People

I am a science teacher in a public high school located in Maryland, USA.

I grew up surrounded by nature and outdoor adventures, which inspired my educational pursuits of environmental education. I hope to continue the work I started with my thesis, which combines restorative practices with place-based education to support youths’ understanding of climate change.

I began with Wake County Public schools in 2019.  I left my 18+ year career in retail operations to spend more time with my family.  I found myself working in my son's elementary school cafeteria and ended up loving it! I pursued my teaching licensure and taught my first full year virtually during the 2021-2022 school year.  

I teach Middle Grades Science Methods and Environmental Education. My research interests include outdoor classrooms and environmental literacy in pre-service teacher education.

I am the founder of Forever Wild San Antonio, a nature and play based program for preschoolers in the San Antonio, Texas area. 

Jean Kayira, Ph.D. is Associate Director of the Environmental Studies Ph.D. program at Antioch University – New England. Jean has a strong commitment to and passion for socio-ecological justice issues, community-based education, and collaborative inquiry. In engaging with these concerns, her work has focused on education as a sociocultural and critical practice, with an additional focus on epistemological and methodological issues of qualitative research. These foci draw on the practice of anti-oppressive education, social and cultural theory, postcolonial theory, and empirical research, which engage directly with educators as well as students.