10 Minutes With Tipton: Circle J’s Amanda Driver
10 Minutes with Tipton originated in January 2022 on the Education Page. Students in the After School Education and Safety (ASES) Program at Tipton Elementary School take time to Zoom with individuals in the community to ask them questions about their jobs, lives and strategies they can use in their own lives to help them become college and careerready.
Circl J-norris Ranch Director Amanda Driver
What is your job title/ role in our community?
“My job title is lead teacher and education coordinator at Circle J-norris Ranch. The ranch is 620 acres, so it’s nearly one square mile. It’s owned by the Tulare County Office of Education. We’re a site where kids can come for field trips, learn about science and nature, and do projects. All grade levels, from preschool to college come and learn at Circle J.”
Please tell us a little bit about yourself - Your background, where you grew up, your family.
“I grew up in Springville, right next to Circle J. When I was growing up, we did not have very many video games. There was no internet. In the summer, I’d get up, and I’d get on my horse, and I’d explore. I had to be back by lunch because the afternoon was too hot to be on my horse. I thought I wanted to be a veterinarian, and I went to school to do that. I worked at a vet’s office, and then I realized that it wasn’t really what I wanted to do. I liked science more than I liked treating dogs and cats. So, I went to school for science, and I always had teaching as a backup plan. I got my teaching credential and I was a classroom teacher for 16 years. I had always gone up to Circle J for different projects and I really fell in love with the place. When Nancy Bruce retired, I thought, ‘OK, this is my opportunity to take this job.’”
Can you tell us about Circle J Ranch? Can you tell us what you do every day in your job?
“There isn’t a whole lot of repetition in my job. A lot of days, I have field trips. Like today, I had a group of about 60 second graders come up. I took them around the ranch, and they learned different things about insects, animals that live in the water, flowers, seeds, and birds. The activities/lessons we do with the students depends on what their teachers want them to learn.
I teach students about nature and science, and then after they leave, I do a lot of paperwork, like emailing, billing, planning, and that kind of thing. Then I generally get to work on other projects like working on the pollinator gardens, monitoring the species that live at Circle J.
There is a lot of land management as well. When kids come up, they don’t want to see a soccer field. They want to see the animals. They want to see the wildlife, which means we have to actively manage the land to help improve the habitat value. There’s a cool animal called fairy shrimp at Circle J. They live in vernal pools, which is a fancy way to say a puddle that lasts for a month or two in the wet season. We haven’t had any documented yet, but there could be an endangered species of fairy shrimp that could be up at Circle J. Rare and endangered plants could be there. Some California native plant society members are coming up in a month or so to look for rare plants.
When I got my master’s degree, the subject I studied was the oak trees and the mistletoe at Circle J. We also have a high school student internship that studies the oak trees at Circle J every June. Other groups, including graduate students from Cal State Long Beach, are also studying the oaks at Circle J and other conservation lands in the area.
I did see a California Condor once, so that’s a pretty cool, rare finding.”
What do you love about your career? What do you dislike about your career?
“I love being outdoors. I love being out in nature on land that I know is being protected and that I can make sure is a good habitat. I love teaching and I love science, so if I get to teach about science outdoors, what is better than that for me?
I do love doing science. When I say science, what do you picture? I think when a lot of people hear the word science, they think of white lab coats and scientists putting chemicals together and then exploding, but a lot of scientists get out and look at what’s in the water, what’s living in the trees and that sort of thing. We call that field science. You’re out in the field and you’re studying nature and that’s what I love.
I don’t like when it’s 100 degrees and I’m outside digging holes in the dirt. That’s a rough day - I love it though, but it’s physically demanding, or it’s 45 degrees and raining, but I still love those days. I don’t like the paperwork part, the billing, the scheduling, that’s not the favorite part of my job, but it’s necessary.”
Would you encourage others to pursue your career?
“Absolutely! If you like nature, if you like being outdoors and you like children, then it’s a fantastic career. There are a lot of outdoor education schools in California. I love teaching and being around children, but there’s a lot of science careers you can do. Get into science, help everybody understand the world around us better!”
What is something that might surprise members of the public (either about you, or your career)?
“I do know that when most people come up to Circle J and we have to hike around a little bit a lot of people are surprised at how much work it takes to hike. It’s pretty physical. You have to hike around and you have to carry the materials and they can be pretty heavy. They don’t realize it’s so physically demanding.”
What advice do you have for young people who might be pursuing your line of work?
“If it’s just teaching in general, I would say go to school. It’s always good to get involved in as much as you can, especially in college. Do all of the extra stuff that they offer. Do the study abroad trip, work in a lab with a crazy professor. Everything you do lets you learn more about yourself and what you do and don’t like to do!
What is equally important is finding out what you don’t like to do. I thought I wanted to be a vet and had I not worked in a veterinary office I would have spent another four years and $100,000 on a degree in a career that wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. Put yourself out there, do a lot of activities, things you don’t think you’ll like and things you will like and you’ll be learning a whole lot about what you like and what you’re not a fan or a fan of!”
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
“I’ll probably have the same job, I imagine. You never know what life is going to throw at you though. I am interested in getting a PH.D. because I really do like researching science. I like science and field research and I think that’s a good way for me to really contribute, or help others understand the world around us. With our work with UC Merced it’s made me realize it’s obtainable even as an old lady. I love learning, so if that can make me be Dr. Amanda Driver and not just Mrs. Amanda Driver, then maybe that will open some doors that it wouldn’t have otherwise, then that’s pretty cool!”
Anything else you would like to add? (Maybe a current, or past project you’re proud of?)
“I am really proud of my research that I did for my master’s degree. I studied the relationship between mistletoe and oak trees and I found mistletoe wasn’t bad for oak trees. Most people think it’s terrible, it’s a parasite, but it’s not. It’s helpful to oak trees. I would like to pursue that line of study with my PH.D. It made me realize how much I like field research.
Being a part of Circle J and the restoration projects is neat too. All of Circle J used to be grazed by cattle all of the time. With the work that Nancy Bruce started, we’ve started to fence the cattle out and we’ve started planting trees. We’ve had a lot more birds, and insects. It’s a good way to give back to the Earth, to the world, to our community. The fact that we get to involve students in the process is amazing too. I love sharing my love of nature with others, especially kids.”
Camila enjoys all of the different kinds of art. Manuel enjoys sports - especially soccer. Both students are in the fourth grade and attend Tipton Elementary School and are in the After School Education and Safety (ASES) Program.