ACE Ed-Ventures Silver Seminars

March 23 – “Salamanders of the North Carolina Piedmont” with Jeff Hall
Hired in 2007 by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Jeff Hall is the Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (PARC) Biologist. As PARC Biologist, Jeff works with landowners to promote habitat management that benefits reptiles and amphibians as well as other wildlife species. He coordinates the North Carolina chapter of PARC helping to bring public and private partners together to further conservation efforts for reptiles and amphibians. Jeff also participates in field work on a variety of projects including rare amphibian monitoring and habitat restoration, upland snake conservation, and Project Bog Turtle. In addition, Hall manages the Calling Amphibian Survey Program (CASP) which is designed to monitor long-term trends of frog and toad populations across the state. Jeff, his wife Shannon, and two boys live in Greenville, NC.

April 20 – “Common Insects of North Carolina” with Dr. Ken Ahlstrom, NCSU professor emeritus
Dr. Ahlstrom is originally from Connecticut.  He earned his Master’s and Ph.D. in Entomology at NCSU.  Dr. Ahlstrom’s specialty is parasitic wasps.  From there, he spent 41 years until retirement in 2013 with the NC Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services.  He now works part-time as Staff Entomologist for a local exterminator.  He is always ready to answer any entomological questions we have here at Agapé.

September 28 (CLOSED) – “A Brief Geologic History of North Carolina” with Amy Pitts 
Amy Pitts is the Education and Outreach Geologist with the NC Geological Survey, Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources, NC Department of Environmental Quality. She has a BS in Environmental Resource Management from Penn State University and her Master’s in Geology from the University of Florida. She has taught Earth Science and Environmental Geography at North Central Michigan College, and has worked as a professional geologist in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Michigan, and North Carolina. Specialty areas include hydrogeology and groundwater.