In this issue

says the 1996 graduate of Spelman College. She

is not talking about her 

graduate studies at Emory

University, where she earned

her master’s in Environmental

and Occupational Health. She

is not even referring to her

unique work with the

National Wildlife Federation,

where she is currently the

group’s only Sustainable

Communities Organizer, 

managing an initiative that

addresses water quality and

environmental justice issues

in the most polluted watersheds of Atlanta. Na’Taki

Osborne credits her eyeopening introduction to the

environmental field to her

experiences with the EPA’s

MAI Fellowship program.

Since that time, Na’Taki has

gone on to co-found the

Center for Environmental

Public Awareness, a nonprofit

environmental education and

leadership development

training organization. She

serves on the board for both

Georgians for Clean Energy

and the Keep Atlanta

Beautiful Commission (just a

sample of her pro bono

work). She has received

many awards, including a

fellowship with the

Environmental Leadership

Program, and perhaps most

notably the 1997 Presidential

Environmental Service

Award. And to top it all off,

Na’Taki was featured in an

October 2002 Redbook article

entitled “Mothers & Shakers,”

which highlighted ten

American women for their

work on behalf of social

causes. Na’Taki found herself

featured along with supermodel Tyra Banks and First

Lady Laura Bush!

She was kind enough to

answer a few questions for

the Fellows Forum:

FF: Why did you apply for the

MAI fellowship program?

NO: I applied for the 

fellowship because I stood to

gain a deeper understanding 

of the various aspects of

environmental work by 

participating in it. This was

ideal for me because it

helped me to figure out

where I was most interested

and where my knowledge

and skills were most needed

in the environmental field/

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someone you know be 

added to our mailing list,

please contact us at

exchanges@eco.org

Issue 1, 2003

Environmental Protection Agency Minority Academic Institutions

Undergraduate Student Fellowships Newsletter

Na’Taki Osborne, 1994-95 EPA

Minority Academic Institutions

Undergraduate Fellow

“I could not have

asked for a better

first experience in

the environmental

field,”

Na’Taki Osborne, 1994-95 EPA MAI

Fellow, is currently the only

Sustainable Communities Organizer

for the National Wildlife Federation.

(continued on page 2)

Read all about Na’Taki

Osborne, 1994-95 MAI Fellow

and current Environmental

Justice advocate

Tips for a great summer in a

new city

ECO completes survey of EPA

MAI Fellows, 1990-2001

Calling all MAI Alumni!

Marlissa Stewart, EPA

MAI Fellow

Wilderness

needs no 

defense, it

needs only

defenders.

“

”

Edward Abbey

A Conversation with
movement. The fellowship gave me an

opportunity to conduct laboratory research

at the Environmental Laboratory at my

undergraduate institution, Spelman College

and also gave me the opportunity to work

in a regulating agency, the US

Environmental Protection Agency. I was

exposed to the worlds of environmental 

scientific – biological and toxicological –

r esearch, environmental policy, environmental and risk communications, 

environmental rule-making and 

regulation, and grassroots community activism. Through

the fellowship program

and all of its components, I learned

many valuable lessons that I will

always remember.

FF: Where did you

intern and what were

your responsibilities?

NO: My ECO

internship assignment was at Region 4

of the United States

Environmental Protection

Agency. Specifically, I worked in

the Waste Management Division and the

South Superfund Remedial Branch. I assisted

remedial project managers with reviewing,

researching, and compiling data on environmental justice/injustice issues concerning

people who live near Superfund hazardous

wastes site in Georgia, Florida, and South

Carolina through investigating and evaluating

the impacts of implementing various 

remedial alternatives, drafting records of

decision, initiating National Priorities List

deletion procedures – for sites that were

sufficiently cleaned up at levels protective

of human health and the environment –

making site visits, and participating in public

meetings.

FF: Did the fellowship and internship experiences

affect your decision to continue on in the environmental field?

