From Cabin Leader to Environmental Educator

From Cabin Leader to Environmental Educator

Before my last semester of college, I decided to pursue an internship position as a Cabin Leader at Dunes Learning Center. Little did I know that after I graduated I would be back as an Environmental Educator.

My first experience of Northwest Indiana included meeting the staff of DLC, becoming a Cabin Leader, and exploring the Indiana Dunes National Park. I was very excited to join the team as a Cabin Leader. With that came some memorable moments that I will never forget. A moment that I cherish from my time as a Cabin Leader was leading a night hike during Dunes Adventure Camp (Teen Camp). During the night hike, I had an activity called solo hike where the campers have a short, 30-second solo hike on the trail.

In order for the campers to know when they can walk down the trail, I would do an owl call to signal to them that the trail is clear to walk down. After campers would finish the solo hike, I would let them call to signal the next person. After doing this a couple of times an actual owl called back to us. I will never forget the look of excitement on my campers’ faces when they heard an actual owl that they called. This moment made me really appreciate the opportunity I had to be a Cabin Leader and to witness these campers calling an owl for the first time. I knew from that moment that I wanted to come back as an Environmental Educator so that I could continue to make an impact on young people’s lives and let them have an experience that they may have never had before. 

Since I have started as an Environmental Educator, I have found that I am still able to enjoy night hikes and other activities that I performed as a cabin leader. I am happy to say that after transitioning from a Cabin Leader into an Environmental Educator, I am looking forward to more of these experiences with campers and students.  

Travis Privette

Environmental Education Fellow