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The 2007 Hartzog Award Recipients

The Benton H. Box Award

Robert The Benton H. Box Award was presented to Robert B. Ditton. Pictured l. to r.: Ben Box, Dean Emeritus, College of Forest and Recreation Resources, Clemson University and Vice-Chairman Forestry Commission, Chi-Ok Oh, Assistant Professor, President Jim Barker, Robert Ditton, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development.
The Benton H. Box Award was presented to Robert B. Ditton. Pictured l. to r.: Ben Box, Dean Emeritus, College of Forest and Recreation Resources, Clemson University and Vice-Chairman Forestry Commission, Chi-Ok Oh, Assistant Professor, President Jim Barker, Robert Ditton, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development.

The Award is named in appreciation of Dr. Box's distinguished career as an educator/administrator, especially as Dean of the College of Forest and Recreation Resources at Clemson University, which he led to national and international recognition for academic excellence and for leadership in fostering private innovation in resource management. The Award recognizes the teacher who by precept and example inspires in students the quest for knowledge; or the administrator who fosters a learning environment and encourages curriculum innovation to inculcate an "environmental ethic" as the rule of conduct involving resource management, development and utilization; or the private practitioner whose management over a sustained period demonstrates leadership in preserving, enhancing, renewing and restoring a livable environment.

The Benton H. Box Award was presented to Robert B. Ditton for recognition as a teacher who by precept and example inspires in students the quest for knowledge and encourages curriculum innovation to inculcate an “environmental ethic” as the rule of conduct.

Robert B. Ditton has been a Professor of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences at Texas A&M University since 1988 and a Professor of Recreation, Park, and Tourism Sciences since 1974. He completed his graduate work at the University of Illinois (Recreation and Park Administration). He taught two graduate courses over the past 19 years: Human Dimensions of Wildlife and Fisheries and Coastal Zone Management.
His research focused on the sociology of natural resources with special attention to the recreational use of coastal and marine environments, the social benefits of outdoor recreation, the human dimensions of recreational fisheries, and public access to the ocean. Bob has authored or co-authored 102 peer-reviewed journal articles to date with an additional 44 other peer-reviewed papers.

He received research funding from the National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, Minerals Management Service, University of Wisconsin Sea Grant College Program, Texas Sea Grant College Program, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation among many others. 

Bob has served as Editor of Leisure Sciences, Science Editor of Fisheries, and as an Associate Editor of Coastal Management, Journal of Leisure Research, Leisure Sciences, Society and Natural Resources, and North American Journal of Fisheries Management. He currently serves on the editorial advisory board of Human Dimensions of Wildlife. Previous assignments have included appointments to the US Department of Commerce NOAA Marine Fisheries Advisory Committee and the advisory board of the National Coastal Resources Research Institute. Bob was invited to serve on the National Academy of Sciences Ocean Studies Board and three NRC panels as well as numerous other boards, councils and advisory groups. Bob currently serves on the Board of Directors of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute. At TAMU, he chaired 39 Master’s committees and 22 Ph. D. committees through to graduation.

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The William C. Everhart Award

The William C. Everhart Award was presented to Sam Ham. Pictured l. to r.: President Jim Barker, Sam Ham receiving the William C. Everhart Award, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development, and Bob Powell, Assistant Professor.
The William C. Everhart Award was presented to Sam Ham. Pictured l. to r.: President Jim Barker, Sam Ham receiving the William C. Everhart Award, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development, and Bob Powell, Assistant Professor.

The Award is named in appreciation of the distinguished career of Bill Everhart as field interpreter, researcher, administrator, author, and creator of the National Park Service's Harpers Ferry Center for creative design and communication, which has received national and international recognition for excellence. The Award recognizes sustained achievements during a career or in a specific episode that illuminate, provide creative insights to, and that foster an appreciation of our natural and cultural heritage.

The William C. Everhart Award was presented to Sam H. Ham for sustained achievements in interpretation that have illuminated, created insights to, and fostered an appreciation of our cultural and historic heritage.

Dr. Sam H. Ham is Director of the Center for International Training and Outreach and Professor of communication psychology and international conservation in the University of Idaho's College of Natural Resources, Department of Conservation Social Sciences. He also holds courtesy appointments as Adjunct Professor of Tourism and Deputy Director of the Tourism Research Unit at Monash University, Australia. Dr. Ham has taught graduate courses in communication psychology, interpretive methods, international issues in nature conservation, and recreation and tourism management. His research has focused on applications of communication theory in a range of contexts including travelers’ philanthropy, ecotourism guiding, interpretation, and influencing visitor behavior in parks and protected areas.  

