Rhonda Phillips (Melanson Award Winner, 2015)
Rhonda grew up in Dryden, Ontario and later moved to Saskatchewan to go to university. She married Dave Phillips and lived on the Cumberland Marshes project near Cumberland House for six years. She then moved to Lumsden in 1985.
She received a B.Sc. from the University of Regina in 1978, a B.Ed. from the University of Regina in 1980, and a MSSE from the Montana State University in 2006. Her work experienced included:
Parks, Geologic Survey of Saskatchewan, Royal Saskatchewan Museum
Started teaching in Saskatoon
Cumberland House Reserve School and Charlebois School
Teacher at Lumsden High School since 1989
Councilor for the Town of Lumsden for the past six years
Rhonda enjoys cross country skiing, hiking and canoeing.
Her contributions and accomplishments related to outdoor education include:
Writing education modules for caribou education programs
Water testing Meewasin River Authority
Focus on Forests Saskatchewan
4H
Led environment related action projects which involved all of the students and staff of Lumsden High School – (1) planting 17,000trees in a day as shelterbelts between Regina and Lumsden, (2) cleaning up an oxbow in Lumsden planting cattails along the shoreline to rehabilitate and improve water quality and planting attails along the shoreline to rehabilitate and improve water quality and planting trees in the riparian area, (3) establishing the Trans Canada Trail from Lumsden to Nichol Flats.
School Grounds Renaturalization Project – rehabilitated abandoned land adjacent to Lumsden High School by planting native grasses and drought tolerant trees and shrubs. An outdoor classroom was built in the space, groups of picnic tables were installed and a raised flower bed established to accommodate work with student in wheel chairs. This area, ten years later, is well established and use by many teachers in different subject areas
Participated in piloting and implementation of the Science 10 curriculum
Worked with Learning For Sustainable Futures to identify curriculum related sustainability education resources for teachers
Award of excellent from Centre for Expertise in Education for Sustainable Development at the University of Regina
Distinguished Service Award Youth Science Foundation 2014
Travelled to Volcanoes National Park to learn more about plate tectonics, primary succession and dealing with invasive species
Spent time at the Earth Systems Research Laboratory on Mauna Loa and Gained greater understanding of the science and technology behind ozone depletion and climate change related data collection so that this information can me shared with students and science teachers
Award of Merit from Saskatchewan Science Teachers Association for long term leadership in Saskatchewan science education.
Rhonda served as SOEEA President from 1996-98.
Source:
Rhonda Phillips Melanson Award Citation, SOEEA, 2015.