By: Kerry Kirk Pflugh
Dear Friend,
As the year draws to a close, I am happy to share the amazing impact that the New Jersey School of Conservation has had in 2024. From grade school to graduate school and beyond, our programs are testament to our commitment to foster educated and committed stewards of the environment. This was truly a historic year as we celebrated our 75th Anniversary as a regional and global leader in environmental education. With the support of friends like you, we will build off of our recent successes and continue to promote stewardship and a more sustainable future. I hope you share our sense of pride as we look forward with optimism and determination for what the NJSOC can accomplish in 2025!
In January we hosted our first ever Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service which brought 24 volunteers to our campus to assist with trash cleanup, invasive species removal, native seed collection, trail clearing and firewood stacking. Through the winter months, our Education Team revamped programs to prepare for a busy spring season. At the same time our talented facilities crew worked steadily on important campus improvement projects. We have renovated apartments and porches, began to modernize the much-beloved Long House kitchen, and have busily been planning major restoration projects for Kittatinny Hall and the Maintenance Shop.
We are especially pleased with the beautiful transformation of one of the oldest buildings on campus into a new wheelchair-accessible Welcome Center that will highlight our history and programs for students and visitors for years to come!
As our campus sprung back to life, our Master Educators greeted students from across New Jersey to lead dozens of classes exploring ecology, wildlife, and outdoor skills. Students from 12 NJ counties and other communities in NY and PA experienced the magic of the NJSOC as they searched for stream creatures, hiked the trails, and built shelters in the forest. Behind the scenes, our Leadership Team was busy planning a wonderful 75th Anniversary Celebration that brought together more than 170 former staff, students, and Camp Wapalanne alumni on June 1. It was heartwarming to witness old friends embracing each other after decades apart and inspiring to hear environmental leaders share their vision for New Jersey’s future.
When summer rolled around, music rang through the trees and along the trails, as Stokes Summer Music Camp returned to campus for the first time since 2019. More than 100 student musicians from across the state made new friends, shared their love of music, and honed their talents over a two week period.
Summer also saw the launch of a new series of professional development workshops focused on climate change education. Ramapo College, the recipient of a major grant from the New Jersey Department of Education, selected the NJSOC as one of three partner environmental education centers to facilitate professional development workshops to help teachers implement the state’s new climate change learning standards. More than 92 K-12 classroom teachers from across New Jersey were on-site the week of August 5 learning about the climate crisis, participating in hands-on field studies, and strategizing how to incorporate interdisciplinary climate education in their schools. Feedback from the educators was overwhelmingly positive from the content of the workshops to the meals at Big Timbers and the comfortable cabin accommodations.
The climate change education grant not only funded professional development for teachers, but also supported student field trips. Many of the teachers who attended workshops over the summer were eager to bring their classes to the NJSOC, and five schools visited during the fall and others are booked for spring 2025 as a direct result. Coupled with returning school trips, public programs, and ongoing academic research projects onsite, we had a delightfully busy fall season.
This year also demonstrated the power and potential of partnerships to grow the impact of the NJSOC. With the support of the National Geographic Society, we were able to pilot its new Macroblitz program at NJSOC. This included training classroom teachers how to observe and identify insects and other invertebrates of freshwater habitats and how to submit their findings to an online citizen science database. The NJSOC also brought together leaders from several New Jersey colleges for preliminary discussions to organize a new research consortium that would expand scientific research activities and internship opportunities at the NJSOC for college students and academics.
Across all of our programs, the NJSOC touched the lives of over 1,300 children and over 600 adults in 2024, providing countless opportunities to connect with nature, learn about pressing environmental challenges, and become better stewards of the natural world. Despite the exciting growth we experienced this year, we know there is always more to do, and more challenges ahead. We know that many schools struggle to afford field trips and the cost of bussing to the NJSOC. We know that we have to do more to put NJSOC experiences within reach for New Jersey children from overburdened communities. We know that we must improve accessibility to ensure people of all abilities can participate in programs and activities at our historic campus. The NJSOC is a unique place where science and knowledge meet awe and wonder, and we must push ahead to provide environmental education for everyone, everywhere.
The NJSOC has much to be thankful for, and much to look forward to in 2025. I hope you will consider making a year-end gift to the NJSOC to power our work and ensure that we can reach even more children and lifelong learners next year. Together, we will foster tomorrow’s environmental leaders and problem-solvers, starting today!
To make a secure online donation, please click the button below. If you would like to mail your donation, please send a check to our mailing address, PO Box 403, Branchville, NJ 07826. For assistance with making a donation, feel free to call our office at 732-410-6104.
In Friendship,
Kerry Kirk Pflugh
Executive Director
Friends of the NJ School of Conservation