Education Design Group

Education Design Group (EDG) designs and facilitates collaborative programs and processes that bring organizations and individuals together in alliances that address real world problems. These mutually beneficial programs leverage shared resources and draw strength from diversity, both individually and organizationally.

EDG was established in 2007 as a cutting edge design group for educational outreach that creates viable interfaces between science and art.

Over the last 10 years, Susan Clark, Ph.D. the Executive Director of EDG, has gained experience designing, implementing, and refining educational collaborations in the Eastern Sierra Region of California. This work was done through a nonprofit she created, ESICE.

The programs at ESICE historically focused on linking skills and expertise of collaborators that included public schools, universities, government resource agencies, non-profit educational organizations, tribal organizations, and community members.

In 2007, ESICE had an annual budget of $600,000 that included a three year, $2.6M National Science Foundation grant.

ESICE partnership programs linked such resources as research and teaching capacities of both University of California and University of Nevada schools, skills of curriculum specialists, teaching strategists, and public schools.

Collaboratively, these organizations worked with ESICE in an effort to address the need of improving science education on multiple fronts. These programs, some of which continue to this day, involved participants in real-world projects such as data collection and curriculum development, with additional support stemming from responsible government agencies.

Based on these experiences, collaboration at EDG is used as a tool to revitalize institutions of higher education as well as curriculum in public schools. By involving local community members at many levels, the focus of creating models that build skills within local organizations becomes paramount.

This capacity-building design approach provides existing institutions the ability to support these programs. Ultimately, these programs become self-sustainable. Collaborations must, we have found, engage traditionally underrepresented groups, such as local Latino and tribal communities, who participate in parallel projects.

These design elements also serve as models for government agencies interested in moving beyond the constraints of traditional "public outreach" and "education" programs, and toward more authentic and tangible forms of engagement.

Program design principles are created to:
• Build capacity and challenge assumptions of separation.
• Facilitate partnerships using collaboration as an empowering tool.
• Infuse emerging research, government institutions, higher education, and public schools with immediacy and sense of purpose.
• Provide participants with models for building unique partnerships that share resources.
• Challenge limiting concepts of collaboration and its real world applications.
• Recognize diversity as an opportunity to learn new worldviews and build solutions arising from these shared perspectives.

Examples of Past Projects That Have Led to Current EDG Programs Include:

Eastern Sierra Watershed Program (ESWP):
ESWP brings together resources from the University of California, local school districts, the county office of education, and the Paiute community, with the support of local natural resource agencies and community participants. ESWP at its core is a K-12 program, but it makes use of the local teacher professional development and adult education programs and engages a cadre of community members in its docent program. ESWP has also collaborated with new tribal groups and community innovators to support important work they are doing that helps make the overall community a stronger, healthier place of opportunity. The re-watering of the Lower Owens River, a real-world event of great interest, gave ESWP focus while accessing the expertise of researchers and educational specialists.

Roadside Heritage Project (RHP):
The RHP is an ongoing project that works with the University of California, Cooperative Extension 4-H program, local middle and high school youth, in sharing their local heritage by developing audio stories with support from national media specialists. These audio stories are then professionally produced and distributed to the traveling public along the Eastern Sierra Scenic Byway. The third phase of RH Project is currently under development between ESICE, University of Nevada, Reno, University of California, Berkeley, Lawrence Hall of Science, and the National Science Foundation.

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK):
Stemming from successful collaboration during ESWP, Susan Clark and Qwina West helped create TEK with the purpose of engaging Tribal members to pass along the importance of the Paiute language and culture to its people, with a specific emphasis in outreach programs to the younger generation.

Leah Chubb, B.A.
Leah is a Executive Director for EDG. She graduated from the University of Texas in Austin in 2004 with dual degrees in Studio Art and Hispanic Studies. Since then she has lived and worked in Portland, Oregon and spent extensive time traveling to over 30 countries. Her extended experience abroad provides a dynamic perspective to EDG's collaborative team in developing programs and nurturing relationships. She works concurrently with Dynamic Competence, Thinking Styles International, and The Renewable Energy Accelerator.

