July 28 marks the birthday of the well-known children’s author, Beatrix Potter and we are celebrating her birthday and life’s work with readers around the state.  Each summer, our education staff develop and conduct presentations for public libraries as part of their summer reading program for students.  Our theme this year centered on Beatrix Potter, and, while she is well-known in libraries for her children’s books with characters such as Peter Rabbit and Jemima Puddle-Duck, we introduced readers to another aspect of her work – her scientific illustrations and research with fungi and lichens.

Beatrix’s life makes a fascinating program for students, especially young girls interested in science, and makes connections between science, art, literature, and conservation.  We told her story in 10 library programs, using a combination of photographs, picture books and her own illustrations, along with real mushrooms and lichens to touch for 264 students and parents.  Click here to learn more about Beatrix Potter.  

We have a few new faces around the office – a summer intern and a new employee.

 

Kendall Hamilton (pictured left), our summer intern, has been working on packaging Baker Prairie art prints for storage and distribution.  He has also been helping organize and tag our Natural Areas photo files.  Kendall will be a senior at McClellan High School in Little Rock this upcoming school year and comes to us through the City of Little Rock’s intern program.

Michael Conway (pictured right) is our new GIS/Computer Specialist. This new position will develop and manage geographic information system (GIS) resources; develop, design, and manage agency databases; and provide technical support for the agency, including creative technological solutions.