The 49th annual Resource Conservation Workshop was held the week of June 24-29 on the campus of N.C. State University. Three Beaufort County students were among 80 participants chosen by soil and water conservation districts statewide. Caitlyn Joyner, Garrett Boyd and Darren Harris were selected by the Beaufort Soil and Water Conservation District’s board of supervisors based on their applications and recommendations from school personnel.
Joyner, a senior at Beaufort County Early College High School, is the daughter of Mark and Cheryl Smith of Chocowinity. Boyd, the son of Douglas and Tammy Boyd of Pinetown, is a junior at Northside High School. Harris, a senior at Northside, is the son of Ray and Jeanne Harris of Pinetown.
The workshop is a weeklong intensive study and hands-on conservation event requiring student application and participation in a wide range of conservation topics. Soil scientists, foresters, biologists, wildlife experts and engineers provided classroom instruction and outdoor study in the environmental sciences. Students also received information and insight into careers in natural resource management.
At the end of the week, each student took a written exam based on what they had studied during the week. Scholarships and cash awards were awarded to several students at the conclusion of the workshop.
Sponsors and organizers of the 2012 event were the N.C. Division of Soil and Water Conservation, the N.C. Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts, the Hugh Hammond Bennett Chapter of the Soil and Water Conservation Society and N.C. State University’s Soil Science Department and McKimmon Center for Extension and Continuing Education.

Rising sophomores, juniors, and seniors who are interested in attending the 2013 Resource Conservation Workshop may contact the Beaufort Soil and Water Conservation District office at 155C Airport Road in Washington, or call 946-4989, Ext. 3.