People

Director of OSU KidSpirit Oregon State University (OSU), since September 1998, and Instructor in the Department of Exercise Science. OSU KidSpirit is a youth program located on the OSU campus since 1961 offering positive youth development programming in Sports, Science, Arts, and Cooking. Work experience includes working with organizations such as Maui Girl Scouts, Maui Special Olympics, and Girls on the Run Willamette Valley, reflecting my commitment to positive youth development, leadership and staff professional development, risk management, and personnel management. ​

I am a student at The Ohio State University studying Natural Resource Management specializing in Parks and Recreation. Right now I am taking Intro to Environmental Education and Communication. I love outdoor recreation and teaching young people about the environment. I love to spend as much time every day as I can outside!

Para La Tierra is a nonprofit organization, conserving fragile habitats in Paraguay through Scientific Research, Community Engagement, and Environmental Education. Our award-winning environmental education program Voces de la Naturaleza is creating a new generation of Eco Leaders.

I am a passionate environmental educator keenly interested in short-term, local, and affordable outdoor endeavors for all community members. Through environmental education, I believe that we can foster a love of the outdoors and inspire folks to appreciate nature in their own contexts.

I am passionate about early childhood environmental education and currently work as an instructional assistant while I pursue my EE certification.

I have 20 years of experience with working alongside youth and adults within tradtional and non-traditional educational settings. My work has been centered around education, criminal justice, programming, training, and community involvement. I have been fortunate to expand my skills and knowledge in other areas and would like to grow within the environmental education sector.  I have an orange thumb when it comes down to planting and a green heart for growing and learning. Building my skills in this area will help me continue to spread the message locally of how we are all growers and learners of our environment. I am excited to become an Environmental Educator!

Helen Kuhns loves to get her hands dirty and her feet wet. Growing up in the Tidewater region of Virginia, she has always been enthralled by the Chesapeake Bay, its tributaries, backwaters, swamps, marshes and the creatures that call those areas home. She feels we are as much a part of nature as the hawks hunting the wooded edges or the bluebirds feeding across the meadows. Helen’s EE philosophy has always been “helping an individual develop a personal connection to our natural resources is the first step to conserving our world for future generations.”

Currently, Helen Kuhns is the Assistant Director, Programs and Pearl Faith Coordinator for Lynnhaven River Now, a Virginia Beach-based, grass roots organization focused on improving water quality throughout its city’s waters and beyond. Helen oversees Lynnhaven River Now’s program team who focus on educating their community through virtual or hands-on, in-person learning opportunities, and stewardship actions such as cleanups and water quality monitoring. Building stewards within Virginia Beach schools, residents, businesses and faith communities, across the Commonwealth of Virginia and beyond those borders drives her passion for environmental education.

Helen earned a Bachelor’s of Biology with a Minor in Philosophy & Religion from Christopher Newport University. She works to guide others to develop a meaningful and personal relationship with nature and also to understand the challenges our environment is undergoing. Whether working with church leaders, students, or volunteers, Helen’s passion for her work reverberates through her audiences. She advocates for environmental education and climate change issues through local and state level actions building a capacity for change. Helen is a committed partner and excited to work with stakeholders to move towards a common good.

Helen’s 30+ years in EE have resulted in a varied, exciting career. Focused primarily on wildlife, coastal habitats, watershed education, facilitation and interpretation, Helen has worked with students, adults, educators and peers. Helen is a founding Board member and former officer for the Virginia Association for Environmental Education (VAEE) serving as Secretary for 5 years, and working with her locally- affiliated chapter, the Hampton Roads Alliance for Environmental Education. She served on Governor Northam’s STEM Commission, the former-First Lady Northam’s Future of EE Committee and is a non-formal representative on the Virginia Department of Education’s EE Advisory panel.

I am a Dutch researcher and teacher in the field of environmental philosophy. I am also a nature lover and hicker. I have published a series of articles on sustainability, environmental philosophy and spirituality.

My name is Spryte Heithecker and I am the Science Curriculum and Experiential Learning Coordinator for Sterne School in San Francisco, CA. This year I am focusing on finishing my post baccalaureate degree in Sustainability from Oregon State, completing the Certified Garden Educator program from Life Lab in Santa Cruz, and completing the Certified Environmental Educator course from AEOE.

I love being outdoors, especially with my students! My favorite days are when I can plan field trips and experiential learning activities for my students including gardening, stewardship, volunteering, kayaking, and taking care of the horses at the SF Zoo.