AORE Awards Update
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 1st, 2014
For more information, contact:
Hannah Cooley
National Office Manager
1100 N. Main St. #111, Ann Arbor, MI 48104
[email protected]
(810)299-2782
Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education
Announces Big 3 Award Winners at the 2014 Annual Conference
Ann Arbor, Michigan: On November 14th, the Association of Outdoor Recreation and Education (AORE) recognized two
outstanding individuals and one organization at the 2014 AORE Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon. These member s were
chosen for their leadership and work in the field of outdoor recreation and education, including their significant and lasting impact.
Respectively, they were awarded the Jim Rennie Leadership Award, the Bill March Student Achievement Award and the David J.
Webb Program Excellence Award. These awards memorialize three leaders in the outdoor recreation and education field.
The theme of the conference was “Core of Discovery,” which encouraged outdoor professionals to reflect upon both their personal
core values, and the values and attributes within their organizations and programs, in relation to outdoor recreation and education.
Located in the heart of the Pacific Northwest, the 2014 conference site allowed attendees to be in close proximity to a wide variety
of outdoor and urban adventures.
AORE is proud to announce the 2014 Big 3 Award Winners:
Jim Rennie Leadership Award – Jenn Velie, Wiley
Jenn Velie is a Program Manager at Wiley. Born and raised in Ormond Beach, Florida, Jenn feels
most at home in the water. She has been working in the outdoor recreation field for over 8 years,
and kicked off her career working for University of Central Florida’s Outdoor Adventure program
during the school year and working at a summer camp during the summer. She earned her B.S.
from the UCF and completed her M. Ed. in Higher Education at Georgia Southern University. Jenn is
an avid surfer and can be found on the east coast paddling or surfing during her free time.
Jenn has been an outstanding leader, not only in her position at Georgia Southern where she
mentored students, lead trips and worked overtime, but she has also been an outstanding leader
within AORE working tirelessly for the past four years by serving on the Board of Directors. Jenn has
become an invaluable part of AORE, and has grown from a young professional, new to the industry, to an accomplished and highly
regarded colleague and ambassador for outdoor recreation.
Bill March Student Achievement Award – Jason Gosch, University of South Florida
Jason Gosch began his outdoor recreation experience at the University of South Florida in Tampa, FL
in 2006. He worked there for 3 years in challenge course, trips, boathouse, and rental center
operations. In 2009, Jason transferred to the University of Central Florida and continued working in
outdoor adventure until he graduated in 2013. With a B.A. in Business Administration, Jason
returned to USF to pursue a M.Ed. in College Student Affairs while acting as the Graduate Assistant
for Outdoor Recreation. His expectation is to graduate in May 2015. Jason enjoys working with trips
and challenge course staff, to help them grow programs and develop students in well-rounded,
holistic ways.
As the 2014 AORE Student Representative on the Board of Directors, Jason has taken on numerous challenges and become an
incredible advocate for student members of the association. Not only has he increased the resource base for students, but he has
begun working on building sustainable conference scholarships for students.
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