner with a Stranger
Traveling alone? Or maybe you just don’t like the people
you’re traveling with? Want to meet new people?
Meet in the registration area each evening at 6:00pm to
join an informal group for dinner.
Exhibit Design and Fabrication Services
•
•
•
•
•
InterpretivePlanning&CreativeDesign
OrganizedProjectManagement
Museum-QualityCasework
InteractiveEnvironments
Full-ServiceArtisticStudio
Stop by our booth to ask us about this
year’s award-winning exhibit at
Jewel Cave National Monument!
Jewel Cave National Monument
Custer, SD
www.splitrockstudios.com
•
2071 Gateway Boulevard, St. Paul, MN 55112
This second edition of Interpretive Planni
ng: The 5-M Model for Successful
Planning Projects draws from the author
’s more than three decades of
experience in creating interpretive plans,
and explains the process she has
taught to hundreds of interpreters. This
book can be a valuable tool for those
wishing to develop an interpretive plan
as well as those aspiring to work as a
consultant or planner.
Planning
Lisa Brochu specializes in interpretive
master planning, interpretive writing
,
and training. Lisa served as associate
director for the national Association
for interpretation for a decade, during
which time she was responsible for
planning, development, and supervision
of programs, products, and services
for the organization. Before joining the
nAi staff, Lisa was a freelance
consultant and completed more than
150 projects for a wide variety of
private, municipal, county, state, and
federal agencies around the world. she
has taught numerous classes and worksh
ops related to interpretation and
is recognized as a leading authority in
the field. Lisa co-authored Personal
Interpretation: Connecting Your Audien
ce to Heritage Resources and Put
the HEART Back In Your Community:
Unifying Diverse Interests Around a
Central Theme with tim Merriman and
Interpretation by Design: Graphic
Design Basics for Heritag
e Interpreters with
second
edition
Paul caputo and shea Lewis.
Lisa is a certified interpretive Planne
r and a certified interpretive trainer,
and has won numerous awards for her
work in the United states and abroad
,
including the prestigious Fellow Award
, the highest honor given by nAi to
recognize excellence, innovation, and
leadership in the field of interpretation
.
The 5-M Model for Successful Planning Projects
This second edition of Interpretive Planning: The 5-M
Model for Successful Planning Projects draws from
author Lisa Brochu’s more than three decades of
experience in creating interpretive plans, and explains
the process she has taught to hundreds of interpreters.
This book can be a valuable tool for those wishing to
develop an interpretive plan as well as those aspiring
to work as a consultant or planner.
ISBN 978-1-879931-31-2
9 781879 931312
Available in the NAI Store!
interpretive Planning
Interpretive
651.631.2211
Bro c h U
New from interpPress!
•
interpretive
Planning
The 5-M Model
for Successful
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Lisa Bro chu
THURSDAY
Visit us at Booth #312
WEDNESDAY
Concurrent Sessions: Block 2
Century Room
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Is That an Open-Ended Question?
How to Manipulate an Audience
Training for NAI Leadership
The “open-ended question” can be
elusive. Ready to find your question(s)?
Participate, question, and get some tips/
tricks to differentiate between open and
closed questions. Walk out with open
questions.
Simple psychological principles are
wielded against you daily by the
sales industry. Do they have a role
for modifying behavior in the world
of interpretation, or is the visitor
sovereign?
This informative session is designed to
help the leadership of NAI’s organizational
units meet the needs of their members.
Learn about the services that the NAI
office provides for all Organizational Units,
including accounting, membership, website
services, meeting planning, and contract
review.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Professional Development Ascends
to New Heights
Becoming a Local in Two Weeks:
Creating Engaged Seasonal Staff
Marketplace of Ideas
Julia C. Clebsch
Karin Hostetter, Emily Jacobs, Peggy
Schaller
“Ascend new heights” using the wonders
of technology for staff professional
development. Explore online webinars
and short courses through the
experiences of student, teacher, webinar
planner, and short course coordinator.
Skot Latona
Sarah Johnson
New seasonal interpreters are expected
to be knowledgeable guides after only a
couple weeks of training. Learn many
practical ideas to help create engaged
seasonal staff invested in their place.
Margo Carlock
10:00am–12:15pm
Check out great projects on display and
talk to the people behind them.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
A Listening Session: How Can the
National Park Service Best Support
Field-Based Science Interpretation
and Education?
Making a Case for Mobile Tours
Sense of Place and Interpretation
Sara Melena, Alice Wondrak Biel, Mike
DeBacker, Mike Whatley
This session is designed to facilitate
a discussion about science and
interpretation and explore how
science can support and integrate with
interpretive services.
8 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
Wednesday, 11:15am–12:15pm
Thomas Dunne, Sarah Rhodes-Ondi,
Cheryl Hazlitt, Diane Souder, Laura
Cohen
Have you thought about making the
leap into mobile, but aren’t sure where to
begin? Hear your colleagues hash out the
pros and cons of both audio guides and
mobile apps, including details about the
obstacles they overcame while launching
their mobile strategies. You’ll find out
why you can’t stifle the urge to go mobile!
Erica Wheeler
The Soulful Stewardship Method
provides a practical toolkit to generate
fresh program content, create authentic
interactive visitor experiences, and
evoke relevant, meaningful connections
to your site.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Connecting Children in the Digital
Age to Nature
Wildlife Stories on the Go!
From Idea to Exhibit: “A Salmon
Forest”
Joy Kacoroski
Technology has become an essential
part of our daily lives, though little is
known about the role technology plays
in nature. Learn how children in the
digital age connect to nature.
Susan Staple
What are effective interpretive techniques
for sharing an important wildlife
story with 3.1 million visitors along
the country’s busiest highway in Banff
National Park? Join me to discover how!
Amy Gulick, Nikki Hinds
What does it take to create a successful
exhibit with multiple collaborators?
Learn by example through “A Salmon
Forest,” a new multimedia exhibit at
Alaska’s Mendenhall Glacier Visitor
Center.
Concurrent Sessions: Block 3
Wednesday, 2:15–3:45pm
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Hot Topics in Interpretation
Roundtable
Nurturing the Inner Scientist: Urban
Early Childhood Education Science
Literacy Programs with Wilmington
State Parks
Bloggers Anonymous
Jessica C. Moore
Join fellow interpreters to discuss a
variety of topics that are impacting
many of our organizations, programs,
and interactions. Bring your own ideas
to participate in this interactive session.
Barbara Woodford, Liz Androskaut
Roll up your sleeves and channel
your inner scientist in this hands-on
workshop highlighting program
content, pre/post activities, and
hands-on, age-appropriate experiments
and active play.
Sharol Nelson-Embry
Come one, come all—from the
nationally recognized to those just
starting a blog! Bring your favorite
blogging sites and burning questions,
share your experience, and develop your
blogging network.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
All in the Family: Family and Youth
Volunteers
Living History Archeology:
Rediscovering the Past Through
Living It Today
No Session
Sheryl A. Kippen, Philip Waltz, Natty
Bayer, Angela Caudill, Wesley Jones
John C.F. Luzader
Presenters will discuss ways that their
institutions’ programs use families and/
or youths as volunteers. What rules
correspond with these volunteer groups;
what are joys and surprises; what are
some challenges?
Our past is replete with daily life
mysteries that provoke the question,
“How was that done?” This session
examines living history programs that
“relive” the past and rediscover our
heritages.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Waking the Dead: Making Meaningful
Living History
Engage Your Audience: Using Songs
and Costumes in Interpretation
Creating a Seamless Collaboration:
Interpreter and Visual Designer
The past is a foreign country: renew your
passport. Dive into bringing the dead
back to life and helping visitors find
meaningful experiences. Push beyond
the hokey to the profound.
Want to create inspiring interpretive
programming? Bring your curiosity
along to this interactive workshop
and learn how to incorporate simple
costumes and songs into engaging
interpretive programs for diverse
audiences.
Good communication between
interpreter and artist/designer is key
to conveying a message. Discover steps
to turn ideas and words into successful
displays where interpretive stories are
enhanced with visual impact.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Ten Tips for Trainers: Making Your
Interpretation Workshops More…
Interpretive!
Serving Diverse Audiences
and Supporting National STEM
Standards through Interpretive
Curriculum-Based Programs
Interpretation: HashtagLikeShare
John M. Rudy
Kelly Farrell
Reed Osler
Allyson Gantt, Robert Powell
The presenters examine both the
interpretive practices and the outcomes
of Everglades National Park’s interpretive
curriculum-based education programs,
which serve a highly diverse student
population.
Jackie Lynn Sanderson, Marjorie Leggitt
Sarena Randall Gill, Kevin Danger
Wright
How do we make our interpretation
“viral”—engaging enough to be
shared? This session focuses on viral
media trends, applying these trends
to interpretation, and what skills are
needed to be successful.
November 18–22, 2014 9
Is your training enjoyable/engaging/
experiential? Do you model what you
mandate? Get tips for being a top-notch
trainer with fun, interactive sample
lessons/activities from NAI’s CIG
curriculum, and share your ideas.
WEDNESDAY
Century Room
THURSDAY
Thursday at a Glance
Early Morning Activities
6:00am
Yoga/Stretch, Beverly Room
Birding, Meet near conference
registration desk
Run/Jog/Walk, Meet near conference
registration desk
Registration/Check-In
7:00am–5:00pm, Tower, South Lobby
NAI Innovation Room
8:00am–4:30pm, Terrace Room
Curiosity. Provocation. Ideas.
Creativity. Innovation. Potential. Join
us for five minutes or five hours!
Unleash your creative spirit and help
your profession help you!
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 4
8:00–9:00am (Page 11)
Coffee Break
9:00–9:45am, Exhibit Hall
SILENT AUCTION 1
9:00am–2:00pm, Exhibit Hall
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 5
9:45–10:45am (Page 12)
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 6
11:00am–12:30pm (Page 13)
Lunch Buffet
12:30–2:30pm, Exhibit Hall
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 7
2:30–3:30pm (Page 14)
National Park Service
Meeting
2:30–4:30pm, Columbine Room
SILENT AUCTION 2
2:45–5:45pm, Exhibit Hall
Section Meetings
3:45–4:45pm
Attend a meeting that interests you!
College & University Academics,
Terrace Room
Council for the Interpretation of
Native Peoples, Tower Court B
Cultural Interpretation & Living
History, Colorado Room
Environmental Education, Tower
Court D
International Interpretation, Tower
Court C
Interpretation & Tourism, Windows
Room Interpretive Media, Denver Room
Interpretive Naturalist, Century Room
Nature Center Directors &
Administrators, Spruce Room
Zoos, Wildlife Parks, & Aquaria, Gold
Room
Bureau of Land
management Meeting
3:45–4:45pm, Silver Room
US Fish & wildlife service
Meeting
4:00–5:30pm, Tower Court A
Exhibit Hall Closing
Reception
4:30–6:00pm
Don’t miss your last chance to see
exhibitors and a great place to connect
with friends. Open bar.
