FAQ’s About BEETLES
Below, we’ve assembled answers to some of the most common questions we get over email about the use of BEETLES resources, and other BEETLES-related things.
Questions About Using BEETLES Resources
Can I present a BEETLES Professional Learning Session to my staff?
Yes!! Anyone is welcome to download and teach a BEETLES Professional Learning Session (whether they have attended a BEETLES event or not) – that’s why we wrote them, and that’s why we made them free online. It’s always been part of our vision to create resources to help instructors strengthen their abilities to teach students outdoors, and also to strengthen the abilities of leaders to improve professional learning. And to encourage more sharing of resources and professional learning between programs. We are a tiny (but mighty!) team, and we strongly encourage folks to teach each other and to share our resources with each other. We encourage you to use the Professional Learning Sessions and other BEETLES resources as you see fit within the context of your program, or regionally.
Can I film a video of a BEETLES activity and post it online?
Thanks for asking! If your video is pretty faithful to the activity, the answer is likely yes, but we’ll need to set up a licensing agreement to give you permission. Reach out to beetles@berkeley.edu with the subject line “permission to film a BEETLES activity video” and share which activity you’re hoping to make a video of, and what purpose you plan to use it for.
Can I present a BEETLES activity or resource a workshop to a group of local organizations, or at a conference?
Sure! We try to present workshops at as many conferences as we can, but we can only do so much. We’re thrilled when folks present workshops based on our materials, or feature our resources. We do ask that you:
1) Share that you are using materials from the BEETLES project and provide a link to the BEETLES website, either on a slide or handout.
2) Try to use the materials as closely as possible to how they are written. If you’ve changed the materials, please let people know that you are using modified materials.
3) Do not imply that you are doing a “BEETLES presentation,” are a BEETLES facilitator or ambassador, or are endorsed by the BEETLES project.
4) Avoid using language that might indicate that a BEETLES team member will be co-presenting with you. For example, instead of calling your session “BEETLES Promoting Discussion Session,” or “Promoting Discussion by BEETLES,” please call it “Promoting Discussion featuring Resources from BEETLES.”
How do I give BEETLES credit if I am presenting a session, or sharing a resource?
BEETLES resources are meant to be highly accessible. Our hope is that participants leave a presentation feeling enthusiastic about using BEETLES materials themselves. For this to happen, it’s important that participants see the resources being used (such as field cards or Professional Learning session presentation scripts), that they understand that they are free, and that they know how to access them afterwards. When presenting, please make it clear that the resources are from BEETLES, and please share the link to the BEETLES website (beetlesproject.org). All our written materials include BEETLES logos and the Regents of the University copyright notice. Please make sure those are clearly visible on any resources you share.
Can we publish excerpts of your resources with credit?
Maybe– but we’ll need to discuss it with you first and get it approved through official University of California channels. We’ve been able to make arrangements in the past to allow organizations to publish or excerpt parts of our resources, but we must do this on a case-by-case basis, and set up a signed permission form with the University of California.
Other FAQ’s:
How do I apply for your next Institute?
In August 2019, we held the last Institute that we had funding for under our NSF (National Science Foundation) AISL (Advancing Informal STEM Learning) grant. We don’t have any future Institutes planned right now. We may get funding to do more in the future, and we may not – we’ll see.
But we will continue to present at conferences and may offer some additional in-person workshops. If you sign up on our mailing list (under “connect” on website beetlesproject.org), you’ll receive our newsletter where we keep folks apprised with BEETLES goings-on.
We are also open to working to design and present a custom BEETLES workshop, contract, or Institute for an organization or a group of organizations. Interested in learning more? Send us an email at beetles@berkeley.edu.
If I came to a BEETLES Institute, workshop, or conference presentation, can I say that I am endorsed by BEETLES, or am an official BEETLES facilitator?
No– although we encourage anyone to share our resources, we don’t endorse or certify anyone as an official BEETLES leader, facilitator, ambassador, etc. We request that you not use any language in writing or verbally to refer to yourself as such, or any language that indicates that a member of the BEETLES team will be a presenter (if we will not be presenting with you). You are welcome to share any experience with BEETLES you’ve had, such as that you attended a BEETLES Institute, have tested activities for us, attended a conference workshop, have used BEETLES activities with students, etc. Unsure of what kind of language to use? Reach out. We’re happy to clarify.
Can we put a BEETLES or University of California logo on a flyer for a workshop we’re advertising?
Use of the University of California name and trademarks are restricted under California law. You cannot include a University of California Logo on a flyer for a workshop you’re advertising. It’s possible you may be able to include a BEETLES logo, but we would like to see the flyer before you share it publicly and may offer some feedback about the use of our logo. Send us an email at: beetles@berkeley.edu.
Can we put a BEETLES or University of California logo on a certificate we plan to give participants at the end of a workshop?
No, we request that you not include our logo on certificates given to participants at the end of a workshop. You can include an acknowledgment that they used BEETLES materials in the training, for example: “[Name of person] has completed the course, [Name of Course], using materials from the BEETLES Project. BEETLES is a project of the Lawrence Hall of Science at the University of California, Berkeley. For more information, please see beetlesproject.org.”
The BEETLES™ trademarks and copyrighted materials are owned by The Regents of the University of California and, except as stated above and on our website, may not be used without the prior written permission of the University.
Do you have suggestions of potential funders that we may not have considered?
Do you know about the Blue Sky Funders Forum? https://blueskyfundersforum.org/about/members. We’ve also received funding from some local, place-based funders. What has worked best for us is establishing relationships with program officers so they get to know our work and offer us feedback and advice before we submit proposals.
Will you share a job announcement for my organization in your BEETLES newsletter?
Yes, we can include job announcements from organizations that have attended a BEETLES Institute in our newsletter, which we publish once a month. We request that you submit ALL job announcements using the following format by email beetles@berkeley.edu:
Email Subject line: job announcement for BEETLES newsletter
[Name of position, with link embedded to job application page]: [Name of your organization, with link embedded to org website]
- [one SHORT “blurb” about the job (1-2 sentences), including the geographic location]
- [application deadline, if applicable]
For more information and the application: [link to more information about the job]
———-
For example:
Education Programs Manager: Riverbend Environmental Education Center
Riverbend Environmental Education Center, located in Southeastern Pennsylvania, is seeking an Education Programs Manager. The Education Programs Manager is responsible for leading, managing and evaluating formal education programs for groups and individuals to meet the mission, vision and strategic goals of Riverbend Environmental Education Center.
For more information and the application: https://riverbendeec.org/job-opportunities
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