NO: My ECO internship was my first environmental internship. It helped me to solidify

what I wanted to do in terms of a career.

After the internship, I knew that I definitely

wanted to pursue a career in the field of

environmental protection with a focus on

environmental justice issues. This internship

opened many doors for me in terms of 

contacts with other environmental agencies

and groups. It also helped me to get another

internship position directly through the EPA,

but in another division, the Water

Management Division. My ECO internship

and the other opportunities it lead to helped

me to broaden my knowledge and

scope of environmental issues.

My experience working in

a federal regulation

and enforcement

agency helps me

greatly in doing

environmental

justice work. 

FF: So your experiences at the EPA

opened your eyes to

more than “environmental protection” in

general?

NO: From the fellowship experience I gained

some working, first-hand

knowledge of federal environmental

regulations and enforcement issues that are

critical to my work for environmental justice

and my work in the environmental field in

general. This internship was the beginning

of my environmental activism as well. After

this internship, I became very involved in

community efforts, environmental activism,

and volunteer projects. I knew then that my

place was to work with people at the 

grassroots level, but I would not have been

so clear about that without first having an

experience in which, through government, I

could try to help solve community problems. Without my ECO internship, I would

not have gained the contacts and exposure

to projects that have essentially shaped my

career and community activism since then.

Look for the conclusion of ECO’s interview with

Na’Taki in the next issue of Fellows’ Forum, coming

late summer!

(Na’Taki Osborne continued from cover)

I 

gained...first-hand 

knowledge of federal 

environmental regulations and 

enforcement issues... critical to 

my work for environmental justice

and my work in the 

environmental field in 

general.

The purpose of the

The purpose of the EPA

MAI Alumni Success Story

Survey was to contact former

EPA Minority Academic

Institutions (MAI) Fellowship

recipients from the years 

1990 – 2001 to document their

career progress and professional

development, and to determine

what proportion are pursuing

environmental careers. Results

of the survey are included in a

report which details the beneficial outcomes of the fellowship

and of the summer internship

experience. The report also

provides recommendations

about where improvement

efforts can be directed. The

survey focuses on ten MAI

Fellowship alumni and their

careers since completion of

their MAI internships. Look

for highlights from the survey

in the upcoming editions of 

ECO Completes

Alumni Success

Survey of EPA

MAI Fellows,

1990-2001

the Fellows Forum

the Fellows Forum newsletter.

For more information on this

report, please visit ECO’s MAI

Fellows web page; go to

www.eco.org and follow the

links to the ECO/EPA website.

Three program alumnae from the

2002 EPA MAI Fellowship class
Alexis Amaye-Obu

Xavier University, New Orleans

Major: Political Science

Alexis will intern in New York City

with EPA Region 2 as a Brownfields

Associate where she’ll conduct quality

assurance research and participate in

brownfields redevelopment workshops.

Allyson Cunningham

Hampton University, Virginia

Major: Marine/Env. Science

Allyson, as an Enforcement Intern with

EPA Region 4, will investigate violations of environmental law, inspect

municipal waste treatment plants, and

assist in the composition and presentation of non-compliance reports.

Lyska Dilworth

University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff

Major: Computer Science

Lyska will intern with the Arkansas

State Department of Environmental

Quality, where she will work to improve

data quality and support the Integrated

Information System staff.

Jackquline Green

North Carolina A&T, Greensboro

Major: Electronics Technology

While working in Denver for EPA

Region 8 on the Northeast Denver

Environmental Initiative, Jackquline

will coordinate a facilitative process to

develop comprehensive approaches to

deal with environmental concerns in a

disadvantaged neighborhood.

Toiya Jimerson

Howard University, Washington, DC

Major: Chemistry

In DC, Toiya will work with the Office

of Water as the Decentralized

Wastewater Management Associate,

where she will communicate with

stakeholders to develop and revise the

Wastewater Management Handbook.

