The Class of 2017

In addition to the thousands of animals that pass through the Wildlife Center’s doors each year, the Wildlife Center also welcomes dozens of externship students. These students come from all over the world to complete a twelve-week volunteer externship at the Center, focusing in one of two areas: wildlife rehabilitation or education outreach.

The Wildlife Center gains many sets of hands — energetic, enthusiastic students who assist with the endless daily work of a busy wildlife teaching hospital. The externs gain in-depth, hands-on experience in the field of wildlife rehabilitation and outreach — and a chance to “test run” a career in the field.

A large amount of the rehabilitation students’ time is spent hand-feeding a wide variety of orphaned animals and monitoring their progress. Other duties include learning about animal husbandry, nutrition, capture and restraint methods for various species, wildlife laws, and release criteria.

The outreach externs spend their time learning how to present programs, assisting with written patient and education animal updates, and focusing on some of the outreach technology the Center uses.

By the time 2017 is over, more than two dozen externship students will have passed through the Center’s doors. Check back throughout the year to learn more about these important members of the team!

Name: Emily 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Scotia, NY
College: University of Vermont
Degree in: Wildlife Biology and Natural Resource Ecology 

Name: Louisa 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Oxnard, California
College: Moorpark College
Degree in: Exotic Animal Science and Anthropology 

Name: Shannon 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Harrisonburg, Virginia
College: Virginia Tech
Degree in: Animal and Poultry Sciences

Name: Lauren L.
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Nacogdoches, Texas
College: Stephen F. Austin State University 
Degree in: Interdisciplinary Studies: Anthropology, Psychology, & Spanish

Name: Veronica
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Brantford, Ontario
College: Pontifical Catholic University of Chile
Degree in: Forestry Engineering

Name: Lauren E.
Area: Outreach
Hometown:  Moorestown, New Jersey
College: Washington College
Degree in: Environmental Studies and Anthropology 
Blog posts: Immerse, For the Love of Bees

Name: Ianna 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: East Greenwich, Rhode Island
College: University of Rhode Island 
Degree in: Wildlife and Conservation Biology 

Name: Samuel 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Berryville, Virginia
College: James Madison University 
Degree in: Biology 
Read Sam's blog post: Respecting Cute Wildlife

Name: Abigail 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Troy, Missouri 
College: 
Degree in: 

Name: Peter 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Charlottesville, Virginia
College: Radford University 
Studying: Parks and Recreation 

Name: Jessica 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Charlottesville, Virginia
College: James Madison University 
Studying: Integrated Science and Technology 
Read Jessica's blog post: Opossums and PU&E!

Name: Rachel M.
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Spartanburg, SC
College: Clemson University 
Degree in: Biology 
Read Rachel's blog post: Virginia Opossums: Nuisance or Treasure?

Name: Brianna
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Wilmington, NC
College: University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Degree in: Biology 
Read Bri's blog post: Raptors: Not So Intimidating After All

 

Name: Lauren E [yes, same Lauren!]
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Moorestown, New Jersey
College: Washington College
Degree in: Environmental Studies and Anthropology 
Read Lauren's blog post: Raptors are Excellent Co-workers

 

Name: Rachel J.
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Leonardtown, MD
College: Clemson University
Degree in: Biology
Read Rachel's blog post: Vulture Appreciation 

Name: Jolanda
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Tallinn, Estonia
College: University of Tartu
Degree in: Social Sciences, Law
Read Jolanda's blog post: My Clarified Answers about Wildlife Rehabilitation 

Name: Dina
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: West Windsor, NJ
College: University of Vermont
Studying: Animal Science

Name: Kaitlyn 
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: St. Petersburg, FL
College: Eckerd College
Studying: Environmental Studies

Name: Miriam
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Waynesboro, VA
College: Radford University 
Studying: Environmental Biology 

Name: Amber
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Thomaston, GA
College: University of Georgia
Studying: Fisheries and Wildlife 

Name: Janessa
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Accident, MD
College: Garrett College
Degree: General Studies

Name: Skylar
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Snohomish, WA
College: Western Washington University 
Degree: Environmental Science

Name: Medha
Area: Rehabilitation
Hometown: Acton, MA
College: Stony Brook University
Degree: Biology