Board of Directors
Interested in becoming a board member? Nominations for 2023 -2024 will open in the spring of 2023.
Position descriptions can be found HERE.
President - Jessica Kester
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With 20+ years of educational experience Jessica began her career as a field instructor in coastal marine sciences at the Chincoteague Bay Field Station in Wallops Island, VA. She moved westward to teach students from urban / suburban Chicago at the Lorado-Taft Field Campus of Northern Illinois University. Then for 10+ years she ran The Outdoor Classroom in Pittsburgh’s South Hills focusing on the variety of ecosystems and wondrous treasures in Southwestern PA. After the Classroom closed in 2016, Jessica moved on to start the new outdoor and environmental education department of Allegheny Land Trust as the Vice President of Education. She joined the ROCIS team as the Air Quality Education Coordinator in May 2020. Jessica holds degrees in Biology/Marine Science and Secondary Education/Biology from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania and is a Pennsylvania Association of Environmental Educators board member and State Coordinator for Project WET (Water Education Today).
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President Elect - Matt Marsden
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Matt Marsden works at Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center at Penn State University with their Outdoor School and Summer Camp programs. He earned an M.S. in Park and Resource Management through Slippery Rock University in 2016. He has enjoyed attending and presenting at PAEE conferences and is excited to help advance the mission of PAEE!
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Past President - Steve Wasiesky
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Steve has been a staff member, volunteer, and Environmental Education Coordinator at Asbury Woods for a combined 50 years. He also worked in technical service for LORD Corp. starting full time at Asbury Woods in 1999. He served as Executive Director of Asbury Woods Nature Center from 2011 to July 2016. At that time, the Asbury Woods Partnership purchased Asbury Woods from the Millcreek Township School District. Steve is currently the Environmental Education Coordinator for the Millcreek Township School District, (MTSD), at Asbury Woods. He teaches the K-5, 8, and High School students that visit Asbury Woods from MTSD, and oversees the 6 & 7th grade watershed education curriculum.
Steve has served on the Board of Directors for PAEE since 2010 and the Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park (LEAF) since 1999. He was the NW PA Regional Director for PAEE from 2010 - 2018, He served as President of PAEE from 2018-2020, and is currently the Past President of PAEE and is the Chairperson for the Educational Committee at LEAF. Steve also serves on the Advisory Board for the College of Science and Health Department at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, The PA Advisory Council for Environmental Education, and the Content Committee for the 2020 update of the PA State Academic Standards for Science & Technology and Environment & Ecology. |
Secretary - Sara Klingensmith
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Sara is an Environmental Educator for Powdermill Nature Reserve. She has over 6 years of experience volunteering and working for non-profit environmental education organizations. She holds a B.S. in Wildlife Biology from University of Alaska Fairbanks. She considers herself a life-long learner and is always happy to help others understand and appreciate the natural world. Sara also serves as the Photography Chair for the Western Pennsylvania Mushroom Club and helps teach ecology courses for the PA Master Naturalists.
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Treasurer - Pat McKinney
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Patrick McKinney is the Environmental Education Coordinator for the Schuylkill Conservation District and and serves as Treasurer for PAEE. Pat has worked for almost 30 years to implement educational programing in Schuylkill County about a wide variety of topics. He has received the Outstanding Environmental Educator of the Year Award, and the Sandy Cochran Award from the PA Forestry Association. Pat is active in many local and state-wide organizations and has worked to maintain environmental education as a priority in Pennsylvania.
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Membership Director - Julie Travaglini
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Julie Travaglini is the Education Program Director for Allegheny Land Trust and serves as the Membership Director for PAEE. She has more than 12 years of experience in non profit environmental education. As a Specialty Discipline Instructor for the state, she runs professional development workshops for early childhood educators about the importance of nature to young learners. She has participated in multiple national and international podcasts and webinars and has spoken at both local conferences and large national conferences across the country. Aside from her work at ALT and PAEE, she also serves as the Vice President of two non profits; Science Tots and the USC Citizens for Land Stewardship.
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Development Director - Craig Lukatch
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Craig is a Hazleton native, currently residing in Moosic PA who has extensive experience with more than 15 plus years in nonprofit administration and fundraising most recently working as the CEO of the Greater Pittston YMCA and the Director of Development at Wyoming Valley Children's Association, Forty Fort. He current is the President of Lacawac Sanctuary Environmental Education Center. He is a graduate of the University of Scranton with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Theology. Lukatch as served on various boards of nonprofits from the NEPA chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, to the Hazleton YMCA and the Community Services for Sight organization in Hazleton. Over his tenure he has raised over $5 million for capital projects for local nonprofits.
