District bilingual coordinator wins Boy Scouts of America community service award

District bilingual coordinator wins Boy Scouts of America community service award
The Blue Mountain Council of the Boy Scouts of America has recently announced that Walla Walla resident and Scouting volunteer, Diana Erickson, has been selected to receive the Silver Beaver Award for her service to scouting. The Silver Beaver Award is presented by the Boy Scouts of America to council, district or unit volunteers for distinguished service to youth. It is the highest award that a local council may present to a volunteer.

As a registered leader in Scouting over the past 10 years, she has served Cub Scout Pack 311 and Exploring Post 311 which are sponsored by the College Place First Presbyterian Mens group in College Place. As an active leader of Exploring Post 311, she has been active in providing support to the Walla Walla High School Latino Club through the Post.

In 2007, she served on the International Staff of the 21st World Jamboree in central England and spent 17 days as an interpreter and receptionist at the Jamboree Headquarters. The Jamboree, which celebrated the 100th anniversary of Scouting, had 50,000 people from over 160 countries in attendance. One of the highlights of her service at the Jamboree is that she met Michael Baden-Powell from Australia who is the grandson of Scoutings founder, Robert Baden Powell.

In 2010, Diana was a National Staff member at the 2010 Boy Scouts of America National Jamboree as a member of the Special Catering group. The 2010 National Jamboree celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Scouting in America.

The Silver Beaver Award also recognizes noteworthy service to youth within the jurisdiction of the council. Currently serving as the Bilingual Coordinator of the Walla Walla School District, she has over 34 years experience as a Spanish, English, and English as a Second Language teacher. Over those years, she has helped immigrant students learn English and then made the extra effort to advocate and assist students in becoming assets to their community. She taught several generations of immigrant students English in the Walla Walla Valley while developing teaching methods and strategies that have served her students over those years.

From the beginning, she determined that the success of her immigrant students was not just dependent on classroom instruction, but also on a steady level of advocacy for her students and the creation of activities that will engage students and their families in the educational process. Over the years, she has had to overcome barriers to provide educational and culturally appropriate extracurricular activities for her students. One of those activities, Exploring Post 311, has become a significant support program for Latino students on the Walla Walla High School campus.

Diana will receive the Silver Beaver Award at a reception in Kennewick, Washington, on Saturday, April 16.