I come to educational consulting after extensive experience as a classroom teacher, curriculum designer, school administrator, outdoor educator and administrator, and board member for several educational organizations.

I began my professional educational journey by teaching science and being Director of the Mountaineering Program at Asheville School. We ran teamwork, communication, and leadership programs for our high school students and offered experiences in such activities as rock and ice climbing, fly-fishing, whitewater kayaking, and mountain biking.

I became interested in bringing the collaborative, adventurous sense of discovery students experienced in the mountaineering program to my classroom. As a result, I discovered “experiential education”. I went back to school and earned a Master’s degree in academically-oriented experiential education. For my thesis I developed a model for place-based education. At Asheville School I started to run professional development on experiential education for teachers.

I subsequently joined the SE Regional Board for the Association for Experiential Education (AEE) as the chair. In 2012 I received the Rebecca Carver ABC Award from AEE. I served on the International Board of AEE and have been asked to serve again beginning fall of 2019. I am active in the Independent Schools Experiential Network (ISEEN). I have given presentations on experiential education for NCAIS, AEE, ATI, and SAIS among other organizations.

Most recently I served as Head of School for The College School (TCS), a PreK- 8 school in St Louis, which is experientially based. I focused on professional development, creating a student support center, bolstering our summer program, and building a remote learning center on 30 acres of land. While in St. Louis, I helped found a 501c3 called the Experiential Education Exchange, which is focused on training in experiential education for teachers. I served on the Board for the Independent Schools of St Louis (ISSL) and on the Board for a start-up experiential charter school.

Subsequently I retired from TCS, moved back to Asheville, and began my consulting business. I can work on my own or if appropriate I draw from a rich list of colleagues I can bring in to help me with projects. I look forward to finding out how I can be of service to your organization.