Special Events Evening
Meet in the convention center lobby.
Check Ticket Trader for tickets. Your
ticket is in your name badge holder.
The Soulful Campfire
7:30–10:00pm, Tower Court D
History through the Lens of a Beer
Glass: NAI Interpretive Pub Crawl
5:00–9:30pm, Meet at conference
registration desk
History’s Most Misunderstood
Characters
7:30–9:30pm, Silver Room
International Interpretation, Family
Style
8:00–9:00pm, Windows Room
10 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
Learning Lounge
Presentations by exhibitors in the
exhibit hall.
Inspired Fabrication for the Art of
Interpretation
Creative Edge, 1:00–1:15pm
Come learn how big the fabrication
world can be. Maps. Images. Logos.
Exhibits. Stone. Ceramic. Brass and
bronze. Floor coverings. Indoors/
outdoors. Find out how waterjet
enhances your interpretation.
Picture This: Image Research,
Acquisition, & Tracking
106 Group, 1:30–1:45pm
Join us as we walk through the image
acquisition process from contacting
repositories and determining the
image size needed through ensuring
that contractual obligations are
understood and met.
A Thoughtful Approach to Exhibit
Design + Development
The Design Minds, 2:00–2:15pm
Interpretation guides our design
philosophy. Join us for a discussion of
how NAI-based principles shape our
process to communicate our clients’
stories.
Whose Story is it Anyway? Engaging
Short Form Video
Post Modern Company, 5:15–5:30pm
Things have changed over the past
few years. We will discuss fresh and
captivating ways to create short form
videos that tell stories worth sharing.
Music Room
10:00pm–12:00am, Capitol Room
Bring your own instrument and jam
with other musicians or just come and
listen.
Know-How Exchange
10:00pm–12:00am, Beverly Room
Everybody knows how to do
something special. Bring your talent
to share with others, whether it be
whittlin’, knittin’, moccasin makin’, or
something less well-known.
Concurrent Sessions: Block 4Thursday, 8:00–9:00am
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Focus on Family: Research on
Family Learning in Free-Choice
Settings
Strategies and Techniques for Mobile
Interpretation of Landscapes and
Museums
Open
Ana Houseal, Colleen Bourque
This presentation-discussion format will
engage participants in exploring family
learning in free-choice settings through
current research, connections to realtime experiences, and crowd-sourcing as
a way to move research forward.
Mark Tebeau, Clayton Hanson, Anna
Harbine
Technology has transformed how and
when we engage audiences at our sites.
Explore the theories and practices
needed to develop and implement
mobile interpretive strategies for your
audience.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
The Wayside Olympics: Techniques
for Creating Effective Signage
Nature Center Directors &
Administrators Roundtable
It’s All There: Story, Nature, and
Interpretation
Join members of NAI’s NCDA Section
as we participate in an informative and
collaborative roundtable discussion
about issues, trends, and problem
solving at nature centers and visitor
centers.
How to use storytelling, including
personal experience, folklore, natural
history, scientific facts, traditional
mythology, dialogue, dialect, and humor
to craft engaging narratives about the
resources and sites we are interpreting
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Can We Train Tourism Providers of
Different Educational Levels to Offer
Interpretive Programs?
Interpretation from the Top Down:
Utilizing Themes to Guide Strategic
Planning and Site Development
Juggling Social Media Interpretation
Participatory interpretation integrates
in complementary fashion differently
educated managers, interpreters, and
academics to create visitor experiences
beneficial to developing countries or
sites that lack professionals to offer such
interpretive products.
Explore the ways in which themes
and interpretation can be utilized to
guide long-range plans. Learn how
interpretation can be implemented to
help you make sound strategic decisions.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Playful Parks: How to Infuse
Play into Your Landscape, Your
Programs, and with Your Staff
Tragedy Strikes: A Death in the
Program
Assignment Tanzania: Building
Community Capacity Through
Interpretation
Jim Buchholz, Ron Zimmerman, Megan
Espe
Sit in the judge’s chair and scrutinize
interpretive panel competitors from
around the world. Discover simple
yet powerful techniques for designing
attractive and meaningful wayside
exhibits.
Marisol Mayorga, Jon Kohl
Kimberly A. Swift, Mike DeBacker
NCDA Officers & Members
Shannon M. DeYoung, Kimberly A. High
Dan Block
What are you prepared for? We had an
accident during one of our programs
and participants died. I would like to
share details and lessons learned about
the tragedy.
Doug Elliott
David Krueger
Communicate with today’s mobile,
connected society and get your other
work done by successfully managing
social media interpretation.
Bonnie D. Lippitt
Travel to Tanzania, Africa, and
experience how developing and
implementing an interpretive plan for a
community-based Wildlife Management
Area resulted in much more than new
interpretive media.
November 18–22, 2014 11
Learn how to identify free play sites that
mitigate natural resource harm while
maximizing the benefits of unstructured
play. Then hear about how one national
park, Indiana Dunes, created a Nature
Play Zone for children and infused play
into their programs.
THURSDAY
Century Room
THURSDAY
Concurrent Sessions: Block 5Thursday, 9:45–10:45am
Century Room
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Interpretive Media: Balancing Exhibit
Technology Options with Cost,
Maintenance, and Staff Time
Engaging Pre-Schoolers Through
Little PEEPS
2015 Workshop Interest Meeting
Regine Kennedy
Are you having a hard time deciding
which interpretive media is best for
your site’s stories? Learn how to balance
technology with cost, maintenance, and
staff time!
Learn how to create a pre-school
program for ages 2–5 that involves story
time, active games, crafts, and snacks
based on a monthly theme. Curriculum
ideas provided for NAI attendees.
Deb Tewell
Come learn how the NAI National
Workshop works, volunteer to make
Virginia Beach tick, meet the great 2015
workshop committee, and find out how
you can help them out.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Birds of a Feather Bring Kids
Together
Visions from Out of the Box
Kids Have the Darnedest
Observations—Phase 1
Sharol Nelson-Embry, Ira Bletz
Learn exciting activities and fun
games while you discover easy and
effective techniques to teach about
bird identification and behavior. Help
build lifelong connections that foster
environmental ethics and stewardship.
Sue Baker
“Hands-on” takes a literal meaning when
providing interpretation for visually
impaired audiences. Learn to link
out-of-the-box thinking with analogies,
opening new avenues to present your
programs.
Pete Salmon, Cory Rodeheaver
During this initial phase of our
longer-term study, taped interviews
with third and fourth graders about
their impressions of museums reveal
some interesting insights about our
assumptions.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Meet the BEETLES
The Value of Interpretation at Zoos
and Aquariums
Climate Change Agents at the Florida
Aquarium
Craig Strang, Kevin Beals
Want to help your team to incorporate
the best research about teaching and
learning into their interpretation? Come
meet the BEETLES and learn about new
resources for promoting professional
learning.
12 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
Michelle Ostrowski
Nicole Cann, Teresa Monica Nassachuk,
Kevin Wright, Sarena Randall Gill
Share success stories from your facility
that reinforce the value of interpretation
at zoos and aquariums and discuss
strategies for dealing with the
controversy now facing these facilities.
Kevin Van Dien
How do you interpret climate change
to visitors when everyone at your
organization isn’t on the same page? The
Florida Aquarium’s team of specialized
“agents” is training the entire staff!
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
What If NAI Actively Advocated for
Interpretation?
People Count: Engaging Students in
Human Ecology and Sustainability
Education
Commemorating Technological
Disaster: Possibilities and Pitfalls
Cem M. Basman, Margo Carlock, Will
LaPage
Great numbers of interpreters have
voiced a desire to make NAI the
active advocate for the profession and
for individuals practicing heritage
interpretation. How can this become a
reality?
William Baird
Discover innovative, hands-on
activities that examine the connections
between human population growth,
resource consumption, and sustainable
ecosystems and communities. Engage in
memorable games and simulations for
use at interpretive sites.
Lisa Matlock
This presentation will highlight how
multiple interpretive choices were
made, and subsequently developed, to
commemorate a technological disaster
that affected multiple communities,
along with discussing each interpretive
media’s relative effectiveness.
Concurrent Sessions: Block 6Thursday, 11:00am–12:30pm
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
How to Make Friends: Successfully
Working with Support Organizations
Interpreting Mammal Skulls, Moving
Beyond Identification
National Standards Meeting
Is your relationship with your friends
group friendly? Join a roundtable
discussion to swap success stories and
feedback with others who work with
support organizations.
The skull of a mammal reveals much
about that mammal’s natural history.
By moving beyond identification to the
interpretation of a skull, you increase
the engagement of your audience.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Volunteers on Patrol: Providing
On-Demand Information and
Education Out on the Trails
Managing the Chaos
The Seven “H’s” of Heritage
Interpretation
Megan Espe
Michelle E. Bowie, Amanda Hatfield
This session explores the evolution of
the interagency Boulder Mountain
Bike Patrol and Citizen Ranger Corps
programs, what makes them successful
(and challenging), and how they keep
our visitors informed.
Mick Garrett, Teresa Root
Sue Schafer
Learn about technology that will help
you manage event/activity registration,
volunteer applications, scheduling,
evaluations, and reporting. Get a tour
of NatureTracker and learn how it can
work for you.
Michael Peach
An open discussion of some pros
and cons associated with living
history and the various forms of
heritage interpretation. Topics include
presentational integrity, “storytelling
breeds storytelling,” and history as
property.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Two Way Communication +
Technology = Enhanced Guest
Engagement
Art You Glad They Came?
Developing a Curriculum
Framework for Yellowstone’s
Youth Conservation Corps
Andre Copeland, Amy Donofrio
How will facilitated dialogue techniques
and technology affect guest engagement
during interpretive experiences at
Brookfield Zoo? We will reveal the
highs, lows, and survey results of our
2014 summer programming.
Aubrey Hall
Help your visitors experience art in
interpretation and continue discovering
ducks and geese in their own
neighborhoods. Don’t miss out on this
interactive mini-workshop about the
Junior Duck Stamp program.