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Public Relations Director - OPEN
Member at Large - Camila Rivera-Tinsley
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Camila Rivera-Tinsley is the director of education for the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. She leads the conservancy’s growing slate of all-ages, environmental education programming and helms the Frick Environmental Center, the first publicly owned Living Building in the United States. Before serving in her current role, she attended The Pennsylvania State University and subsequently secured a position at The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education, where she worked for 14 years, stewarding programming and mentoring hundreds of students and early career professionals. It was at the Schuylkill Center that she began to realize that urban environmental education, and ensuring the diversity of the field, was her true life’s passion. She helped to start a small environmental non-profit focused on people color and continues to use her voice to highlight the concerns of underserved populations. With an extensive background in environmental education, horticulture, permaculture, and urban agriculture, Rivera-Tinsley serves on the Environmental Education Advisory Council for the state of PA. Camila’s 17-year history of serving her community through her profession, volunteer work, and as an adviser to environmental organizations of color have formed and cemented her passion for providing opportunities to connect all peoples to green spaces in their community. Her true motivation lies in creating a more verdant and inclusive future for her 14year-old daughter.
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Member at Large - Julia Steiner
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Julia Steiner is the Environmental Educator for the Brandywine Conservancy and Museum of Art where she serves as a liaison to communicate the organization’s dual mission of art + environment. Julia has a degree in Agricultural Sciences from the and dual certifications in Elementary and Special Education. As a former classroom teacher, she realized that too many people were growing up without any sort of connection to the environment. A lifelong learner, Julia is a Registered Yoga Teacher, Master Watershed Steward and certified in Wilderness First Aid through NOLS. She serves on several environmental committees and helps out at her favorite local outdoor store Trail Creek Outfitters. If she’s not leading or creating education programs you can find Julia tending to her organic garden, experimenting in the kitchen, doing anything active outdoors, or traveling to new mountain destinations.
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Regional Directors
Northwest Region Director - Wendy Kedzierski
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Wendy Kedzierski has been a member of PAEE since 2006. She received her B.S. in Biology from Penn State Erie and M.S. also in Biology from Virginia Commonwealth University. She has been with Creek Connections at Allegheny College since 2004. Previously, she was a wetland and stream permit writer for the Commonwealth of Virginia and before that she worked in environmental consulting. Wendy is passionate about environmental education and finding the best ways to bring environmental literacy to the youth and public in Pennsylvania.
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Southwest Region Director - Dr. Becky Thomas
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Becky is an Associate Professor of Park Resource Management at Slippery Rock University and co-director of programming at SRU’s Robert A. Macoskey Center. She holds a BS degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Science from Penn State, and MS and PhD Degrees from Colorado State University in Human Dimensions of Natural Resources. Becky got her start in Environmental Education as a practitioner at the National Aviary, which also began a lifelong passion (aka obsession) with flying feathered friends. She is active in PAEE and NAAEE and has attended and presented at several conferences. Becky is a National Association of Interpretation Certified Interpretive Guide trainer, and has a passion for supporting the professional development of current and future EE professionals through her role at SRU. She is excited about connecting urban and rural people and places through shared resources and stories, and Western PA provides the perfect backdrop for this work.
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Northcentral Region Director - VACANT
Southcentral Region Director - Anne Clark
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Dr. Anne Clark has earned a Doctorate in Human Services at Capella University with a concentration in Leadership and Organizational Management. She has completed her undergraduate degree in Business Administration with attention in Organizational Psychology. She completed her Master’s Degree in Elementary Education and School Leadership.
She is a Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority Inc. member and is a member of the York Federation for Democratic Women, is currently serving on PAEE as the Southcentral Regional Director, and serving on the Pennsylvania Coalition for Public Charter Schools Committee Member, and the Committee for SNAPPA Conference. Dr. Clark previously served on the Pennsylvania Department of Education SPAC Council. She has advised numerous schools on best practices regarding Title I, parent, and community engagement. She has presented her work on SMART Model, Joint Use Agreements, Latino Parent Involvement, Developing the Leaders of Today, and Community Partnerships locally, statewide, and nationally. She wants to share the broken road experiences that led her to success as a parent, educator, and woman. |
Northeast Region Director - Stephanie Sherman
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As the Director of Education at Pocono Environmental Education Center, Stephanie Sherman has been fulfilling her dream job of inspiring the next generation of environmental stewards. Getting her start in the field 15 years ago with Wildlands Conservancy, Steph has worked her way up from a humble summer camp assistant to Naturalist while earning her Bachelor’s in Wildlife Management and Conservation from Delaware Valley University. She then went onto working with residential school field trips as an AmeriCorps Conservation Specialist for the New Jersey School of Conservation (NJSOC). As a graduate student at NJSOC, Steph completed her Master’s from Montclair State University concentrating in Environmental Education. She now enjoys living and working in the Poconos with endless opportunities for new hikes and river explorations.
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Southeast Region Director - Tarsha Scovens
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Through her vision, dedication and unfailing commitment to see more people of color experiencing nature and/or the outdoors, Tarsha laid the foundation for Let's Go Outdoors, LLC, a leading provider of outdoor-themed experiences for urban communities in Philadelphia, PA. In addition to being on the PAEE Board, Tarsha serves on the board of Friends of High School Park in Cheltenham, PA and is a volunteer teacher with Keep Philadelphia Beautiful. Tarsha lives in Cheltenham, PA with her husband and two daughters. Her dynamic energy, creative spirit, likable demeanor and drive to engage diverse audiences in the environmental and/or “green” arena, make her a vital up and coming leader.
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