Professor Ham's courses on applied communication theory and interpretive methods are in demand both in the U.S. and abroad. To date, he has conducted training workshops in 46 countries throughout North, Central and South America, and in Europe, Africa, Asia, Australia, and the Pacific, reaching a combined audience of 40,000. He has authored approximately 350 publications including two widely acclaimed books on interpretive methods (one in English, which has been republished in Vietnamese and Latvian, and the other in Spanish), and is executive editor of the Applied Communication book series for Fulcrum Publishing. Professor Ham has presented in excess of 100 papers at scholarly meetings throughout the world and has delivered 47 invited keynote addresses at international and national conferences and conventions.  

Dr. Ham has served as senior editor and publisher of the Journal of Interpretation for which he developed the first editorial policies, and as National Research Chair for the National Association for Interpretation.Today, he continues to serve on the editorial board of two international research journals. He has received the University of Idaho's Outstanding Teacher Award, Outstanding Advisor Award, the Inter-fraternity Council's Outstanding Professor Award, the College of Natural Resources' Outstanding Advisor Award, and has five times been awarded the university's Alumni Award for Faculty Excellence. In 1994 he was recognized with the University of Idaho's Award for Teaching Excellence, the university's highest honor for teaching. In addition, he has received several regional and national awards from the National Association for Interpretation and from U.S. federal land management agencies, and has six times been selected to the University of Idaho's "International Honor Roll" for faculty. In 1990, he received the National Association for Interpretation's highest honor, the "Fellow" Award," and in 1992 was appointed to the Commission on Education and Communication by the World Conservation Union (IUCN) based in Switzerland.

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The Dwight A. Holder Award

The Award is named in honor of Mr. Holder's illustrious career as an entrepreneur and public servant. As Chairman of the South Carolina Parks, Recreation and Tourism Commission he led South Carolina's parks into a new era of service to the people of South Carolina and the nation. The Award recognizes outstanding work by doctoral candidates in the Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management; a member of the Department faculty for original research, scholarly writing, and innovative and inspired teaching; the faculty adviser and graduate student as a team, for initiatives that foster understanding of and provide new insights into the promotion, management, wise use and enjoyment of South Carolina's natural and cultural heritage in perpetuity; and distinguished academic leadership by a member of the Department faculty. (Mr. Holder passed away in Spring 2006).

The Dwight A. Holder Award is awarded for outstanding work as a doctoral student in PRTM and sustained achievement after graduation, management, wise use, and conservation of natural and cultural resources.

This was not awarded in 2007.

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The Walter T. Cox Award

Richard Louv was presented The Walter T. Cox Award. Pictured l. to r.: Fran Mainella, 16th Director of the National Park Service and Clemson University (PRTM) visiting scholar, President Jim Barker, Richard Louv, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development, and Jeff Hallo, Assistant Professor.
Richard Louv was presented The Walter T. Cox Award. Pictured l. to r.: Fran Mainella, 16th Director of the National Park Service and Clemson University (PRTM) visiting scholar, President Jim Barker, Richard Louv, Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development, and Jeff Hallo, Assistant Professor.

The Award is so named in appreciation of Dr. Cox's distinguished career in education and public service, especially his tenure as President of Clemson University and as the Director of the Santee-Cooper Authority. The Award recognizes sustained achievement in public service on the firing line, where the public interest meets the private interest in public policy formulation and administration; distinguished leadership and support of innovation in conflict resolution of policy initiatives that enhance the quality of life; personal achievements during a career or in a specific episode that provides inspiration and leadership to others in serving the above purposes.

The Walter T. Cox Award was presented to Richard Louv for sustained achievement in public service providing leadership in administration of public lands and for policy formation affecting our natural and cultural resources.

Richard Louv, author of seven books about family, nature, and community including “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder,” and chairman of the Children & Nature Network, speaks about the transformation in the relationship between children and nature, how society is teaching young people to avoid direct experience in nature. That unintended message is delivered by schools, families, even organizations devoted to the outdoors, and codified into the legal and regulatory structures of many of our local communities. He also describes the new body of scientific evidence demonstrating just how important direct contact with the outdoors is to healthy child development, touching on such health issues as ADHD, child obesity, stress, creativity and cognitive functioning. To stimulate a “Leave No Child Inside” movement, he offers practical suggestions for action by parents, grandparents, government agencies,  conservationists, urban planners, educators and others concerned about the future of childhood and the earth itself.