Priscilla McCutcheon

Spelman College, Atlanta 

Major: Political Science

Priscilla will assist the Office of

Regional Counsel as they research and

detail the environmental benefits to

enforcement. She will be responsible

for relaying technical information in

layperson terms for external reports as well

as researching and writing case results.

Olivia Penrose

Norfolk State University, Virginia

Major: Chemistry

Olivia will work collaboratively in the

environmental chemistry field with

NSU Professor Kenneth Hicks. The

goal of these experiments is to prepare

complexes useful in the detoxification

of low levels of cyanide in waste water,

thus protecting valuable water supplies.

Natasha Plumb

Spelman College, Atlanta

Major: Chemistry

Natasha will intern with the Office of

Pollution Prevention in DC for the

Green Chemistry Program, where she

will prepare technical program summaries, perform computer, library and

green chemistry laboratory research.

Candita Woodis-Rucker

Phoenix College, Arizona

Major: Environmental Science

As the second of two Enforcement

Interns in Atlanta, Candita will have

responsibilities similar to Allyson, and

will also evaluate the ecological and

technical aspects of violations, meet

with permittees, and prepare documents for the Enforcement supervisor.

To learn more about the EPA MAI program, visit www.epa.gov/ncer or 

contact Georgette Boddie at boddie.georgette@epa.gov or call (202) 564-

6926. To learn more about ECO or the EPA Fellows Summer Intern

Program, visit www.eco.org or contact Daniel Buckley at dbuckley@eco.org

or call (617) 426-4783 x158.

In order to receive funding from Congress for the

MAI Fellowship on an annual basis, we must 

maintain the credibility of this program, thus it is

essential that we can share success stories about the

MAI alumni. Please contact Georgette Boddie at 

boddie.georgette@epa.gov.

ECO’s Alumni Program wants to know all about

the MAI Alumni, too! Currently, ECO’s alumni

comprise a dynamic network of over 8,000 people

who have worked as ECO Associates since 1972.

The ECO Alumni Program serves and supports

these alumni in their ongoing career development

and involves them in ECO’s mission. Some of the

benefits to alumni include: networking with other

alumni at regional social and community service

events and through the 'Career Classifieds' section

of our quarterly electronic alumni newsletter;

opportunities to inspire new generations of 

students and environmental professionals, including speaking with students, representing ECO at

career fairs, and “linking” with current Associates

to give advice and support in the ECO Alumni

C.A.R.E. Program. Contact the Alumni Program at 

alumni@eco.org for more information.

Calling All MAI Alumni!

EPA MAI Alumni Curtis Durham and Carmen George with

Charles McCrea, ECO Board member and former ECO

Chief Operating Officer

2002-2003 Minority Academic Institutions 

Undergraduate Student 

Fellowship Recipients

Are you an alumnus of the

EPA’s Minority Academic

Institutions Undergraduate

Student Fellowship program?
The Environmental Careers Organization

179 South Street

Boston, MA 02111

FIRST CLASS 

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID 

RANDOLPH, MA

PERMIT NO. 35

Printed on recycled paper

EPA MAI Fellows getting to know each

other at ECO's EPA Career Day Event. 

Volunteer! There are community groups and non-profit organizations all over

the country looking for energetic and intelligent people to give their mission a

hand. Check out www.idealist.org to find groups near you.

Reach out to new friends, as 2002 Fellow Dodie Arnold explains, “I

made it a point to get to know the other EPA MAI fellows and the other summer

students and interns. I had a great time and have remained good friends with the

EPA MAI fellows I met in Atlanta.”

Get involved in college events. Colleges will often have diverse

programs of events over the summer– you may find anything from pottery lessons

to career workshops; check your local university’s website.

Go to local museum events. Cynthia Behel, 2001 Fellow, advises to

“check out the local museums and get a schedule of events for the city, and often

there are free concerts in the parks.” Look in the Arts section of your local paper!

Seek out the advice of your project advisors and

mentors – locals know best!