Four Winds staff members have presented thousands of environmental education workshops over the years, connecting adults and children to nearby nature through the seasons. In addition, our educators have led professional development courses for K-12 classroom teachers, early childhood educators, camp staff, and other non-formal educators. Four Winds staff members have taught undergraduate and graduate courses through Vermont State University, University of Maine, and Middlebury College, always with a focus on creating community connections through natural science education and nature-based play and learning.
Becky Proulx
Becky’s (she/her) love for the natural world began as a child in the mountains and on the lakes of New Hampshire. She has worked in the experiential education field for more than 30 years. The majority of this work was at the Hulbert Outdoor Center training staff and facilitating experiential education programs for school-age children, homeschoolers, and adults. She holds a degree in Biology from Colby College and a Master’s degree in Education from Antioch University New England. In addition to her work with Four Winds, Becky works with elementary-age students exploring natural history and outdoor skills in a play- and exploration-based program.
Barb Slaiby
Barb got her love of nature and her environmentalist streak from her mom, walking in the woods behind her childhood home in southern New England. She earned a B.S. in Zoology from Duke University, and an M.S. in Natural Resources Policy and Education from the University of Michigan. She’s worked as a fisheries technician with the Peace Corps in Nepal, as an environmental educator for the Atlantic Center for the Environment, as an interpretive ranger for the National Park Service, and as a program coordinator for the NPS Conservation Study Institute. She loves to visit all kinds of national parks, for history as well as for hiking. In her town of Lebanon, New Hampshire, Barb enjoys working with fellow gardeners to create native plant habitat for pollinators and other wildlife. Barb coordinated the Four Winds Nature Program in her kids’ school for many years, and is excited to share the Four Winds program as a trainer.
Ellen Gawarkiewicz
Ellen (she/her) grew up stealthily canoeing the ponds of Cape Cod netting painted turtles for a closer look. By age six, she had it figured out: she would be a naturalist and a teacher. This path has brought her from the salt marshes of Cape Cod to the beaches of Madagascar, from the lakes of New Hampshire to the rivers of Maine, from the north woods of Minnesota to the Himalayan foothills of Nepal, and from the shores of Lake Champlain to the forest classrooms of central Vermont. Along the way, she unearthed a passion for connecting people and place through sharing a sense of wonder. She is delighted to be a part of the Four Winds community and grow in her ability to cultivate curiosity and wonder in nature nearby.
Erika Bodin
Erika (they/them) grew up on Long Island Sound, enamored with the ocean and studying marine biology at UConn Avery Point. They fell equally in love with Vermont’s mountains, forests and rivers when they moved here in 2009 for school. Erika graduated from Saint Michael’s College in 2013 with a B.S. in Environmental Studies, and has since gone on to study permaculture, botany, and herbalism. Erika is a long-time volunteer for The Four Winds Nature Program in Chittenden and is excited to be on staff as a naturalist educator. They enjoy gardening, swimming, hiking, and exploring outside with their three young nephews.
Heather Fitzgerald
Heather has lived in Massachusetts, Texas, Pennsylvania, Washington State, and Minnesota. She came to Vermont for graduate school, seeking a depth of connection to the natural landscape that she longed for as she moved around the country, and she now delights in sharing her hard-won sense of connection with others. She has taught ecology and environmental science at the Community College of Vermont, University of Vermont, and Saint Michael’s College for the past 26 years. She has written the “Good Nature” column for Seven Days and is currently at work on a middle grade novel about kids dealing with a climate crisis with agency and heart. Heather earned a B.A. in Biology with a concentration in Environmental Studies from Swarthmore College and an M.S. in Ecological Planning from University of Vermont. She is thrilled to be on the Four Winds team as a naturalist educator, working with volunteers dedicated to honoring kids’ curiosity and wonder.
Hilary Redman
Hilary (she/her) was born and raised in Florence, Vermont with an amazing view of the Green Mountains, a dirt road to wander down, and endless logging roads, forests, and streams to explore. Hilary attended Skidmore College where she majored in French before moving to Key West, Florida where she earned her Master’s degree in Montessori Education from Barry University. As an elementary educator for 12 years, Hilary has had many different teaching experiences in varied environments, from an island Montessori school to a public elementary school in Brooklyn, New York and then, finally, back home to a rural school in the hills of Vermont. While teaching Kindergarten in Chittenden, Vermont, Hilary was introduced to the Four Winds Nature Program and was so impressed with its curriculum and mission that she became a Nature Program volunteer at Richmond Elementary School. Hilary is honored to be a part of the Four Winds staff and to be able to work with and learn from educators and adults who are interested and excited about getting outside with kids!
