Everybody seems to be talking about the America's Great Outdoors report released last week by the White House.
Monday's Poughkeepsie Journal had a story about Carlos Duran and Francis Cruz, graduates of Clearwater's Green Leadership Pipeline program, who were at the White House last week when the report was presented.
A New York Times editorial, also on Monday, called specific attention to the recommendation to "protect places near big cities, like the Hudson River Valley, as well as dwindling farmland."
We heard thanks are due Scenic Hudson for calling the editorial board's attention to this aspect of the report.
NPR, CNN, and network news shows covered it. Washington Unplugged, a CBS online video feature ran a clip from President Obama's presentation about the density of squirrels in President's Park, a national park that includes the White House.
What impressed me most was the attention the report pays to youth. It includes an entire section devoted to their ideas. For instance, THV SCA Hadley Galbraith reported that speakers at a Hudson Valley listening session called for "more outdoor jobs for teens" and "more environmentally-focused jobs."
The NYS Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) wants YOUR ideas about revitalizing and sustaining our sites. We want our sites to be well-managed, well-interpreted, and most of all, well used. As part of the review process, we have created a series of online surveys. We hope the results will help us set goals for the future of the system.
Please click here to complete our brief survey and give us your feedback so we may better serve you and your community.
Thanks in part to a grant from the Verizon Foundation, The Hudson River Valley institute is building on our current offerings. Throughout this year, we'll be adding video, slide-shows, and other materials that complement existing interpretive programs at heritage sites. We've provided online materials for educators since 2002, and over the years, we have sought to improve our “virtual field-trips,” evolving from simple itineraries to illustrated field reports with recommended activities.
"Thanks to Verizon's generous gift, students who may not be able to visit these mansions will be able to do the next best thing," said HRVI Executive Director Colonel James Johnson. "At a time when school districts face limited funds and budget shortfalls, teachers will be able to use our interpretive material to enrich students' educational experience and generate interest in our region."
The next phase in this ongoing redesign will use the Verizon Foundation's grant to digitize photos, video, audio, and other material for Olana, Clermont, and Staatsburgh state historic sites as well as two national historic landmarks, Locust Grove and Springside.
The photo at right, courtesy of Staatsburgh State Historic Site, shows Ruth Livingston Mill's bedroom. It was restored to its original splendor in recent years.
The Verizon project builds on our existing network and partnerships, and provides material for another proposed project we're very excited about. A pilot project funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, will allow HRVI to develop self-guided site tours, including audio and video presentations, visitors can access via PDAs. You can a prototype describing Staatsburgh State Historic Site on YouTube.
Watch for updates (http://www.hudsonrivervalley.org/) as production of the tours begins later this year. Then, come spring, take the tour and provide feedback via a short questionnaire right on the device.
"The staff at HRVI has learned from its site partners that to be most effective, online material must be designed to work with on-site or in-classroom materials they have already developed," said Johnson. "In this way, students and educators can use the Web to prepare for a field trip or classroom visit, and site staff can focus more on actual lessons and less on providing a site overview.
"The themes and content that will be developed with the help of the Verizon Foundation grant will build on existing interpretations at each historic site to do exactly this. The ultimate goal is to develop overview information and leading questions to provide a virtual experience for all, whether or not they visit the actual site."
Chris is program director at the Hudson River Valley Institute (HRVI) and associate editor of The Hudson River Valley Review. HRVI is the academic arm of the National Heritage Area and a center for the study and promotion of the region's history, culture, economy, and environment. It provides educational resources including a digital library, public programs, and the Review.
[Editor's note: Apply for a THV Explore Award to help pay for real field trips. And, check THV's teacher-tested lessons related to Olana and Locust Grove.]
