Internship Opportunity at Montgomery Botanical Center

Two student interns from ECU’s Department of Geography, Planning and Environment (DGPE) had another successful season at the Montgomery Botanical Center located in Coral Gables, FL. The paid internships are funded through a generous donation by DGPE alumnus Lyman “Skip” Dickerson. The internships are designed to help expand Montgomery Botanical Center’s mission to advance science, education, conservation and horticultural knowledge of tropical plants through emphasizing palms and cycads.

On the heels of prior successful DGPE interns at the the Montgomery Botanical Center, current students Dylan Schreffler and Seth “David” Purvis conducted surveying and GPS mapping missions to plan and implement the planting of new large palm trees and cycads. They were also tasked with detailed surveying to assess damage to palm trees and cycads during Hurricane Irma. The data collected from their high-definition mapping/surveying campaigns were entered into ESRI’s ArcMap to become part of the permanent database to be used in research and conservation efforts in the botanical gardens.

We are pleased to announce that Skip Dickerson has increased his funding of this initiative allowing three student interns this year at the Montgomery Botanical Center. DGPE would like to thank Mr. Dickerson for his continuous support of the program and providing an amazing opportunity for our students to highlight their expertise and assist with the environmental conservation efforts of the Montgomery Botanical Center.