A columnist for the San Diego Union-Tribune from 1984 to 2006, Louv has written for the New York Times and other newspapers and magazines, and has been a columnist and member of the editorial advisory board for Parents magazine. He is the chairman of the Children & Nature Network (www.cnaturenet.org) and a member of the Citistates Group, an organization of urban observers. He has served as an advisor to the Ford Foundation's Leadership for a Changing World award program and the National Scientific Council on the Developing Child; and as a Visiting Scholar at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. He has appeared on Good Morning America, the Today Show, NPR’s Fresh Air and Talk of the Nation, and most recently, the CBS Evening News and the NBC Nightly News. 

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The Robert G. Stanton Award

The Award is named in appreciation of the remarkable career of Robert Stanton as the first African-American Director of the National Park Service. Among the many accomplishments of Director Stanton was expansion of the interpretation of diverse cultural meanings inherent in National Parks and increased participation by racial and ethnic minorities as both visitors and employees. The Award recognized sustained and innovative achievement by a member of a racial or ethnic minority in the management of North America's natural, historic and cultural heritage.

The Bob Stanton Award is awarded for sustained and innovative achievement in management of North America 's natural, historic and cultural heritage.

This was not awarded in 2007.

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The Fran P. Mainella Award

Gayle Hazelwood was presented The Fran P. Mainella Award. Pictured l. to r.: Fran Mainella, 16th Director of the National Park Service and Clemson University (PRTM) visiting scholar, President Jim Barker, Gail Hazelwood, Betty Baldwin, Assistant Professor and Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development.
Gayle Hazelwood was presented The Fran P. Mainella Award. Pictured l. to r.: Fran Mainella, 16th Director of the National Park Service and Clemson University (PRTM) visiting scholar, President Jim Barker, Gail Hazelwood, Betty Baldwin, Assistant Professor and Larry Allen, Dean of the College of Health, Education, and Human Development.

The Award is named in appreciation of the dynamic career of Fran Mainella as the first woman Director of the National Park Service. As Director, she focused some of her many efforts on creating systems of connected parks and developing innovative partnerships to expand services. Director Mainella was previously the Director of the Florida State Park Service and the Executive Director of the Florida Recreation and Park Association.

The Fran P. Mainella Award was presented to Gayle Hazelwood for sustained and innovative achievement by a woman in the management of North America's natural, historic or cultural heritage.

Gayle Hazelwood was born in Cambridge, Ohio, youngest of five children. She attended Ohio University and received her undergraduate in Therapeutic Recreation in 1983 and Master’s in Recreation Management in 1984. She was recently recognized by her University of Ohio Alumni magazine for her many accomplishments.

In 2003 Gayle was selected Assistant Superintendent of National Capital Parks – East. She is currently Superintendent of National Capital Parks – East, Washington, DC, and is responsible for day to day operations of the park; this includes oversight of 13 individual sites, four divisions and a 13million dollar budget.

Her National Park Service Career started seasonally at Cuyahoga Valley in 1983 and she was hired on permanently in 1985. She was a Recreation Specialist and District Interpreter from 1985 to 1999 at the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area. She created the first in park, overnight experience for inner city children. This Jr. Ranger Program provided a first time, and in most cases, only experiences in a National Park for hundreds of inner city youth from Cleveland and Akron Ohio. She was Chief of Interpretation at Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historic Site from 1991 to 1997. She spearheaded the completion of the permanent exhibits in the new visitor center completed in 1996 and managed the multi-agency Welcome Center developed for use during the Centennial Olympic Games. Gayle was Interpretive Specialist for the Southeast Regional Office from 1997 to1998. She served as Superintendent of the New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park from 1998 to 2003. She was responsible for the oversight of park operations. She worked with the Park’s Commissioners, community leaders and City officials to complete a construction plan for the Park’s permanent facilities. She also worked with park staff to establish the Park’s first visitor contact facility.

“My hobbies include golf, travel, and golf, being outdoors, golf (I am (was) a certified golf instructor)”, she wrote. “I was 20 years old before I had any knowledge of the National Park Service.  I want to do all I can to make sure that does not happen to the young generation of today.  All children young and old should have first-hand knowledge and experience with their National Parks.”

©Parks, Recreation & Tourism Management. Last updated on November 12, 2008

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