Kristen Schulte, Ana Houseal
Find yourself struggling to develop a
curriculum or strengthen your current
curriculum? We will explore the
application of a framework for designing
a curriculum that will strengthen your
educational practices.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Plate Spinning, Cat Herding, and
Scat Shoveling: Supervisor Survival
Strategies
Interpreting Restoration Science
Conveys Values and Promotes
Stewardship
The Virtuous Circle: Blending
Formal and Nonformal Education for
Maximum Impact
Talents for successful front-line
interpreters aren’t always the skills that
make successful supervisors. Explore
ways to prepare yourself and what
you might wish you’d known before
becoming “the boss”!
Communicating with scientists can
be difficult for interpreters. Explore
an approach that was taken to get
from scientific field restoration project
proposals to user-friendly interpretive
panels.
Collaboration between classrooms and
interpretive sites is more important than
ever. Join us in this interactive session to
explore the possibilities presented by the
Virtuous Circle model of education.
Tom Moffatt, Denise Robertson
Brian C. Hughes
THURSDAY
Century Room
Bob Carter, Jill Carter
November 18–22, 2014 13
THURSDAY
Concurrent Sessions: Block 7Thursday, 2:30–3:30pm
Century Room
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
The Multi-Age Dilemma
Interpretive Writing
National Park Service Meeting
Freeman Tilden was right. Children’s
interpretation should have a
“fundamentally different approach,” but
what about interpreting to multi-age
families? Share challenges and ideas for
multi-age interpretation in this session!
Interpretive writing connects facts
and ideas to readers’ experiences and
emotions so they can understand and
appreciate the narratives. You will
examine how to write print texts and
social media messages.
Jessica Haas
2:30–4:30pm
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Narrating the West: Sites, Stories,
and Regional Imaginations in
Colorado’s Mountain Towns
Reach New Heights: Match
Community Needs with
Programming Efforts
Bringing Your Interpretive Programs
to Life with Drumming and
Storytelling
Colorado’s mountain towns thrive on
tourism, but may not fit into iconic
narratives of the American West. This
presentation showcases strategies for
bridging site details, regional-scale
expectations, and critical perspectives.
Limited resources prevent us from
identifying gaps in our programming
efforts. Explore a method to develop
or realign educational programming
at your site while meeting the needs of
your community.
Ilan Shamir will demonstrate and
engage you in an exciting way of
bringing your programs and stories to
life that will create an unforgettable
visitor connection.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Service Learning and Interpretive
Facilities: ABCs for Success
Interpretation: A Tool to Influence
Conservation Behavior
Seeking Out New Life: Biodiversity
Discovery in the National Parks
This interactive workshop for
interpretive professionals will showcase
how to develop effective partnerships
with local colleges and universities
through community-based learning
and service-learning projects. Session
includes case examples, resource
sharing, and group discussion.
This presentation will provide empirical
evidence on the effectiveness of
interpretive programming in affecting
behavior through sound theoretical
grounding and organized interpretive
intervention.
The National Park Service is addressing
a lack of knowledge about the
biodiversity of parks, as well as the
declining relevancy of the parks to the
American public, through BioDiscovery.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Paying It Forward: Lessons Learned
from an International Interpretive
Sabbatical
Using Google Maps for Nature
Exploration
Transforming Streakers, Strollers,
and Studiers into Stewards
You can’t get there from here. Sure you
can—with this basic introduction to
using Google Maps to guide and educate
the public about your natural or cultural
area.
This fun and interactive session will help
attendees understand the differences
among audience types and give them
real-world strategies to make the most of
of interpretive media.
Samuel Smith
Tom Mullin
14 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
Alan Leftridge
Jane Beattie
Interpretive and environmental
education sites around the world
inspire and provoke. Find out how and
discuss the insights and trends from
one seasoned interpreter’s year-long
international interpretive journey.
Carly Swatek, Brenda Lackey
Manohar Mariapan
Tim A. Haller
Ilan Shamir
Sally Plumb, Kelly Coy
Sarah Lisle
off-site sessions
Off-site sessions depart from Court
Street, outside the front of the hotel.
Look for conference volunteers who
will direct you to your waiting area or
your bus. Arrive 15 minutes prior to
departure. All trips will return in time
for you to attend the auction tonight.
NAI Amazing Race – Denver
Meet at 7:15am for a 7:30am departure.
Returns at 5:00pm.
Everyone should be there to wave
goodbye and cheer on your favorite
team as they begin their adventure
through Denver!
Successful Public-Private
Partnerships: Who’da Thunk It?
Meet at 7:30am for a 7:45am departure.
2014 Service Project: South Platte
Park Native Habitat Restoration
Meet at 7:45am for an 8:00am
departure.
Rocky Mountain National Park and
Enos Mills Cabin
Meet at 7:45am for an 8:00am
departure.
Ski or Ride with a Ranger!
Meet at 7:45am for an 8:00am
departure.
Let’s Visit Fort Collins
Meet at 8:00am for an 8:15am
departure.
Intro to Dinos on Dinosaur Ridge
Meet at 8:00am for an 8:15am
departure.
Nature Centers from Plains to Peaks
Meet at 8:15am for an 8:30am
departure.
Home Ground: The Plains of
Colorado
Meet at 8:45am for a 9:00am departure.
Wildfire: A Colorado Reality
Meet at 9:15am for a 9:30am departure.
Arsenal and Repository
Meet at 9:30am for a 9:45am departure.
Integrating Local I&M
Information Meeting
8:00am–5:00pm, Windows Room
Scholarship Auction
Silent Auction, Begins at 6:00pm
Live Auction, 8:00–10:00pm
Grand Ballroom
Show your passion for the profession
and support the NAI national
scholarship program by purchasing
items at the annual scholarship
auction. Come early and browse the
deals at the silent auction, T-shirts
table, and book nook. Then get ready
for a lively auction. This is the perfect
place to find holiday gifts, curiosities,
collector’s items, materials for your
interpretive programs, or a special
treat for yourself. There will be a cash
bar available while you enjoy the
banter of the NAI auctioneers.
Music Room
10:00pm–12:00am, Capitol Room
Bring your own instrument and jam
with other musicians or just come and
listen.
Know-How Exchange
10:00pm–12:00am, Beverly Room
Everybody knows how to do
something special. Bring your talent
to share with others, whether it be
whittlin’, knittin’, moccasin makin’, or
something less well-known.
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 15
FRIDAY
Friday
SATURDAY
Saturday at a Glance
Early Morning Activities
6:00am
Yoga/Stretch, Beverly Room
Birding, Meet near conference
registration desk
Run/Jog/Walk, Meet near conference
registration desk
Registration/Check-In &
NAI Store
7:00am–3:00pm, Tower, South Lobby
TOWN Hall MEETING: The
Future of the Interpretive
Community
8:30–9:30am, Grand Ballroom
Amy Lethbridge, NAI President
Margo Carlock, NAI Executive Director
Kevin Damstra, NAI Advisory Council
Chair
Moderated by Jane Beattie, NAI
Strategic Planning Chair
NAI 2014 T-Shirts
Look how cool they are.
Get yours in the NAI Store.
What will being an interpreter be like
in 10 years? Or 20? Join colleagues
for an open-mic discussion of
how members of the interpretive
community can work together to
advance the profession. We will briefly
review the recent strategic planning
process, focusing on the input from
members and stakeholders, to launch
into a conversation about next steps.
What will your role be?
NAI Innovation Room
9:45am–3:45pm, Terrace Room
Curiosity. Provocation. Ideas.
Creativity. Innovation. Potential. Join
us for five minutes or five hours!
Unleash your creative spirit and help
your profession help you!
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 8
9:45–11:45am (Page 17)
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 9
1:00–2:00pm (Page 18)
CONCURRENT SESSIONS:
BLOCK 10
2:15–3:45pm (Page 19)
16 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
Awards BANQUET & DANCE
6:00–11:00pm, Grand Ballroom
Celebrate the professional
accomplishments of your peers as we
honor the shining stars of NAI this
evening with our NAI Professional
Awards. The banquet is included in
your registration. After dinner and the
awards presentations, plan to let your
inhibitions go and become part of the
evening’s entertainment. Our band
will be The Fever—not your ordinary
party band! Playing music is their
career, their lives, and their passion.
Their congas and percussion beats add
that “can’t help but dance” energy!
See you next year!
Concurrent Sessions: Block 8Saturday, 9:45–11:45am
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Selling World War II
Kids in Their Natural Habitat:
Lessons from an Outdoor School
and a Nature Play Space
CIG Instructor Forum
David Jamiel, Shirley Jamiel
This presentation will examine how
the elements of interpretation were
incorporated into all forms of media
during World War II to garner public
support for the war effort.
Sue Kenney, Susan Schafer, Linda Bailey
Learn about students in Switzerland
attending a “Forest Kindergarten”—
outside every day! Then explore “The
Hideout,” a play space featuring stick
shelters, anchored canoes, a mudpie
factory, log furniture, and more!
Emily Jacobs, Carrie Miller
Share your ideas with NAI’s certification
department, learn about updates and
changes, and network with other
Certified Interpretive Guide instructors
in this interactive session.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Between Two Trees: Is What You Do
Awesome and Part of Everyday Life?
Putting Life in Living History
Effective Training: Useful
Methodology from the Earth to Sky
Partnership
Clayton J. Hanson, Jacob Dinkelaker,
Travis Mason-Bushman
First question: In 2014, you did
programs. What are you planning for
2015? Second question: Do you wonder
whether, why, and how to use pop
culture and humor in interpretation?
Judy Roderiques, Lucy Bly
Create a genuine historic experience
within a modern-day setting. Tips for
creating a believable character and
strategies for engaging the audience and
fostering the suspension of belief will be
shared.
Anita Davis, Ruth Paglierani
Creating effective training can be
challenging! Join us in exploring the
structure of the successful Earth to
Sky courses and create an outline for
training staff at your own site.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
No Animals? No Problem! Animal
Programs Without Live Animals
Better Than Broadway (Part 1)
How can you present animal programs
when you don’t have live animals? Learn
how to incorporate artifacts and props
in a variety of ways to make animalthemed programs come alive.
Drama changes lives—not just on stage,
but everywhere interpreters work.
Come explore challenging, creative,
exhilarating—and practical—approaches
that will improve your interpretive skills,
broaden your audience, and help you
create memorable experiences.
This hands-on workshop provides the
groundwork to easily develop themes for
interpretive presentations and products.
You will be led through a step-by-step
process showing a path to interpretive
theme development.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Interpretive Methods for the
21st-Century Interpretive
Administrator
Prairie Perspectives: Connecting to
the Land through Cultural History
Interpreting Critical Issues Using
Civic Engagement Strategies
Cable and Beck have given interpreters
a succinct and straightforward guide
to practice with their 15 principles, and
these can also provide guidelines for
new and seasoned managers.
Discover how to connect students with
nature while interpreting past cultures
though hands-on examples from our
Cheyenne camp and sod homestead.
