Refuge promotes WoW intern to education staff
The “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society-Friends of the Refuge reported that Ashley McGovern is stepping up from her position as the Jenni & Kyle Foundation Wildlife on Wheels education intern to full-time education staffer for the J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel.
She will continue on a permanent basis as assistant urban education leader to Urban Education Leader Melissa Maher, teaching Title I students on WoW visits in the Tice community and greater area of Lehigh Acres within the School District of Lee County.
“Ashley has become an invaluable part of the education team since she joined us for the 2023-2024 school year,” Maher said. “She excels at planning curriculum to meet STEM and Sunshine State standards and hands-on, introducing kids from elementary through middle school grades to nature and science concepts. She has helped create countless conservation stewards of the future.”
A Johnston, Iowa, native and graduate from the Central Methodist University in Fayette, Missouri, McGovern majored in marine biology with minors in environmental science and criminal justice. She worked previously one-on-one with Wallace Elementary School students in Iowa as a substitute associate for students with disabilities or in need of special accommodations.
“I am thrilled to be able to continue working with students here and getting them excited about science,” McGovern said. “It’s such a joy to see that spark in children’s eyes when they get to experience the wonder of nature for often the first time.”
The DDWS fully funds McGovern and Maher’s positions, while supporting the maintenance and operation of WoW, a mobile outreach classroom that first hit the road in December of 2020.