Karen Parker
Karen grew up in southern New Hampshire enjoying lots of adventures in nature with family: canoeing on ponds, hiking in the mountains and foothills, exploring in caves, and discovering life in the tidal pools at the ocean. After graduating from Trinity College in Burlington with a B.S. in Environmental Science and working for several years in the Landscape Irrigation field, she turned her focus to the adventure of raising her own kids. It was through their Monkton Elementary School where she was introduced to the Four Winds Nature Program and realized the absolute joy of connecting people with the natural world around them. After volunteering for and coordinating the Nature Program for many years, Karen is delighted to have returned to Four Winds as a naturalist educator.
Karly Wilcox
Karly grew up in Maryland chasing her three older brothers through the woods and splashing in the Chesapeake Bay. With a love for the mountains and ocean, Karly landed in New Hampshire. She received her B.S. at James Madison University for early childhood education and her M.Ed. from University of New Hampshire for early childhood special education. Karly has been a preschool special education teacher for 10 years and has seen the effects of the modern day child’s lack of connection to nature–spiraling to a lack of connection to themselves, to their peers, and to their community. With a love of games, nature, and watching children transform when in nature, Karly is now dedicating her time and energy to nature-based play and learning in early childhood settings.
Lisa Purcell
Lisa (she/her) has been leading community-based environmental education programs with adults and children for so many happy years. She believes people of all ages need a connection with the great outdoors, and she loves her work — watching individuals look at the world around them with wonder. Now Executive Director of Four Winds, Lisa was Associate Director at Smokey House Center in Danby, VT and Program Director at Vermont Institute of Natural Science. She has served as president of the board of directors of both Vermont’s Statewide Environmental Education Programs (SWEEP) and the New England Environmental Education Alliance (NEEEA). Over the years, Lisa has held a variety of education-related positions: coordinating adventure-based team building and staff professional development programs, developing a college service learning program, assisting in a preschool, working in public and school libraries, and teaching natural science. She is the editor of Hands-On Nature, 2nd edition (2000), a natural science curriculum guide. Lisa earned a Master’s degree in environmental administration from Antioch New England Graduate School and a B.A. in Geography from Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.
Marie Johnson
Marie (she/her) is a collaborative educator and operations wrangler who brings humor, heart, and a love of well-organized systems to her work as Four Winds’ business manager. With a Master’s in Special Ed and experience across education, community programs, and business operations, she believes that curiosity and connection can take you just about anywhere – especially if you’re in boots you don’t mind getting muddy. A lifelong Vermonter, Marie spends her days exploring the outdoors with her family, playing music with friends, volunteering as a first responder, and bringing people together through community events. She believes that wonder and kindness are the roots of lasting care for the planet, and is delighted to have found her place at Four Winds!
Skylar Claud
Sky (she/her) graduated from SUNY College at Oneonta with two Bachelor degrees in Sustainability and Geography. Throughout her work experience Sky has done invasive species management, public outreach, environmental education, trail building, nature therapy, and early childhood education. She also spent time rebuilding houses after Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, and helping restore wetlands in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina and due to sea level rise. Sky has a passion for connecting people to nature and sharing her knowledge and experience with different communities. She works with the Hartford Conservation Commission and organized the monthly Family Forest Frolics, getting families outside and exploring their town forests. Sky believes that the first step in preserving our environment starts with educating and connecting youth with nature. Working in Early Education and with Four Winds gives her a chance to do just that, fueling her passion for both nature and teaching!
Tracy Ramsey
Tracy (she/her) grew up on the seacoast of New Hampshire where she spent hours outside with her family swimming, biking, hiking, camping, horseback riding and so much more. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Family Studies with a minor in Geology, and a Masters of Education from the University of New Hampshire. Tracy was an elementary school teacher for ten years before taking time to care for her family. This is where Tracy learned to truly appreciate the benefits that nature can have on the development of a child! Tracy is excited to share her love of learning and the benefits of nature with families, educators, and children.
Celebrating the first birthday of Four Winds
The Winds in 2008
The Winds in 2017
