Facilitating positive outdoor experiences for people in a unique natural setting with committed, talented, fun colleagues, interns, students, and volunteers……provides memories that last lifetimes.
Years at Shaver’s Creek: 1989–1992
Positions Held: Outdoor School, Summer Camp, Outdoor School Director, Adventure Education Director, Ultimate Frisbee Coordinator
Current Company/Organization: Pennsylvania Western University
Sharing the powerful stories of Outdoor School while recruiting Penn State education majors for counselors resulted in an invitation to pursue graduate degrees in science teacher education. Earning master’s and doctorate degrees at Penn State enabled me to be part of the extended Shaver’s Creek social community through 1998 and help out leading the occasional adventure camp backpacking, caving, rock climbing, or high ropes course program. Since then, I’ve continued the outdoor school and adventure education missions professionally as a professor of science/environment/STEM/sustainability teacher education in Oregon, Michigan, Montana, and Pennsylvania. Personally, connecting people and nature continues with family, friends, neighbors, youth, Scouts, and others through outdoor adventures such as numerous wilderness canoe trips to the Boundary Waters; climbing Colorado mountains; backpacking everywhere; paddling whitewater on the Youghiogheny; biking the GAP trail; reenacting living history from the 1750s at Ft. Ligonier, Ft. Niagara, and Ft. Necessity; and living in a home we built that is super energy efficient, net zero energy use through passive solar design/solar panels with rainwater catchment/purification for all water usage. Just think…..all of us Shaver’s Creek alumni…..working together in our various ways over years….and the lasting impacts we’ve contributed in connecting people with nature!