Frostburg, Md. (April 15, 2008) – The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science Appalachian Laboratory will honor Maryland Park Service leader Jeffrey Ruark with the Richard A. Johnson Environmental Education Award at a ceremony Thursday evening in Frostburg.

The award, to be presented by Appalachian Laboratory Director Robert H. Gardner, recognizes local citizens for their outstanding contributions to environmental education and will be presented to Ruark for his contributions to expanding the community’s understanding and appreciation of the natural world. The award honors the memory of Richard A. Johnson, a well-known orthopedic surgeon in the Allegany County area. He passed away in 1990 leaving a legacy of a caring and dedicated physician, family man and naturalist. The Laboratory honors his memory through its promotion of environmental education and the people who excel in its practice.

“Throughout his career, Jeffrey has worked to make Maryland State Parks safer, more accessible and easier to understand for the millions of people annually visiting them,” said Gardner. “His passion for instilling park visitors with a greater appreciation of the outdoors sets him apart from his peers and is an inspiration to everyone in the environmental education field.”

Mr. Ruark’s Maryland Park Service career began in 1978, as seasonal conservation assistant at Patuxent River State Park. Some 30 years later, he now serves as Senior Training Coordinator and is in charge of training all Park Service employees in public safety, search and rescue, leadership, history and environmental education.

Mr. Ruark is a graduate of Towson State University with a B.S. in biology. He lives in LaVale and serves as an elder at First Presbyterian Church and high school soccer coach.

The award provides the recipient with $2,000 to support further environmental education activities. An endowed fund to support the Johnson Award has been established at the University System of Maryland Foundation and is administered by the Appalachian Laboratory. Contributors to the fund include Allegheny Power, NewPage Corporation, Mettiki Coal Corporation and numerous private citizens and other organizations.

Past recipients of the Richard A. Johnson Environmental Education Award include: former Times-News columnist Ken Hodgdon (1991); Frostburg State University professor Emeritus Don Emerson (1991); retired teacher Nan Livingston (1992); retired teacher Charles Strauss Sr. (1993); former Appalachian Laboratory Director Kent Fuller (1996); Department of Natural Resources project manager Bernard Zlomek (2001); Hickory Environmental Education Center coordinator Joseph Winters (2002); former Frostburg State University Biology Department Head Melvin Brown (2003); Beall High School Environmental Educator Kenneth Baxter (2004); Allegany High School Ecology Club mentor Alan Hammond (2005); Route 40 Elementary School Principal Patrick Delaney (2006); and, Garrett College Professor Kevin Dodge (2007).

Founded in 1961, the Appalachian Laboratory is a center for research on terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems, including how these ecosystems function within the larger context of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and how human activity may influence these ecosystems and effect ecosystem health and sustainability on local, regional and global scales. Located in the mountains of western Maryland, the Appalachian Laboratory is one of three laboratories of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

CONTACT:
Chris Conner
443-496-0095