Learn how to integrate cultural and
natural history programs.
Teresa Root, Pam Welisevich
Becky Stokes Lambert
Judy Fort Brenneman, John C.F. Luzader,
Simone Mortan, Bill Weldon
Susan Smith, Adrienne Sedlak, Audie
Brinkmeier
SATURDAY
Century Room
Tower Court B
“So What?” A Creative Way to
Creating Interpretive Themes
Jeff Miller
Kimble L. Talley
BONUS SESSION Let’s Take an Interpretive Walk Outside and Share!
Wil Reding, Meet at the conference registration desk. I believe it is time to head outside and see what this Denver area has to
show us! And share tips and tricks of our interpretive skills with one another!
November 18–22, 2014 17
In this session, participants will
examine the many components that
make up facilitated dialogue. Facilitated
dialogue when executed properly uses
21st-century skills and themes.
SATURDAY
Concurrent Sessions: Block 9Saturday, 1:00–2:00pm
Century Room
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
The “Other” Interpreters: Working
with Translators & Non NativeLanguage Visitors
Tell Your Story in Legacy Magazine
2016 Workshop Interest Meeting
Have your story ideas ready, and we’ll
talk about how to take them from
concept to the printed page! Whether
you have a feature, a commentary, or an
idea for a regular column, this session is
for anyone who has ever wanted to write
for NAI’s premier publication.
Come learn how the NAI National
Workshop works, volunteer for one
of the five Corpus Christi workshop
committee positions, and learn how you
can help.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Interpretation for the Youngest
Visitors
Teeth on the Trail: Playing with
Descriptive Language
Stealing Fire: Voice & Language for
Interpreters
Engaging small children in nature may
be as simple as walk in the park, but it
can be so much more.
Using examples from nature writers and
our own imaginations, we’ll find, share,
and create handles audiences can use to
bridge the familiar with the unfamiliar
and aid learning and memory.
Enliven your speaking voice with
extraordinary picture-making capacity,
rhythm, and character. Participants work
with Eurythmy movement gestures for
vowels and consonants and natural ways
to project voice and find character voices.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Video Games Are Not the Enemy:
Come Play for Yourself!
Better Than Broadway (Part 2)
Branding through Interpretation
Video games provide genuinely amazing
and meaningful natural and historical
experiences. Don’t believe me? Explore
blockbuster games and discuss how to
integrate these powerful experiences
into our interpretation.
Drama changes lives—not just on stage,
but everywhere interpreters work.
Come explore challenging, creative,
exhilarating—and practical—approaches
that will improve your interpretive skills,
broaden your audience, and help you
create memorable experiences.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Demystify the Cosmos! Astronomy
Can Be Easy and Comfortable for
Everyone
Print is Alive! How to Make ActivityBased Brochures & Booklets
Changing Landscapes: Discovering
Climate Change through Digital
Photography
Marisol Asselta
Join us in a discussion on interpretation
vs. interpretation with a translator; the
four broad categories of translators
(professional, academic, amateur, and
accidental); what it’s like from the other
side: things translators wish you knew;
and how to recruit and engage bilingual
volunteers and staff.
Nikki Julien
18 NAI 2014 | Denver, Colorado
Ami Thompson
Carolyn Everhart, Andy Bleckinger
From bright cities to rural skies,
astronomy can be a daunting topic.
Explore various methods, skills, and
tools to be more comfortable and
confident as an astronomy interpreter.
Paul Caputo
Cindy Carpenter, Katie Hicks
Judy Fort Brenneman, John C.F. Luzader,
Simone Mortan, Bill Weldon
Elise Kahl
Printed media can be just as engaging
as any smart phone app. Discover how
to write and design fun, activity-based
brochures and booklets using basic
software that anyone can use.
Deb Tewell
Susan E. Strauss
Jim Covel, Tama Olver
Become the Apple of interpretation!
Good interpretation builds a strong
brand, and our organizations need
stronger brands to prosper. Learn how
interpretation is your best brand builder.
Leah Eskelin
On the hunt for climate change impacts,
visitors connect to Alaska’s changing
landscape during digital photo safaris.
Explore the hands-on fun, logistics, and
lessons learned during this interactive
session.
Concurrent Sessions: Block 10Saturday, 2:15–3:45pm
Colorado Room
Columbine Room
Dealing with Spiritual Values
Without Offending Anyone
Know Your Audience’s Brain
No Session
Richard Jurin, Deborah Matlock
The natural relationship between
spirituality and interpretation is rich
with inspiration as well as challenge.
Additionally, people are becoming
more aware of the spiritual connection
between people and the earth.
Fran Snow McReynolds
Knowing your audience can begin even
before they arrive at your site, if you
know something about how they think.
Explore and discuss brain-based ideas
that will enhance your programs.
Denver Room
Gold Room
Silver Room
Beyond the Questionnaire:
Alternative Tools for Collecting Data
Beyond the Clues: Critter Scene
Investigations
Mystery, Surprise, and the Promise
of a Good Story
Are you in a questionnaire rut? This
interactive session will provide a toolbox
of evaluation methods designed to make
you more responsive to your visitors.
Become a wildlife forensic scientist and
discover how to help your audience
connect the clues left by wildlife to the
priceless resources in your urban or
open space park.
What draws visitors in? How do we
capture—and keep—their attention?
In this highly interactive session,
we’ll explore and experiment with
writing and story techniques to create
memorable interpretive stories.
Spruce Room
Tower Court A
Tower Court B
Make Your Presentations Soar to
New Heights with Prezi
Fostering Discoverability
on Visitors’ Terms through
Crowdsourced Digital Content
Trail Walks: Engaging Young
Children in Active Learning
Laureen Trainer, Betsy Martinson,
Rachel Murray
Andy Bleckinger, Alexis Sohlden
Explore the exciting new world of Prezi.
Bring your laptop and learn how this
dynamic and interactive tool lets your
creativity build your presentation from
the ground up.
Kelley Reetz
Tim Cash
NPS.gov is being transitioned to a
crowdsourced publishing model to
encourage more discoverable, adaptable,
and reusable content. Participants
will discuss the approach, fostering
greater collaboration, and maximizing
interpretive opportunities.
Judy Fort Brenneman
Kate C. Murphy
Practice trail activities that engage
young children in natural science
learning. A trail “tool kit” and an
idea bank on CD will be given to each
participant.
Tower Court C
Tower Court D
Windows Room
Visually Communicating Climate
Change At Glacier National Park
Thinking Sideways for Effective
Interpretive Managers
Bringing the History Harvest Home
Learn, share, and apply the results of a
self-assessment to determine how best to
spend your energy on the multiple levels
of tasks to be successful and effective
interpretive managers.
Have you ever wondered how to make
visible an invisible past? Learn how with
this innovative, college student-led digital
project. Our history is all around us!
Teagan Tomlin
Jacob Friefeld, Clayton Hanson, Ashlee
Anderson, Matt Dussault
November 18–22, 2014 19
Learn how Glacier National Park is
helping the public visualize climate
change and how you can apply those
techniques to the landscapes where you
work.
Corky McReynolds
SATURDAY
Century Room
Sue Byford
Montréal
2015 International Conference
Montreal, Canada | May 3–7, 2015 | www.interpnet.com/ic
Kye-Joong Cho, President’s Award
Dr. Cho’s long history with NAI began in 1995 as a graduate
student at Michigan State University. He has been an
active member and contributor to the
organization ever since. After completing
his M.S., Kye-Joong went on to
complete his Ph.D. from the Ohio State
University in the field of interpretation.
He is an associate professor of forest
resources, interpretation, training, and
community-based interpretive program
development in the Department of
Forest Resources at Sunchon National
University in South Korea. He has
advocated for interpretation in projects with the Korean
National Park Service and National Forest Service as well
as in the development of many projects that restore natural
features and promote sustainability throughout the country.
He is an author of several books and president of Korea’s
Environmental Interpretation Research Society. He has
recently agreed to co-chair the effort to create a Pan-Asian
Interpretive Association. In 2008 and again in 2014, Dr.
