Hannah Kulbitsky is like hundreds of thousands of other Schuylkill County students over the years in that she remembers the excitement of "Porcupine Pat" McKinney visiting her childhood classroom with his stories about nature and lessons about the environment.
Now Kulbitsky has gone from student to teacher.
In September, Kulbitsky, 22, of Pottsville, started as environmental education and outreach coordinator for the Schuylkill Conservation District.
She follows in the footsteps of McKinney, 67, of Saint Clair, who had been education coordinator since1990, and who earlier this year stepped back into a part-time role.
He is a local icon for teaching so many children and adults about nature and as an environmental protection advocate, and Kulbitsky said she is proud to now be his colleague.
She'll emulate much of what McKinney did and borrow some of his popular programs, she said. They also share the philosophy that if you can heighten awareness and appreciation of the environment, it can prompt people to take action to help preserve it.
But Kulbitsky, who grew up in Deer Lake, also brings her own style, personality and talents to the job that she's thrilled to now have.
"I absolutely love it," she said.
The new Schuylkill County Conservation District environmental educator and outreach coordinator Hannah Kulbitsky poses for a photo at Sweet Arrow Lake County Park, Pine Grove, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024...DAVID MCKEOWN / MULTIMEDIA EDITOR
She is visiting schools, community events, nursing homes, trails and parks to spread her message. She hopes to spur people to plant pollinator gardens, recycle, take hikes, buy more sustainable products or otherwise lessen their impact on the planet, she said. But beyond that, she wants people to come away from her presentations both more knowledgeable and more stirred by the nature that surrounds them.
She'll also speak at career fairs to let students know that they too can find jobs related to the environment.
"I want to inspire the kiddos and show them that I'm the living proof of it," she said.
Her programs now include "Tickly and Prickly," which shows the varied textures of things found locally in nature; her "Funky Fungus" series about mushrooms that grow in our area, and "Beloved Bites" about edible plants.
At Muhlenberg College she graduated with a degree in both sustainability and theater, a combination that left her with a better understanding of the subject matter and better able to present it in an entertaining way.
What she still needs, though, is an alliterative nickname like Porcupine Pat has.
So on the conservation district's social media pages a vote is being held on which descriptor should precede "Hannah," with the options being Hemlock, Hellbender, Hawk-Eye, Hummingbird, Blue Heron, Witch-Hazel, Hawthorne and Huckleberry.
The voting ends Nov. 29.
The conservation district is funded by federal, state and county funds along with revenue it generates through its programs and services. In addition to environmental education, it also provides guidance and technical assistance towards farmland preservation, erosion and sedimentation control, watershed management and protection, mine reclamation and invasive insect and plant management.
Conservation district manager Jenna St. Clair said that Kulbitsky is a great fit for the educator job, and will do well succeeding a legendary figure whom she, too, remembers visiting her classroom when she was young.
"Hannah is going to help people have a greater understanding of what's around us, and a greater appreciation of our county in general," St. Clair said. "We're excited to have her."
McKinney said even in his part-time role he strives to get people to want to be outdoors.
"If you can inspire curiosity, you can change the world," he said.
Kulbitsky agreed.
"I want people to feel the joy that nature brings," she said.