SMC’s Keli Stambaugh has become a certified Chesapeake Bay Landscape Professional (CBLP)! SMC has supported and contributed to the CBLP effort since its inception, and has encouraged numerous employees to seek t.he CBLP credential. We congratulate Keli on this accomplishment!
The CBLP Program is a system of materials and consistent instruction across the region, creating a community of certified professionals to be better stormwater partners and environmental stewards. The credential training and examination are based on a core set of standards in sustainable landscaping, emphasizing stormwater retrofit best practices and conservation landscaping with native plants to benefit the environment. The program includes a significant focus on landscaped stormwater facility design, construction, and maintenance.
Employed with SMC since August of 2018, Keli has been a textbook example of how SMC encourages and nurtures professional growth and career trajectory. Keli joined the SMC team having a wide variety of experience in the environmental architecture and ecological construction industries providing administrative support for project management. She came to SMC with a passion for the environment and started in a similar support role. It quickly became clear that her passion, experience, ability to grasp technical aspects, and organizational and communication skills had prepared her for greater challenges. Keli now sits in an important project management role, overseeing the management of two of our largest single-client maintenance contracts, including the maintenance portion of our involvement in the Clean Water Partnership.
Prior to passing the CBLP exam, Keli started taking the Anne Arundel County Watershed Steward’s Academy (WSA) course in November, 2018 and graduated in November, 2019 as part of Class 11. SMC supports the WSA, providing volunteer Stormwater Success training and other contributions. Keli’s Capstone Project was a Butterfly/Pollinator Garden Restoration at Jug Bay – sponsored by SMC – where she and other Anne Arundel County Master WSA candidates, as well as volunteers from the Center of Help Hispanic Community Center-Annapolis; Arnold/Broadneck Girl Scout Troop; and WSA Stewards and friends and family provided a well needed makeover to the 2,000 SF entrance of Jug Bay Wetland’s Sanctuary in Lothian, Maryland. This project opened up the minds of children and young adults enthusiastic to learn about the environment around them. The team spent two Saturdays clearing invasive species and planting more than 200 native pollinator friendly plants, adding a trail extension, and installing a rain barrel for stormwater management and watering capabilities.
Keli has since also joined the WSA Environmental Literacy Committee and volunteers at the Annapolis Center of Help (Hispanic Community Center) in order to help educate the local youth about stormwater management and environmental conditions.
SMC congratulates Keli on her accomplishments and looks forward to continuing to nurture her career and technical qualifications.