Cho served as host and local chair of the NAI International
Conference. For his fierce commitment to the professional
of interpretation and his dedication to NAI as well as his
tremendous work as a conference host, Dr. Kye-Joong Cho, is
more than worthy of this award. —Amy Lethbridge
John Veverka, NAI Fellow
I was impressed with the constant new ideas about
interpretive theory that John brought to his course to
keep them current. Particularly
his development of “learn, feel,
and do objectives,” outcome-based
interpretation, and the model of
interpretation. I also had the honor of
reviewing and commenting on John’s first
textbook, Interpretive Master Planning,
in which he incorporated many of the
training ideas I had developed and we
used during courses. I was also impressed
with the pure interpretive skills that John
possessed in helping course participants
develop interpretive themes, interpretive
objectives, and using Tilden’s principles
in planning and delivery of interpretive
programs, which were delivered as part
of the Interpretive Services Course
practicums. Having watched and worked with John over
many years, I consider him to be a master interpretive
trainer and interpretive theorist. He is very passionate about
interpretation and sharing his ideas, techniques, and passion
for interpretation with others. —Bill Lewis
Skot Latona, Master Interpretive Manager
Skot is a model for interpretation at its best because of the
knowledge, passion, and creativity that he brings to each
program. He has an endless curiosity
and interest in the natural world that
manifests in the hours of his free time
spent learning. Skot’s intimate awareness
of the flora and fauna in the park, knowing
the best place to spot coyote tracks or how
to distinguish the invasive species, is the
foundation for his exemplary interpretive
skills. While his deep awareness and
knowledge is commendable, it is Skot’s
creativity and passion that set him apart as
a master interpreter. Skot also goes beyond
the boundaries of typical interpretation
to connect the public to South Platte Park
through his use of social media, such
as in his creative “Get Back to Nature”
campaign that included a meme of students in the river
with the text “Live Streaming.” Beyond his role as a model
interpreter, Skot has also been an incredible mentor. As a
supervisor and mentor, his door was always open. He taught
by example, through his co-leadership of the CIG course,
and by providing numerous opportunities for professional
development. Skot is a passionate, creative interpreter and a
compassionate, knowledgeable mentor. —Abby Halperin
Bill McGowan, Master Interpretive Manager
Bill has been in the field of interpretation since 1980 and
as a manager for 30 years. Starting as a river ranger on the
Buffalo River, Bill has developed a range
of interpretive skills and expertise that
is truly impressive. He serves as a local
contact for media for natural history
information. His outdoor skills include
canoeing, challenge course facilitation,
and night hikes. Bill is an exceptional
presenter of animal programs, including
birds of prey and reptiles. He has
developed several personalized costumed
characters for interpretive programs,
including “Ichabod Crane,” “Sherlock
Holmes” and “Professor Hawk.” Bill’s
responsibilities as outdoor education
manager at Ernie Miller Nature Center
encompass a broad array of interpretive
programming. His primary duty is overseeing the daily
operations of the Ernie Miller Nature Center and the Timber
Ridge Adventure Center of the Johnson County Park and
Recreation District of Kansas (JCPRD). The success of Bill’s
leadership is reflected in the many awards that the Ernie
Miller Nature Center programs have received from NAI, as
well as the National Storytelling Network, Kansas Humanities,
and the Girl Scouts.— Molly Postlewait
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 21
AWARDS
NAI Award Recipients
AWARD RECIPIENTS
Doug Elliot, Master Front Line Interpreter
Doug is a renowned naturalist, herbalist, storyteller,
basket maker, back-country guide, philosopher, and
harmonica wizard. He has been a
model of excellence in the front lines
of interpretation for well over 30
years; and as a successful, freelance
naturalist, he is unique within our
organization. His interpretive work
started in his backyard menagerie,
which was a favorite gathering place
for neighborhood children. Today
he performs and presents programs
at festivals, museums, botanical
gardens, nature centers, and schools
from Canada to the Caribbean. Doug
has lectured and performed at the
American Museum of Natural History
in New York and the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto and
conducted workshops for the Smithsonian Institution. He
has led ranger training sessions for the National Park Service
and guided people on wilderness experiences from downeast Maine to the Florida Everglades. He is the author of five
books and many articles in regional and national magazines,
has recorded a number of award-winning albums of stories
and songs, and is occasionally seen on PBS-TV and the
History Channel. Doug is one of the most imaginative and
creative interpreters in the field today. —Linda Yemoto
Dorothy McLeer, Master Front Line Interpreter
Rarely does a person have the ability and talent to combine
both the cognitive aspects of field work with superior
interpretive presentations. In the
more than 40 years of programming
in our Environmental Study Area,
no one has demonstrated this ability
better than Dorothy. She never passes
an opportunity to share her insights
and enthusiasm about current natural
events with any and all who come to our
campus or offer her the opportunity to
make a presentation to their group
or professional association. She
provides her interpretive expertise
at any hour of the day or night, on
any day of the week, or any season of
the year. Dorothy’s interpretations of the natural flora, fauna,
and ecological processes are current and up-to-date because
of her professional experiences with field activities such as
banding hawks at the Holiday Beach Migration Observatory,
recording birds of prey, and assessing wolf populations in
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. I am impressed at her depth of
knowledge in these areas, which is due to her perseverance
and long-term commitment the field study of natural history.
—Orin G. Gelderloos
Heather Horstman, Outstanding New Interpreter
Heather exceeded far beyond simple expectations. She
was the “face” of camp and represented Irons Oaks well
in everything she did. She planned
programs that created opportunities for
campers to explore, search for answers,
and make deep connections with each
other, the adults leading them, and the
environment. When the summer was
finished, Heather continued to assist in
programming. She taught environmental
education programs for schools. In
this role she was able to reach a new
audience and provide the opportunity
to explore, learn, and grow. What does
this have to do with interpretation?
Tilden reminds us to find connections
with the “whole man.” Heather was able to find connections
to natural history with every group. She interpreted
the surrounding environment into the self-exploration
experience of team building for the students. She helped
students find their place in the world and know how to better
relate to each other and to respect all things. In addition to
Heather’s knowledge and skills, her most valued asset was her
positive attitude and outlook. People just gravitate towards
Heather and can’t wait to hear what she has to offer. This is
something you can’t teach in leadership. You just have to have
it and Heather definitely does. —Cheryl Vargo
Bert Szabo, Outstanding Volunteer Interpreter
Bert brought to his position a diverse range of ideas and
insights, and an ability for methodical implementation of his
ideas for the development of programs
and policies. For his irrepressible spirit
and love of nature, the local chapter
awarded him National Audubon
Society’s Great Egret Award. This is
the highest honor a chapter can bestow
upon a member and no one is more
deserving. Bert Szabo has dedicated his
life to the environment and has made
an enormous impact on untold
numbers of people. Perhaps the best
tribute to this man is when someone
comes up to him and says, “Oh, Mr.
Szabo, I remember you. When I was
a little girl/little boy, you talked to
my class about the birds. I just want
you to know that I am still watching the birds because of
you!” —Marie Morgan
22 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
Ray Novotny, Meritorious Service
Recognizing members’ achievements is important, but it falls
on other members to step forward to note these achievements.
Unfortunately, many individuals’
accomplishments are not recognized
because those with knowledge of these
actions don’t take the time to submit
a nomination for an NAI award in
recognition of the specific achievement.
Ray Novotny has been a relentless and
selfless champion of recognizing his peers’
work on behalf of NAI and interpretation.
When one investigates the recent awards
presented to deserving members of
NAI, one realizes the monumental task
it has taken to take the time to prepare
and submit nominations to honor
those special individuals among us. Ray Novotny’s name
appears more than any one as a nominator. Ray has dedicated
himself to note the actions of those within the ranks of NAI,
and to take on the enormous time and effort to prepare the
nominations for submission to the NAI Awards Committee for
consideration. He has done this year after year; with little more
than a simple thank you from those he has taken the time to
make sure that the interpretation community is aware of their
individual achievements. He has continued with this mission
with no desire to self-promote or to receive any recognition.
His only purpose has been to expose his colleagues doing good
work to the greater membership of NAI. —Cem Basman
Bob Wittersheim, Outstanding Senior Interpreter
Following a 38-year professional career, Bob has continued
his personal enjoyment of working with diverse groups in
eight years of retirement. Bob would echo
the circus folks who say, “You can’t get
away from the roar of the grease paint
and the smell of the crowd.” He still
using his interpretive skills in programs
presented in schools, at historical societies,
service clubs, museums, etc. The most
popular program involves mystery tools
called “What the Heck is That?” which
concentrates on tools that tell a story. Bob
is now completing his second five-year
term on the Monroe County Historical
Commission. Here he applies his 33
years of experience as a supervisor of a
“nature museum” such as introducing
Tilden’s principles and assisting with new
interpretive signs. He was deeply involved in the campaign
for a millage issue, such as placing yard and road signs for
publicity and to promote fundraisers. The successful passage
kept the museum from permanent closing. He is also active on
his township recreation committee. The committee respects
his perspective of almost four decades with a major park
system. —Ray Novotny
Friends of Jackson County Conservation (Iowa),
Excellence in Interpretive Support
Friends of Jackson County Conservation has proven to
be a great partner in
our endeavor. Whether
raising funds for “extras”
such as traveling exhibits,
providing volunteers
at the Hurstville
Center, or serving as a
communication conduit
between the conservation
board and the public—the
Friends members are an
important part of our efforts. The Friends of Jackson County
Conservation leveraged their enthusiasm, monetary support,
and hard physical work into an outpouring of community
support for this project. They transformed a “walk by” patch
of ground into an invitation to linger and explore. I applaud
their results and look forward to completing more projects
with them. —Daryl Parker
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 23
AWARD RECIPIENTS
Marvin McNew, Meritorious Service
Marvin has been one of those individuals who has stepped
up in a leadership role to save the existence of not just one,
but two NAI organizational units.
His selfless dedication to assist NAI
to continue providing services in the
specific areas of NAI Sections has
been remarkable, especially when one
considers the extreme personal sacrifice
Marvin has been willing to make on
behalf of NAI. Marvin’s time and effort
outside his home have been a true
devotion and love for his profession
and peers. There have not been many
among our ranks that have taken a step
to help NAI as done by Marvin. He has
done this for the dedication he has for
the profession of heritage interpretation
and NAI. Members of NAI are greatly
indebted to Marvin for his willingness to
step up and take over leadership of and
save two Sections on separate occasions
that were in danger of being dismantled by the Board of
Directors for lack of leadership interest. This is especially
pertinent when one realizes that one of these Sections
was smaller in stature and the other contained the largest
membership in NAI’s Sections. —Cem Basman
AWARD RECIPIENTS
Media Awards Recipients
BOOK
SHORT VIDEO
1. New Birth of Freedom: A Walk Through the Civil War
Home Front in Woodstock, Vermont
Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park
Harpers Ferry Center
Wood Ronsaville Harlin, Inc.
1. The Obed: Find Yourself Here
Obed Wild & Scenic River
2. (tie) “Swamper: Letters from a Louisiana Swamp Rabbit,” A
Book to Connect Kids to the Swamp
Friends of Black Bayou
2. (tie) Pearls from the Lagoon: Short Stories & Recipes
US Forest Service, International Institute of Tropical Forestry
DIGITAL MEDIA
1. Tidal Changes Spin Browser
Taylor Studios, Inc.
2. This is Now, and That Was Then
Kenai Mountains Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area
2. Volunteer for Your National Parks
Golden Gate National Parks—Design Volunteers in Parks/
Ex’pression College
3. The Hidden Stories of Lesser Known Parks
Jefferson National Parks Association
LONG VIDEO
1. The Tuskegee Airmen: Sacrifice and Triumph
Harpers Ferry Center, Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site,
and Aperture Films Ltd.
2. Beyond The Visible: The Story of the Very Large Array
National Radio Astronomy Observatory – Education & Public
Outreach Media
3. Waimea Valley Audio Tour
Antenna International
3. Kennesaw: One Last Mountain
Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Great Divide
Pictures, and Harpers Ferry Center
INTERIOR EXHIBITS
WAYSIDE EXHIBITS
1. The Waterfront: Sailors Called it Frisco
San Francisco Maritime NHP
1. Blue Ridge Parkway Wayside Exhibits and Parkwide
Exhibit Plan
Blue Ridge Parkway, 106 Group, Audio Description Solutions
2. Explore and Discover Jewel Cave National Monument
Jewel Cave National Monument / National Park Service
3. Interpretive Exhibits for Mesa Verde Visitor and Research
Center
EDX Exhibits, Mesa Verde National Park
2. Conrad Prebys Australian Outback
San Diego Zoo Global
3. Logan Pass Wildlife Super Powers Exhibits
Glacier National Park Division of Interpretation
SITE PUBLICATIONS
1. Andersonville National Historic Site Unigrid Brochure
Harpers Ferry Publications – Melinda Schmitt, Miles Barger,
Marsha Wassel
2. Phantoms of the Past: A Historic Walking Tour
Grand Canyon National Park
3. Set in Stone: Learning from Layers of Geology on the
Comanche National Grasslands
Bruce Schumacher, Michelle Stevens, Cimarron and Comanche
National Grassland; and Lois Ziemann, Forest Service
24 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
Science:
1. The state of knowing: knowledge
as distinguished from ignorance
or misunderstanding.