Dave Mulligan
Dave is Project Manager for EDG's production team and has been involved in television and commercial video production for three years. Prior to this stint in television, he worked for 15 years as a marketing and creative developer, which included writing for commercials, screenplays and magazines. He has also spent years as a public speaker, hosting and emceeing events of all types and sizes. He is ecstatically married and has three highly entertaining kids.
He is supported by Donald Weiser who is on of our video production specialists. Donald has worked in television production since 1991 as Director, Producer, Shooter, Editor, and On-air host. He has worked on national ad campaigns as well as commercials for Ford, Toyota, and Chevrolet. He has also worked in extreme sports production including air races, wake boarding national tour, skiing, and snowboarding.

Leslie Farias
Leslie is known nationally as an expert trainer in communications training. She is devoted to finding new ways of strengthening an organization's people, enabling them to adapt to ever-changing environments. Leslie has specialized in various aspects of communications since 1973, beginning with a 10 year, career teaching high school English writing and literature. Leslie brings over 20 years of experience in facilitating workshops to enhance employee skills and knowledge.

Irma West
Irma is the Coordinator for the Traditional Ecological Knowledge Program based out of Bishop, Ca. She has 10 years of experience in leading traditional knowledge programs and has worked with the Bishop Tribal youth for the last four years in a variety of programs. She has co-developed an annual elders gathering and the Paiute Mountain School with her husband, Qwina West, Director of the TEK program.

"Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication."
-Leonardo da Vinci

EDG at a glance: Click the links below to find out more about each project.

E-Resource Center for Renewable Energy in Nevada

In order to fill the knowledge gaps created by the rapid changes related to renewable energy, Education Design Group (EDG) has developed an online suite of components that support the seamless sharing of knowledge and training to support Nevada’s workforce. By facilitating communication and data sharing between trade industries, educators, manufacturers and related entities, EDG will build the foundation for creating jobs and strengthening Nevada’s position in the country’s future in renewable energy.

Formal training processes build a base of knowledge, however wind power is a rapidly evolving technology; building codes and city regulations are changing; Nevada’s renewable energy programs are developing; and “real world” installation/operations know-how is just beginning to be built. Because renewable energy is in such a rapid state of change, there remains no single housing for the knowledge available to educators and tradesmen, nor the structured oversight and standardization found in more mature industries.

The key to success is a Nevada work force that has the best knowledge available. The best knowledge is the most current and comprehensive, and to ensure that, we must have a mechanism for continuous improvement. No instructions go unchanged after real-world installation and operation. Knowledge created in the real world must be immediately captured and made available to technicians and users to ensure safety, efficiency and customer satisfaction.

EDG’s e-Resource Center contains 3 major components to bridge these gaps:

Distance Learning Platform

EDG’s suite contains a distance-learning platform that not only houses renewable energy curricula, but also communicates with all standard e-learning applications in use today. Because material is found on-line, it is accessible to students in rural areas as both a training and recruiting tool. All courses will provide a preview of programs for consideration (for example MIT Open Courseware). Students can take the “on-line” component of their training before traveling to hands-on training that is usually offered in urban areas. In addition, continuing education courses may be available on-line to professionals working in the rurals who may not have the time to come into the city for retraining.

In addition, EDG will provide a simple and affordable e-learning application, populated with the curricula to educational facilities that have yet to procure one.

Knowledge Library

This feature enables the harvesting of knowledge from those on the ground in the renewable energy industry. When technicians, instructors, or manufactures encounter problems or create innovations not included in the current product manuals, they share their knowledge through the e-Resource Center. This knowledge is vetted and then made available via the on-line knowledge center or incorporated into previously existing published materials, from manuals to curriculum. The knowledge harvested is quickly available because it can be accessed through PCs or hand-held 3G devices connected to the Internet (iPhone, Blackberry, etc.) and located by a powerful search feature.

Issue Management System

Finally, the web platform will incorporate the use of a sophisticated—though simple to use—incident management system. This system collects, documents and provides a resolution vehicle for issues and problems that arise from real-world activities in renewable energy programs. The system supports the harvesting and education functions of the web platform. It will also be available to monitor and manage large scale renewable energy projects in the state.

uCruise Nevada

uCruise Nevada is an ongoing collaborative project that takes information, be it audio, video, text, or images about a place and makes this content accessible to the public through downloads to mobile electronic devices via an online website.

Community Solutions

A good idea always needs a place to grow. EDG acts as a fiscal agent for organizations supporting our core beliefs of environmental stewardship, technological dissemination and education.