Erin Tate Email & Phone Number

St. Louis, Missouri

My position as CARE associate involves working with internal and external shareholders, community members, conservation professionals, and everyone in between to develop evaluation and research projects. While most of my work is targeted towards audience experience, I am also involved with event evaluation, behavior change and empathy research, interpretive design, program participant and citizen science programming evaluation. I am an advocate for the community, audience, participants, and stakeholders who rely on CARE's documented program outcomes to make informed decisions regarding our mission and to contribute to our body of knowledge. Highlights include:Timing and tracking visitor engagement with First Voices video journals at animal exhibits Quantitative and qualitative grant evaluation, assessing knowledge, awareness, attitudes, and behavioral intent in educational and community programs in collaboration with the Institute for Conservation Medicine and Pacific Bird ConservationFormative and summative exhibit evaluation and interpretive designOn-grounds participant recruitment experience Human health benefits of zoos research Extensive collaboration across departments both internal and external to the institution Conference session and poster presentationsCollaboration with area universities on assessing citizen science participation, attitudes and behaviors

Backpacking sections of the Appalachian Trail has been a lesson in fortitude, time management, adaptability, mindfulness, resource allotment, team work, peer mediation, self-reliance, and knowing when to push ahead and when to go home. My first stint on the AT lasted four months, after a year of preparation. Backpacking has proven to be a valuable asset in my professional life for all of the reasons previously mentioned - anyone who disagrees clearly hasn't been rained, snowed, and hailed on in one afternoon during a 16 mile day in the Great Smoky Mountains! To date, I have completed approximately 1200 miles of the trail, including a month-long stint as hostel work-for-stay helping cook meals, fold loads of hiker laundry, and checking hikers in and out of Woods Hole Hostel in Pearisberg, VA.

Responsibilities included daily routine care of terrestrial invertebrates - feeding, cleaning habitats, taking observations and records of new hatches, and identifying and cutting browse to use as food. I also helped educate the public during keeper chats, talking about conservation issues such as the decline of milkweed affecting monarch populations and the ways guests could help native bees. During this time I learned a lot about the specific care that goes into keeping a variety of different invertebrates and my interests focused especially on the care of mantids, caterpillars, and a variety of walking sticks (although all the animals in our care were pretty fascinating!),

As an interpreter it was my job to convey interesting and useful information to zoo visitors that would give them a better understanding of the zoo's missions and of conservation of the animals as a whole. Establishing an empathetic relationship by informing visitors of all ages and from diverse backgrounds on why X is such a cool animal and how we can conserve them in the wild was such a fulfilling and rewarding job - I was able to share my love of learning, animals, and ecology with zoo visitors and I loved answering any questions they may have had. This position required extensive time on zoo grounds, inciting conversations with guests, using biofacts to explain an interpretation, and research to devise our own interpretations of specific animal species - often including an interesting adaptation, why it it important for the environment, and what we can do to help.

The research interns worked as a group to conduct live observations of social, breeding, and nursing behaviors of Somali Wild Ass and Grevy's Zebra. This required keen observation and accurate data recording as we scan sampled, with one intern recording the data and the another (or two) calling out observations. Other duties included video taped observations of Channel Island Fox that required observation and data recording simultaneously by use of a computer program. While interning at the Zoo I also took part in live observations and data collection of Great Hornbills and Mexican Gray Wolves.

Learned how to take care of all manners of wild birds who had been injured - duties included sanctuary work (cleaning, feeding, repairing things as necessary around the enclosures) and assisting with rehabilitation at the hospital.

With guidance I was resposinble for the ethology portion of an extensive study elucidating causes and correlations of spinal deformities in sandtiger sharks. I learned the scientific process step-by-step from hypothesizing what behaviors could cause or exacerbate the deformity, devised an ethogram, observed and coded data for 60+ hours of video of sandtiger swimming, and helped analyze the results. I presented the results and how they fit in the larger picture of the study at the Sixth International Symposium on Aquatic Animal Health in 2010 and a published manuscript of the findings are currently in press.

While on the Disney College Program I gained extensive experience in guest service as I interacted with a high volume of people from all over the world and ranging in age. I loved my job and my time on the program because I was able to meet so many amazing people from all walks of life and made many wonderful friends. Working in retail I also gained experience in working efficiently and multitasking - often providing information and enhancing guest experiences while stocking merchandise or performing a transaction for the guest.

Master Of Arts - Ma, Biology, General

I am currently enrolled in the Global Fields Program through Project Dragonfly with plans to obtain my MA in biology. Through this.

Bachelor Of Arts (B.A.), Organismal/Evolutionary Biology

Activities and Societies: Member of Beta Beta Beta biological honors and Walt Disney World College Program Campus Representative.I was.

Associate Of Arts (Aa), Environmental Studies