2. A department of systemized
knowledge as an object of study.
3. Knowledge covering general
truths or the operation of general
laws especially as obtained and
tested through the scientific
method.
4. A system or method reconciling
practical ends with scientific laws.
(Definitions from Webster’s Ninth
New Collegiate Dictionary, 1984.)
What’s in
Your Palette?
pete stobie
Fascinated by magic since I was five,
I received my first magic set at age
eight and am currently a member
of the International Brotherhood
of Magicians. In high school and
college, I dabbled in clowning. As an
actor, I performed in “A Christmas
Carol,” “The Crucible,” “Escanaba
in Da Moonlight,” and others. I’ve
portrayed two mascots: Wildcat Willy
for Northern Michigan University
and Slappy the Kingfisher for the
International Hockey League’s
Michigan K-Wings. All of these
experiences in the performing arts
exist as part of my interpretive palette.
“Interpretation is a communication
process that forges emotional and
intellectual connections between
the interests of the audience and the
meanings inherent in the resource.”
If we accept this definition, we
can see the importance of having
a diverse palette to bridge these
connections. Over my 16 years
in this field, I have added poetry,
songwriting, singing, puppetry,
creative writing, storytelling, and
other artistic elements to my
interpretive palette. When creating
a program, my process is similar to
painting a canvas. Which elements
do I combine to achieve the
masterpiece that stirs my audience to
both an emotional and intellectual
connection?
The question of art in
interpretation has intrigued me
for years. In 2006, during my
certification as a Certified Heritage
LiSA PANich, KALAmAzoo NAture ceNter
Interpreter through NAI, I tackled
the following question:
Is interpretation an art or
science or a combination of
both?
Art:
1. A skill acquired by experience,
study or observation.
2. A branch of learning.
3. An occupation requiring
knowledge or skill.
4. The conscious use of skill and
creative imagination especially in
the production of aesthetic objects.
Interpretation is an art that utilizes
science. Sam Ham wrote in
Environmental Interpretation that
“good interpretation is not resourcedependant, but craft-dependant.”
Our craft is a communication
process. The art of interpretation
is measured by our ability to send
a message so that, when it reaches
the recipient, inspiration and/
or provocation are achieved. You
can have all the knowledge of our
resources in the world, but that is just
information. Once it is delivered in a
way that truly connects the visitor to
the resource and the transformation
of their experience begins, then we
have interpretation. Interpretation is
delivery. Delivery is an art.
Freeman Tilden’s Third Principle
from Interpreting our Heritage states,
“Interpretation is an art, which
combines many arts, whether the
materials presented are scientific,
historical or architectural. Any art
is some degree teachable.” Each
interpreter has his or her own diverse
palette of techniques. This “palette”
is created through past experiences.
Our palette may be filled with
several arts; however, the true art of
interpretation happens when these
attributes compose complete pictures
of the resource for our visitors.
From my palette, I may combine
magic with storytelling to introduce
the theme of my presentation. My
experience of being a mascot in
college and professionally assists
me with the art of approaching
young children while in character.
My theater and children’s literature
classes help me develop characters
and storytelling. My creativity
has led to wonderful props that
assist in making more meaningful
connections. My skills in writing
take scientific knowledge and
place it at a level where readers can
understand it and be inspired. My
palette contains all of this and more,
and from it I have honed my art of
interpretation. As an interpreter
I depend on my ability to know
which techniques from my palette
I should choose for each theme and
occasion. I work in natural history
interpretation, but if I switched to
historical or cultural interpretation,
I would still have my palette. I might
need to add some items for the new
topics, but the art of interpretation is
generally the same approach. Once
familiarized with the resource, I
could then put my pictures together
for the visitor. That is the art of
interpretation.
My palette has been enriched
and expanded by the influence and
camaraderie of my fellow interpreters
around the country. Wil Reding
of Rent a Rambling Naturalist in
Michigan inspired me to develop my
first interpretive character, Al Nino
the Wacky Weatherman, in 1997.
“Professor Anson Pantz” interprets
insects and other invertebrates
using props, song, characterization,
puppetry and many other talents from
the palette of the author.
courteSy KALAmAzoo NAture ceNter
“Sherrot Bones: Nature Detective”
characterized by the author.
Thank you
to those who volunteered their time and expertise for NAI’s
professional, media, and Legacy magazine awards, as well as
reviewers for NAI National Workshop session proposals.
William (Biff) Baird
William Bevil
Marc Blackburn, Media Awards Chair
Brianna Candelaria
AJ Chlebnik
Barbara Croonquist
Donald P. Dickey
Rachel Diersen
24 July/August 2013
Legacy 25
Faith Duncan
Glenda Franich
Joshua Hammari, Incoming Media Awards Chair
Paula Hanafee
Outstanding Legacy Feature
Robert Hinkle
Jon Hooper
“What’s in Your Palette?”
Karin Hostetter
Dave Krueger
Eric Leonard
Michael Larson
Michael Liang
Kristyn Loving
July/August 2013, Volume 24, Number 4
Pete Stobie
Education Director
Kalamazoo Nature Center
Kalamazoo, Michigan
Sarah Lustbader
John C.F. Luzader
Scott Mair
c o m m e n ta r y
John Miller, Professional Awards Chair
Tom Mullin
Night Vision
d o n s pa i n
The weather is hot and humid over the
central Kentucky plateau. I finished
mowing the three-quarters of an acre
that is flat on my five acres of rolling
forest. Soaked with sweat, I take
a “camping” shower and change to
dry clothes. I erect my tent and have
a light meal as the sun sets. I set up
my telescope and observe for a while.
About an hour later, exhaustion takes
its toll and I slip into my tent and
sleeping bag.
In anticipation of a breeze
springing up, the flaps over the tent’s
windows and door are left open. A
distant whippoorwill begins its
distinctive song and I drift off into a
light sleep.
Suddenly, a hoot from a nearby
owl awakens me. I am surprised to
see that it is only 10 minutes until
midnight. Out of the tent’s southfacing door a brilliant ruby-red star
blazes above the cedar and pine trees
on the ridge. I instantly recognize it as
Antares, the heart of the scorpion. The
other stars composing this impressive
constellation quickly form the familiar
stick figure shape of a giant scorpion.
Something strange is happening.
The stars of the scorpion are now
morphing from a stick figure into
the shape of the actual celestial
creature. A great jewel-encrusted
arachnid is prowling the skies to my
south! The twinkling stars bring this
heavenly apparition to life. Antares,
Lezlie Murray
blinking wildly, is indeed a beating
heart, pumping life into Scorpius, the
scorpion.
I try to reason this out. Am
I really awake? Yes, I am sure I
am. Perhaps because my eyes are
fully dark adapted, I am seeing an
unaccustomed number of faint stars
The constellations are
ancient stories in the
stars that still talk to
us today if we listen.
and they are filling out the whole
body of the scorpion. While this
may be true, it does not account for
a three-dimensional effect. I notice
the scorpion’s claws appear to extend
into the constellation Libra. I recall
that Libra’s two brightest stars are
called the Northern Claw and the
Southern Claw and that most of the
present day stars of Libra were once
part of Scorpius. I believe I am seeing
Scorpius as it was seen by the ancient
astronomer-astrologers thousands
of years ago. The scorpion has crept
ever so slightly to the west. It almost
appears to be crawling across the tops
of the black cedars and pines. The
movement is reinforced by the gentle
swaying of the treetops. In fewer than
15 minutes of observing, the monster’s
claws are dipping down behind the
trees on the low southwestern ridge.
Its fiery red heart is just a little past
the meridian, its poisonous stinger
still well to the east. The deadly tail
appears to be dripping with water.
This impression of wetness is further
amplified by the brilliance of the
Milky Way. Tonight it is truly a
shimmering river of light, running at
an angle through the center of my tent
door to the trees in the southeast. It is
as though the scorpion just emerged
from the milky river to continue its
endless westward journey.
I think back to the ancient
astronomer-astrologers of Egypt,
Babylon, and Greece. Is this how
they saw the night sky? Perhaps from
a watchtower, just outside a village
or city they observed the monsters,
heroes, heroines, and villains in
the night sky. Modern astronomers
continue to use the names of these
ancient figures to identify the different
areas of the sky. While the scientific
observer disdains astrology, the
constellations’ names still represent
a reverence for the myths and
experiences from times long since past.
The scorpion continues its dive
into the western evergreens and I
feel a connection with those earliest
stargazers. Perhaps a thread, extending
Tom Richter
David Restivo
Kevin Sweeney
Deb Tewell, NAI staff liaison
Mike Thune
Paulina Tobar-Starkey
Matt Villamaino
Kevin Wright
Scorpio and Libra constellations from the Mercator celestial globe in the
Harvard Map Collection.
from the distant past, still reaches out
on rare occasions, to those receptive to
receive it. For a brief time I am seeing
as they saw, the same stars, the same
constellations. I watch as the scorpion
crawls away from Sagittarius the
Archer. Though I cannot yet see the
mighty Centaur Bowman, I know he
is crossing the starry river, bow drawn,
in his eternal pursuit of his prey.
Now the temperature is falling. A
chilly breeze flows through the tent.
The warmth of my sleeping bag pulls
me back toward the deep sleep my
body needs. Another whippoorwill
sings a brief serenade and this
extraordinary interlude with Scorpius
ends as I reluctantly fall asleep.
The preceding incident changed
how I interpret the constellations to
my audiences. I originally learned
to recognize the constellations by
making geometric patterns or stick
figures out of the stars. I rarely related
that we are in fact observing back in
time, both figuratively and literally.
Now because of my interlude with the
scorpion I try to connect my viewers
with the past as well as the present.
After all, the constellations are ancient
stories in the stars that still talk to us
today if we listen.
As interpreters, we also need to
recognize when an unexpected event
can help us connect our audiences
in all forms of nature. It is said that a
chance discovery favors the prepared
mind. My observation that night
was almost mystical, but with my
astronomy and history background,
I used that chance observation to
improve my interpretation skills of
the night sky.
Dahn Design
interpretive signs
Denise Dahn
artist • writer • designer
206 923-2853
www.dahndesign.com
denise@dahndesign.com
Don Spain is a volunteer naturalist,
astronomer, and trail ranger at
Bernheim Arboretum and Research
Forest in Klermont, Kentucky, and a
volunteer astronomer for Blackacre
Nature Conservancy in Louisville,
Kentucky.
