I’ve always had a passion for education, beginning my career as an English teacher. Eventually, however, I found myself feeling limited teaching in an indoor classroom setting and wanted to foster stronger connections between my students and the natural world around them.

I have worked as both an educator and a manager of EE programs, for infants to adults. I am passionate about the field and have strong networks that are accessible as resources.

I am currently the Center Coordinator for the Watershed Committee of the Ozarks where I facilitate education and outreach activities for groups of all ages and backgrounds.

I am a Farm-to-School Educator at the Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture. I’ve known that my passion in life is connecting people to nature for as long as I can remember.

In the summer of 2020 after working in academic and student affairs as an assistant professor and assistant director of academic initiatives, I left the field of higher education after 20 years and entered the world of environmental education and advocacy.

I have been a nurse for 47 years and am recently retired as faculty from University of Missouri-St. Louis College of Nursing. When taking classes for my doctoral degree, I learned about schools that frame curriculum around nature and the natural curiosity of children.

Born and raised in St. Louis, MO, I developed a passion for taking care of the planet, food justice, and working with youth. From 2017-2020, I served as a Youth Educator for Gateway Greening. I’ve taught over 300 students in the St. Louis Public School District about science, nature, and urban agriculture. In addition to working with kids, I’ve facilitated professional development for other educators in the region, and assisted in the development of community garden projects.

I am the Education Outreach Coordinator for James River Basin Partnership, which is a water quality organization in Southwest Missouri. JRBP visited my school when I was in the 5th grade, which got me hooked on water quality and environmental education.

I currently work as a community organizer for the Sierra Club’s Missouri Beyond Coal campaign. Throughout my career, I have mobilized various communities across Missouri

The concept of experiential education entered my life when I was living in Germany as a young adult where I participated in a program that changed my lens of learning forever. 

I own and manage the St. Louis office of National Nursery Products, a horticultural sales, marketing and consulting company representing wholesale growers of a diverse variety of ornamental and environmental landscape plants.

I am the general manager of a family-owned garden center, Greenscape Gardens in west St. Louis County, Missouri. Greenscape was the 2015 national winner of Today’s Garden Center Magazine’s Revolutionary 100 for their work in the promotion of native plants.

Before leading MEEA, I was been a longtime youth gardening and outdoor education advocate, providing direct gardening and nutrition education to students as well as professional development opportunities for educators. Since working for MEEA, I have learned so much about how varied and expansive the field of environmental education is!

I grew up loving the outdoors and knew early on that I wanted to become a wildlife biologist. I earned a BS in Fisheries and Wildlife from the University of Missouri, Columbia. The pivotal moment when I discovered Environmental Education was when working at a research laboratory. I was asked to interpret science to the public (especially school groups and community educators) as a Public Affairs Specialist. From that moment on, I have been determined to help citizens understand the challenges our environment faces, and how we can meet those challenges.

I am a St. Louis native and a recent graduate of Washington University. I attended and graduated from Washington University, where I studied Classics – Ancient Greek and Roman History and Language – and remained motivated by my early wish to be a lexicographer, a person who compiles lists of new words for dictionaries. My interests include reading, writing, listening to music and foraging. I have two fur babies, a cat and a dog, that I love very much. During my year of service, I hope to help more schools find their green and initiate more community waste cleanups.  

I’ve always had a strong passion towards nature and enabling others to get involved in activities that promote the wellbeing of the environment. Nature provides me with a different perspective of the life that exists outside of human beings. Being a Missouri Green School VISTA provides me with the opportunity to increase this passion through implementing environmental sustainability, health and wellness, and environmental literacy in schools and communities.