In 1989, Ms. Beck joined the St. Francis Wildlife Association, a non-profit organization providing care and rehabilitation for sick, injured, and orphaned wildlife in north Florida and south Georgia.  As education director, she created The Wild Classroom, a unique program through which disabled, native birds of prey, mammals and reptiles enable local school children to make a personal connection with our natural world. 

In 1991, she received a grant from the Florida Advisory Council on Environmental Education to publish "Conserving Florida Wildlife," an interdisciplinary curriculum guide for teachers. A 2004 Nature of Learning grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation enabled her to create "Wild Words for Wild Wings," a unique program for children that combines bird watching, poetry, visual arts and technology. The Foundation funded this grant for three years.

As a teacher of gifted students at Leon County Schools' Academic Resource Center from 1994 to 2001, she created curricula that encourage children to consider the “interconnectedness of life.”

She has been a classroom teacher in elementary, middle and high schools in Miami and Tallahassee, Florida. She taught writing classes at Tallahassee Community College and at Florida State University's Center for Professional Development.

In addition to her work as Education Director of The Wild Classroom, she currently teaches gifted and talented students at Astoria Park Elementary School, writes an environmental column for the Tallahassee Democrat Chronicle section, is a regular contributor to Florida Wildlife Magazine and works as a freelance writer for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission for whom she most recently completed the Educators Guide to Viewing Florida Wildlife.

She has presented at numerous professional conferences, from the Florida Council of Teachers of English (FCTE) to the League of Environmental Educators of Florida (LEEF). She was Festival Director of the 2004 and 2005 Tallahassee Wildlife Festivals.

Ms. Beck was presented with the Leon Association of Science Teachers' 1998 Middle School Science Teacher of the Year award and was the Academic Resource Center's Teacher of the Year in 1997 and 2001.

In 2008 and 2011, The Florida Magazine Association presented her with their Charlie Award for Writing Excellence.

In 2009, The Tallahassee Community College Women's History Month Committee honored her with their annual Women's History Month award. The theme was "Women Taking the Lead to Save Our Planet."

At their 2011 Awards Gala, the Girl Scout Council of the Florida Panhandle honored her as a Woman of Distinction for her contributions to environmental education.

Ms. Beck received her B.S. in Elementary Education from Florida International University and her M.S. in English Education from Florida State University.

Professional Resume

E-mail

The Wild Classroom

St. Francis Wildlife Association