Specialists in Ecological & Wetland Consulting

Ohio Green Schools Rally & Tour

On February 22, 2012, at Reynoldsburg High School Summit Campus, the Ohio Green Schools Rally will take a look at how students, school districts and communities benefit from green schools. Learn from those involved about the demand and strategies for high-performance schools. Mark Dilley and Lauren Harvey of MAD Scientist & Associates will be among those professionals who have been involved creating a school campus that provides an abundance of innovation and environmental education opportunities. At the event, MAD Scientist & Associates will be leading tours of the recently-completed land lab, highlighting the wetland complex, pond, and riparian corridor enhancements we designed and helped install in 2011. The event runs from 11 am to 6 pm. More information can be found here.

MAD to sponsor Envirothon Team

MAD Scientist & Associates will be sponsoring the Reynoldsburg High School Envirothon Team, led by teacher Lori Phillips. The competition will be held in May. Students will form a team to explore various aspects of the environment in an attempt to solve a problem and earn points as they compete against other area teams. If successful at the regional level, the Reynoldsburg team could compete at the State level in June.

Make a Difference Day 2011

We would like to thank those who got up early and came out for in this year’s Boyer Nature Preserve work event on Make a Difference Day (Oct. 22)! The hard work of our volunteers put a nice dent in the invasive species in the park, removing 2-acres of invasive honeysuckle, and the 40 native trees and shrubs we planted will help restore the natural forest plant community.

New Visitor at Boyer Nature Preserve: An Otter!!

Speaking of Boyer Nature Preserve, an otter was spotted at the end of October running through the forested vernal pool area that was created by the Westerville Parks and Recreation Department in 2005 (with help from Friends of Alum Creek and Tributaries and funding from Columbus Fair Auto Auction, for wetland mitigation). The otter was seen again in November swimming in the shallow central pond!

River otters were once common around Ohio until they were extirpated by the early 1900s as a result of trapping and habitat loss. The Ohio Division of Wildlife (DOW) began a reintroduction program in 1986 that has helped re-establish their populations. Today, otters have been sighted in two-thirds of Ohio’s counties, and seem to have chosen Boyer Nature Preserve as a new playground! More information on the river otter may be found on the DOW’s website.

Reynoldsburg City Schools Eco-Lab Wetland Site Highlighted in Urban Review Newsletter

Our biggest project of the year, the Eco-Lab wetland creation/restoration at Reynoldsburg’s new Summit Road school site, was the cover story for Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District's November Urban Review newsletter . Please check it out!.

• Martha Gilson, who took and interest in our project and wrote the article;
• the forward-thinking administration and teachers of the Reynoldsburg City School District for supporting the development of this Eco-Lab;
• the staff of Moody-Nolan for including us on the team and supporting our wetland design and construction oversight efforts;
• the staff of the Smoot-Elford construction management team for keeping us informed of schedules and helping to resolve construction issues; and
• all of the hardy volunteers who turned out to help plant the site - this crew went above and beyond, despite challenging conditions for a planting effort in mid-summer.

It's been a pleasure seeing this project come together. We hope that we'll have continued opportunities to collaborate with the District to improve and manage the site and promote its beneficial uses for STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) in Reynoldsburg.

Mark Dilley invited to speak at the 2011 American Conservation Information Conference

Mark presented “Making the Most of Your Smartphone in Outdoor Pursuits” at the national American Conservation Information (ACI) Conference in Cincinnati on July 19th. The conference was co-sponsored by the Ohio Division of Wildlife.

He originally delivered this presentation (under the title “How to Harness Technology to Make Monitoring Easier”) at the Ohio Environmental Council’s Ohio Vernal Pool Workshop in February. Click here to get a PDF of his presentation.

Wessie Fest

MAD Scientist & Associates participated in the Wessie Fest Nature Festival on Aug. 27 at Otterbein Lake. This annual event featured children's activities, food, live native animals, and outdoor education activities. Our staff used nets and seines to share in tanks what lives in the lake. As you can see from the photos below, kids of all ages enjoyed discovering nature on a beautiful Saturday.

New Land Lab at Reynoldsburg E-STEM High School Planted

On July 22-23, MAD Scientist & Associates worked with Reynoldsburg E-STEM staff and around 100 volunteers to plant 9000 plants on two of the hottest and stormiest days of summer. MAD Scientist & Associates designed the wetland features that were created on the land lab site and guided and supervised the community volunteers who came out to help install the plants. The plants are already flourishing in their new home, and dragonflies and frogs are inhabiting the area. For more on this story, click here.

Back to Nature at the Millstone Creek Park

A Back to Nature event was held at the Millstone Creek Park on July 8 for preschoolers and their parents to explore water, nature activities and crafts all dealing with Outdoor Nature. MAD Scientist & Associates staff member Lauren Harvey helped preschoolers learn a bit more about nature.

I.G.O.R. Volunteers

*Volunteers who log a total of ten (10) hours on three or more volunteer work days organized by MAD Scientist & Associates will earn their official "I.G.O.R." t-shirt!

Our wonderful volunteers/t-shirt models are Jerry Holloway and Kellie Chenault.