Greystone Nature Preserve interns and staff (from left): Heather Decker (Major: Marketing, Minor: Economics), Anna Faulise (History), Greystone Nature Preserve Director Diane Clark, Rachel Mayou (Environmental Science, Chemistry), Katherine Studt (Education), Jayden Zajac (Psychology, Communication), and high schooler and volunteer Christina Dahlgren.
On a beautiful warm, spring afternoon, five SUNY Fredonia interns celebrated the success of five distinctly individual internships at Greystone Nature Preserve.
The interns were accompanied by parents, siblings, friends and college professors, and were toasted and enjoyed snacks and sandwiches from Tuscany Food Market.
A tour of the Greystone Nature Preserve grounds was given and much camaraderie was shared at the year-end event at Greystone.
The interns employed the education they had gained at SUNY Fredonia through their various majors. They also learned a wide variety of skills and were empowered to use them creatively. Preserve Director Diane Clark noted that the interns came from a vast variety of backgrounds, and yet all were focused on their contribution to the environment. Each internship was designed to take into account the specific abilities of the intern and also teach new skills.
- Heather Decker used her marketing knowledge to design several advertising brochures, constructed worksheets and permission slips for the preserve files, created a promotional video and updated the website. She also designed a Memorial Tree gift certificate and pamphlet.
- Anna Faulise, co-director of Earth Day on campus, recruited an environmental speaker for the Earth Day event, and designed and established information tables. She also enlarged her computer and gardening skills.
- Rachel Mayou acted as grounds manager for Greystone Nature Preserve, disassembling a group of wind-blown trees. She also took several soil sample plots and performed water testing. She was described as a “sparkling” coordinator for the Earth Day event.
- Katherine Studt acted as the all-around plant expert. Her gardening talents were put to use in preparing many, many give-away plants. She was responsible for the technical setup of Earth Day. She appeared on the Chautauqua Sunrise television show to advertise the Earth Day event. Katherine was also a star worker during the Volunteer Sundays at the GNP.
- Jayden Zajac’s internship was titled “Chicken Psychology 101.” She chose a poultry breeder, selected 15 chicks, prepared their home, and welcomed them to Greystone Nature Preserve. She acquired first hand-first time knowledge of chickens through reading several books. She also studied behaviors and communications among the chickens.
