Anna Schilling

TN State Parks Ranger

anna.schilling@tn.gov

Anna Schilling is a Seasonal Interpretive Ranger with Tennessee State Parks, serving on the Cumberland Trail Scenic Trail, and most recently, at Long Hunter State Park.  She has served with Appalachia CARES and was a Service-Learning Facilitator with AmeriCorps Member at the Cumberland Trail State Park.  

Ranger Schilling serves the greater Chattanooga community, including Ivy Academy, by involving youth and community members in service learning activities.  She schedules guest speakers that are actively applying skills learned at Ivy Academy, so that students can further understand how these concepts/tools are applied.  At Ivy she will teach grades 6 - 12.

Ranger Schilling has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in  Environmental Science: Conservation, Biodiversity, and Natural Resources and is a Certified Interpretive Guide and Certified Life Guard.  Her interests include entomology, zoology, and how anthropogenic disturbances influence the environment. Her hobbies include collecting insects, playing badminton, hiking with her 10-year-old chocolate Lab, camping, canoeing, and picnicking.  Originally from Nashville, Ranger Schilling also loves to travel and and has been to over 35 states! 

Dedicated to preserving nature and the environment, this quote from Babe Dioum defines a bit of her philosophy about nature and education:  "In the end, we will conserve only what we love; we will love only what we understand; and we will understand only what we are taught." She is an excellent fit at Ivy, and says, “I love that Ivy Academy focuses on environmental education and stewardship.  I find it extremely encouraging that these students are being taught to respect the environment, and are fostering a greater appreciation for our natural world. The students here understand the terms ‘native’ and ‘invasive’ - terms I did not learn until college!  Ivy Academy is on the frontier of environmental education in Tennessee, and I am grateful to be a part of it.”