34 May/June 2013
Outstanding Legacy Column or Commentary
“Night Vision”
Legacy 35
Marc Blackburn is stepping down from the Media Awards
committee after serving for seven years. His leadership and
vision for the program has been invaluable. Thanks ever so much,
Marc, for all you did!
May/June 2013, Volume 24, Number 3
Don Spain
Volunteer Naturalist, Astronomer, and Trail Ranger
Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest
Clermont, Kentucky
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 25
AWARD RECIPIENTS
Legacy Magazine Awards
PRESENTERS
Presenters
Dan Albro, Senior Guest Experience Trainer,
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Ashlee Anderson, Undergraduate Editor,
Department of History, University of
Nebraska–Lincoln
Liz Androskaut, Program Specialist,
Wilmington State Parks
Marisol Asselta, Interpretation & Outreach
Coordinator (Volunteer), Jane Goodall’s
Roots & Shoots Latin America & Caribbean
(LACRIB)
Linda Bailey, Nature Education Coordinator,
City of Fredericksburg, Virginia,
Department of Parks and Recreation
William Baird, Workshop Facilitator,
Population Connection
Sue Baker, USDA Forest Service
Cem M. Basman, Principal, Turquoise Planet
Consulting
Natty Bayer, Coordinator of Volunteers for
Education Programs, Denver Museum of
Nature and Science
Kevin Beals, Director, BEETLES, Lawrence Hall
of Science, University of California
Jane Beattie, Principal, Jane Beattie Interpretive
Consulting
Alice Wondrak Biel, Science Writer-Editor,
National Park Service
Andy Bleckinger, Interpretive Naturalist,
Mountains Recreation and Conservation
Authority
Ira Bletz, Supervising Naturalist, East Bay
Regional Park District
Dan Block, Naturalist, Worth County
Conservation Board
Lucy Bly, Park Ranger, New Bedford Whaling
National Historical Park
Susan Bonfield, Director, Environment for the
Americas
Mary Ann Bonnell, Visitor Services Supervisor,
Jefferson County Open Space
Colleen Bourque, Groundswell Project
Coordinator, Center for Educational
Partnerships Grand Valley State University
College of Education
Michelle E. Bowie, Education and Outreach
Specialist, Boulder County Parks and Open
Space
Judy Fort Brenneman, Owner, Greenfire
Creative, LLC
Audie Brinkmeier, Education Coordinator,
Plains Conservation Center
Jim Buchholz, Assistant Director, Schmeeckle
Reserve, University of Wisconsin-Stevens
Point
Tim Cash, Chief of Digital Strategy, National
Park Service
Nicole Cann, Manager of Interpretive Delivery,
Vancouver Aquarium
Paul Caputo, Deputy Director, National
Association for Interpretation
Margo Carlock, Executive Director, National
Association for Interpretation
Cindy Carpenter, Education and Interpretation
Program Manager, USDA Forest Service
Bob Carter, Faculty in Outdoor and
Environmental Education, Northern Illinois
University; Curator, Blackwell History of
Education Museum
Jill Carter, Co-Principal, Heartland Educational
Consulting Group
Angela Caudill, Manager of Volunteer Services,
Children’s Museum of Denver
Julia C. Clebsch, Park Ranger, National Park
Service
Laura Cohen, Resource Specialist, Laguna
Coast Wilderness Park
Andre Copeland, Interpretive Programs
Manager, Chicago Zoological Society
(Brookfield Zoo)
Jim Covel, Director of Training &
Interpretation, Monterey Bay Aquarium
Kelly Coy, Physical Scientist, National Park
Service
Anita Davis, Coordinator, Earth to Sky
Partnership, Sigma Space at NASA
Mike DeBacker, Ecologist, National Park
Service, Heartland Inventory and
Monitoring Network
Shannon M. DeYoung, Interpretive Team
Leader, Metroparks of the Toledo Area
Jacob Dinkelaker, Park Guide, President’s Park
(National Park Service)
Amy Donofrio, Interpretive Programs
Supervisor, Chicago Zoological Society
(Brookfield Zoo)
Thomas Dunne, President and Founder,
OnCell-TourSphere
Matt Dussault, Undergraduate Editor,
Department of History, University of
Nebraska–Lincoln
Doug Elliott, Naturalist, Herbalist, Storyteller,
Possum Productions
Leah Eskelin, Park Ranger, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service–Kenai National Wildlife
Refuge
Megan Espe, Community Outreach
Coordinator, Schmeeckle Reserve,
University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point
Carolyn Everhart, Interpretive Naturalist,
Mountains Recreation and Conservation
Authority
Kelly Farrell, Chief of Interpretation & Program
Services, Arkansas State Parks
Brian Forist, Associate Instructor/Ph.D.
Student, Indiana University
Jacob Friefeld, History Harvest Project
Manager, Department of History, University
of Nebraska–Lincoln
Allyson Gantt, Education & Outreach
Coordinator, Everglades National Park
Mick Garrett, Naturalist / Day Camp
Coordinator, Dodge Nature Center
Orin Gelderloos, Professor of Biology and
Professor/Director of Environmental
Studies, University of Michigan-Dearborn
Sarena Randall Gill, Community Engagement
Manager, Phoenix Zoo
Amy Gulick, Media Creator, Amy Gulick:
Images and Stories
26 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
Jessica Haas, Program Manager/Instructor,
Yellowstone Association
Aubrey Hall, Park Ranger, U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service
Tim A. Haller, Visitor Services Manager,
USFWS Big Muddy National Fish and
Wildlife Refuge
Clayton J. Hanson, Graduate Teaching
Assistant, Department of History,
University of Nebraska–Lincoln
Anna Harbine, Graduate Assistant (EWU)/
Assistant Editor (Spokane Historical),
Eastern Washington University/Spokane
Historical
Amanda Hatfield, Walker Ranch Caretaker/
Park Ranger, Boulder County Parks and
Open Space
Cheryl Hazlitt, Interpretive Planner/
Project Manager, Center For Design &
Interpretation, USDA Forest Service
Katie Hicks, Assistant Director, Clean Water for
North Carolina
Kimberly A. High, Naturalist/Historic
Interpreter, Metroparks of the Toledo Area
Nikki Hinds, Assistant Director/Interpretive
Specialist, Mendenhall Glacier Visitor
Center, US Forest Service
Karin Hostetter, Writer and Trainer, Interpret
This
Ana Houseal, Assistant Professor and Science
Outreach Educator, University of Wyoming
Brian C. Hughes, Interpretive Specialist, Irvine
Ranch Conservancy
Emily Jacobs, Certification and Training
Program Manager, National Association for
Interpretation
David Jamiel, Project Leader & Trail Center
Manager, National California Trail
Interpretive Center, U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, Bureau of Land Management,
Retired
Shirley Jamiel, Former Director of Education
and Outreach, Butterfly Pavilion
Sarah Johnson, Education Outreach
Coordinator, Roaring Fork Conservancy
Wesley Jones, Volunteer Coordinator for
Expedition Health, Denver Museum of
Nature and Science
Nikki Julien, Instructional Specialist
Coordinator, University of Arizona,
Cooperative Extension, Maricopa County
Richard Jurin, Associate Professor, University
of Northern Colorado
Joy Kacoroski, Graduate Assistant, Wisconsin
Center of Environmental Education
Elise Kahl, Program Manager, Kids in Parks–
Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
Regine Kennedy, Interpretation and Design
Group Manager, 106 Group
Sue Kenney, Education and Outreach
Coordinator, City of Fort Collins Natural
Areas Department
Sheryl A. Kippen, Cultural History Program
Coordinator, Boulder County Parks and
Open Space
Mandy Kirchgessner, Doctoral Candidate
(ABD), Temple University
Jessica C. Moore, Education and Conservation
Curator, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park
Laurie Morrow, Education Coordinator, Alaska
SeaLife Center
Simone Mortan, Manager of Guide Programs,
Monterey Bay Aquarium
Tom Mullin, Associate Professor of Parks and
Forest Resources, Unity College
Kate C. Murphy, Early Childhood Educator,
Fontenelle Forest
Rachel Murray, Manager of Interpretation and
Evaluation, Denver Botanic Gardens
Teresa Monica Nassachuk, Assistant Manager
of Interpretive Delivery, Vancouver
Aquarium
Sharol Nelson-Embry, Supervising Naturalist,
East Bay Regional Park District
Tama Olver, Volunteer Guide, Monterey Bay
Aquarium
Reed Osler, Park Naturalist 2, CRD Regional
Parks
Michelle Ostrowski, Education Specialist, Kenai
National Wildlife Refuge
Danielle Oyler, Instructor, Yellowstone
Association
Ruth Paglierani, Coordinator of Public
Programs, University of California, Berkeley
Michael Peach, Professional Guide/Presenter,
Pink Jeep Tours/Sedona Heritage Museum/
Arizona Humanities Speakers Bureau
Jim Pfeiffenberger, Education Coordinator,
Ocean Alaska Science and Learning Center
Sally Plumb, Biodiversity Coordinator, National
Park Service
Robert Powell, Associate Professor, Clemson
University
Wil Reding, Interpretive Naturalist, Rent A
Rambling Naturalist
Kelley Reetz, Interpretive Specialist, Irvine
Ranch Conservancy
Sarah Rhodes-Ondi, Naturalist, Environmental
Learning Center
Denise Robertson, Sequoia South District
Interpreter, National Park Service, Sequoia
and Kings Canyon National Parks
Cory Rodeheaver, Senior Exhibit Designer,
Taylor Studios, Inc.
Judy Roderiques, Park Ranger, New Bedford
Whaling National Historical Park
Teresa Root, Naturalist / Fellowship
Coordinator, Dodge Nature Center
John M. Rudy, Park Ranger / Interpretive
Trainer, Interpretive Development Program,
National Park Service
Pete Salmon, Interpretive Planner CIP, Taylor
Studios, Inc.
Jackie Lynn Sanderson, Natural Resource
Specialist, Douglas County Open Space and
Natural Resources
Susan Schafer, Education and Volunteer
Coordinator, City of Fort Collins Natural
Areas Department
Peggy Schaller, President/Certificate Program
Coordinator, Collections Research for
Museums; Northern States Conservation
Center
Kristen Schulte, Instructor of School Programs,
Missouri Botanical Gardens
Adrienne Sedlak, Education & Volunteer
Coordinator, Plains Conservation Center
Ilan Shamir, President, Your True Nature, Inc.
Samuel Smith, Ph.D. Candidate, University of
Colorado, Boulder
Susan Smith, Director of Education, Plains
Conservation Center
Alexis Sohlden, Naturalist, Lookout Mountain
Nature Center
Diane Souder, Chief of Interpretation and
Outreach, Petroglyph N.M.
Susan Staple, Interpretation Coordinator–Banff
National Park, Parks Canada
Craig Strang, Associate Director, Lawrence Hall
of Science; Director, BEETLES, Lawrence
Hall of Science, University of California,
Berkeley
Susan E. Strauss, Performer, Keynoter,
Workshop Leader, Teacher, Author, Susan
Strauss, Storyteller
Carly Swatek, Graduate Assistant, University of
Wisconsin–Stevens Point
Kimberly A. Swift, Education Programs
Manager, Indiana Dunes National
Lakeshore
Kimble L. Talley, Training Specialist, National
Park Service
Mark Tebeau, ASU Director of Public History/
Curatescape Principal Investigator, Arizona
State University/Curatescape
Deb Tewell, Events Manager, National
Association for Interpretation
Adrienne Amanda Thompson, Education
Coordinator, Oxbow Eco-Center/St. Lucie
County Board of County Commissioners
Ami Thompson, Environmental Educator,
Dragonfly Environmental Education, Ami
Thompson Consulting LLC
Teagan Tomlin, Ph.D. Student, University of
Calgary, Department of Geography
Laureen Trainer, Evaluation Coach, Trainer
Evaluation
Kevin Van Dien, Public Programs Manager,
The Florida Aquarium
Philip Waltz, Nature Center and Outdoor
Recreation Coordinator, South Suburban
Parks and Recreation
Pam Welisevich, Naturalist/ Animal Care
Coordinator, Dodge Nature Center
Barbara Woodford, Nature Center Manager,
Wilmington State Parks
Kevin Wright, Security Supervisor, Monterey
Bay Aquarium
Ron Zimmerman, Director, Schmeeckle
Reserve, University of Wisconsin-Stevens
Point
Bill Weldon, Director, Creative Development,
Revolutionary City, Colonial Williamsburg
Foundation
Mike Whatley, Chief, NPS Natural Resource
Stewardship and Science’s Office of
Education and Outreach
Erica Wheeler, Sense of Place Educator, Speaker
& Songwriter, The Soulful Stewardship
Method
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 27
PRESENTERS
Jon Kohl, Coordinator, PUP Global Heritage
Consortium
David Krueger, Interpretive Media Specialist,
National Park Service
Brenda Lackey, Associate Professor of
Interpretation, University of Wisconsin–
Stevens Point
Becky Stokes Lambert, Environmental
Recreation and Education Manager, Rockford
Park District
Will LaPage, Professor (retired), University of
Maine
Skot Latona, Supervisor, South Platte Park, South
Suburban Parks and Recreation
Alan Leftridge, Alan Leftridge Interpretive
Writing
Jill Legault, University of Minnesota Duluth
Marjorie Leggitt, Scientific Illustrator/Designer,
Leggitt Illustration & Design
Kristin Libberton, Watershed Education
Specialist, City of Boulder–Keep It Clean
Partnership
Bonnie D. Lippitt, Regional/State Interpretation,
Tourism, and Visitor Services Program
Manager, US Forest Service Pacific Northwest
Region/BLM Oregon State Office
Sarah Lisle, Lead Interpretive Planner, Texas
Parks and Wildlife Department—State
Parks—Interpretive Services Branch
John C.F. Luzader, Vice President of Programs,
NAI; Principal, Living Museums of the West
Manohar Mariapan, Associate Professor,
Department of Recreation and Ecotourism,
Faculty of Forestry, Universiti Putra Malaysia
Betsy Martinson, Program Administrator,
Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave
Travis Mason-Bushman, Public Affairs Officer
(Partnership Coordinator), Tongass National
Forest (USFS)
Lisa Matlock, Outreach Coordinator, Prince
William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory
Council
Deborah Matlock, Director, Workshop
Programmer, WildRythyms.org
Marisol Mayorga, Ph.D. Candidate, Kansas State
University
Dorothy McLeer, Program Coordinator,
University of Michigan-Dearborn
Environmental Interpretive Center
Corky McReynolds, Director and Professor,
UWSP-Treehaven, University of Wisconsin–
Stevens Point
Fran Snow McReynolds, Graduate Fellowship
Coordinator, University of Wisconsin–
Stevens Point
Sara Melena, Interpretive Specialist, National
Park Service Natural Resource Stewardship
and Science Directorate
Carrie Miller, Certification and Training
Program Coordinator, National Association
for Interpretation
Jeff Miller, Interpretive Trainer, InterpreTraining
Tom Moffatt, Park Supervisor, Three Rivers Park
District–Silverwood Park, a Center for Arts
and the Environment
EXHIBITORS
Exhibitors
106 Group (217)
www.106group.com
Planning, interpretation, and design of
historical, natural, and cultural resources
Acme Scenic & Display, Inc. (417)
www.acmescenic.com
Acme Scenic—interpretive exhibit fabricators
bent on being “ridiculously accommodating.”
Acorn (300)
www.acornnaturalists.com
Unique educational resources for the trail
and classroom.
Fulcrum Publishing (415)
www.fulcrumbooks.com
Books on natural history, history, and
more for children and adults. New graphic
non-fiction featured!
Gopher Sign Company (313)
www.gophersign.com
Affordable photo-quality sign technology
with a 10-year warranty.
Guide By Cell (212)
www.trainbycell.com
Guide By Cell is a leading provider of
effective and affordable mobile engagement
solutions.
Barking Dog Exhibits (107)
Custom metal fabrication and a complete
line for exhibits
GWWO Architects (210)
www.gwwoinc.com
Architectural planning/design for
sustainable, contextual, and immersive
interpretive facilities nationwide
Camera One (409)
www.cameraone.us
Award-winning HD programs for visitor
centers, exhibits, and retail
Interpetive Career Fair (407)
Learn about job opportunities or post
resumes or vacancy announcements
ClimateInterpreter.org (406)
www.climateinterpreter.org
Online resource and community for
interpreters addressing climate change issues.
Creative Edge (411)
www.cec-waterjet.com
Specialty fabricator of architectural
materials for signage, exhibits, and displays
Design Minds (201)
www.thedesignminds.com
Interpretive planning and design firm
dedicated to creating meaningful exhibit
experiences
Doug Elliott (509)
www.dougelliott.com
Elliott is a freelance naturalist, herbalist,
storyteller, basketmaker, musician, and
humorist.
Ecos (307)
www.ecos.us
Natural and cultural history interpretation,
stimulating conservation action
Environment for the Americas (405)
www.birdday.org
Bird education tools for programs and
migratory bird day activities
Erica Fielder (211)
www.ericafielderstudio.com
We create trailside interpretive panels and
visitor center displays
Interpret This (403)
Online learning and interpretive training
opportunities for professional development
Interpretive Graphics (304)
www.interpretivegraphics.com
Development of interpretive and historical
signs. Research, planning, graphic design,
illustration & fabrication.
iZone Imaging (205)
www.izoneimagine.com
Leader in the custom high-pressure laminate
market with in-house manufacturing
Mountain Press Publishing (303)
http://www.mtnpress.com
Books on geology, history, and natural
history for children and adults.
NAI 2015 Workshop (513)
Come to next year’s conference in Virginia
Beach!
NAI Association Store (STORE)
www.interpnet.com/shop
Books and NAI logo clothing
NAI IN Section (512)
www.interpnet.com/in
NAI Interpretive Naturalist Section
NAI Media Awards (511)
Showcasing the best of the best non-personal
interpretation
28 NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014
NAI Region 3 (505)
www.interpnet.com/3
NAI Region 3 (The Sunny Southeast)
NAI Region 7 (507)
www.interpnet.com/7
NAI Region 7 (Rocky Mountain Region)
NAI Region 8 (510)
www.interpnet.com/8
NAI Region 8 (Southwest Region)
NAI Region 10 (508)
www.interpnet.com/10
NAI Region 10 (Pacific Northwest Region)
National Park Service (103)
www.nps.gov
Department of Interior agency that manages
all 401 NPS Units
National Storytelling Network (503)
www.storynet.org
The National Storytelling Network connects
people to and through storytelling
Nature Watch (202)
www.nature-watch.com
Resources, materials, and supplies for nature
centers and environmental educators
NatureTracker / Squarei
Technologies (101)
www.squarei.com
NatureTracker, a customizable natural
resource agency volunteer management
application
Nomad Mobile Guides, Inc. (412)
www.nomadmobile.com
Custom mobile apps for storytelling, tours,
exploration, and wayfinding.
NPS-Natural Resource Stewardship
& Science Directorate (200)
www.nature.nps.gov
NRSS uses science to enable the NPS to fulfill
its mission.
OnCell-Toursphere (310)
www.oncell.com
Interactive mobile solutions, including
smartphone apps, audio tours, and scavenger
hunts.
Pannier Graphics (402)
www.panniergraphics.com
Manufacturer of indoor and outdoor signs,
panels, exhibit bases and frames
Post Modern Company (311)
www.postmodernservices.com
Full service audiovisual multimedia
production studio specialized in serving the
federal government
Tower Building Mezzanine Level
Riggs Ward (400)
www.riggsward.com
Development and design firm providing
various services for cultural institutions.
Sage Mount Solutions (303)
www.sagemounts.com
Innovative mount solutions for interpretive
and wayfinding signage.
Split Rock Studios (312)
www.splitrockstudios.com
We specialize in creating cultural and
natural history exhibits.
Stephen F. Austin State University
(317)
http://shinenet.net
Online Master of Science in Resource
Interpretation and Certificate Programs
CAPACITY CHART
Tower Building Second Level
Tower Building Second Level
Studio Tectonic (316)
www.studiotectonic.com
Award-winning exhibition and interpretive
design, planning, fabrication
Taylor Studios, Inc. (206)
www.taylorstudios.com
Turnkey interpretive planning, exhibit
design, and fabrication. Unprecedented
five-year warranty.
Terrabilt (213)
www.terrabilt.com
Terrabilt designs and builds sustainable
signage and exhibits for parks, trails, and
preserves.
Tour-Mate Systems (305)
www.tourmate.com
Tour-Mate offers indoor and outdoor audio
and multimedia tour solutions
USDA Forest Service (401)
www.fs.fed.us
Center for Design & Interpretation
building design, kiosks, interpretive
presentation
Tower Building Terrace Level
Varro Book Blue Rhino (319)
www.varrobook.com
Super durable interior and exterior exhibit
books
Winsor Fireform (111)
www.winsorfireform.com
Custom porcelain enamel signage, graphic
tile, and custom exhibit bases
NAI National Workshop | Denver, Colorado | November 18–22, 2014 29
FLOOR PLANS
Q Media (413)
www.qmediaproductions.com
Q Media Productions - Award-winning
mobile tour content and delivery