Meet Our Staff |
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Jennifer “Pheff" BashamOutdoor School Senior Program Administrator
(503) 257-1618 • jbasham@mesd.k12.or.us Jennifer brings over 15 years of experience working with all ages of children in both residential and classroom settings, developing engaging and inspiring educational programs, while supervising staff and building communities within diverse educational programs. Jennifer has taught 4th and 5th grades at Fairview Elementary, served as a site supervisor at outdoor school programs for NWRESD and MESD, and has served in supervisory positions for summer camps at the Oregon Zoo, YMCA Camp Collins, and Synergo. Jennifer holds an Oregon State Teaching License and Bachelor of Science in Multidisciplinary Studies summa cum laude from Eastern Oregon University and earned her Masters of Science in Educational Leadership and Policy from Portland State University. She is currently pursuing her Administrators License at Portland State University. As an Oregonian and a product of Outdoor School, Jennifer feels lucky to be a part of such a transformational school experience for our region’s students and to witness the exceptional instructional practice and community built during each week. When not working with students in the woods, you might find her biking around town or walking her two dogs with her husband. She loves training for triathlons, baking, crafting, and drinking fresh-roasted coffee.
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Andrea “Coho" HusseyOutdoor School Supervisor
(503) 257-1774 • ahussey@mesd.k12.or.us Andrea was bread and buttered in Portland Oregon. She attended Howard Outdoor School as a 6th grader and loved it. She returned as a student Leader and Animals Field Instructor at Collins, and became a Site Supervisor in 2003. Andrea has been the Site Supervisor of the Arrah Wanna, Howard, and Angelos sites. Andrea holds a degree from the University of Oregon in Environmental Studies and Womens' Studies, and she worked in the reproductive justice movement as a patient advocate and helped to start a non-profit hotline for women. While not at Outdoor School, Andrea is a Trivia Jockey in Portland. Andrea loves that everyone is welcome and gets a clean slate at Outdoor School, and that it is a place where kids can find success, even if they struggle in a traditional setting. Each session brings new challenges, and she loves being a part of a Portland legacy. Andrea loves organized fun, and is nicknamed the Ambassador of F.U.N.. She enjoys time in her garden with her spouse and big goofy dog, and going on adventures with friends in the lovely state of Oregon. Andrea recently won the Grand Prize on the NPR radio game show Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and the charming Carl Kasell's voice is now on her outgoing voicemail.
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Shauna “Chomps" StevensonShauna was born and raised in Portland and graduated from Centennial High School. She attended Collins ODS in 6th grade and volunteered throughout in high school at Trout Creek ODS, inspiring her desire to work with children and youth. After receiving a BS in Elementary Education in Utah, she returned as a Field Instructor at Howard ODS in 1998. She then served as the Education Director for the Friends of Tryon Creek State Park and earned an MS in Ecological Teaching and Learning from the Audubon Expedition Institute at Lesley University in Massachusetts. In 2004 she returned to work with the 4th Grade Overnight program, became a Site Supervisor in 2005 and hasn’t left, as playing dress up came naturally to her as a child and she can’t get enough. Missing science, Shauna worked to develop the winter Mazama Mountain Science School program in Government Camp, fitting since she took her first steps at Mt Hood Meadows while her family was out skiing. Now she gets to play and learn in the snow, and she gets to dress up as if she were from the 1800s. It’s the perfect fit.
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Paul “Badger" Susi
Paul is from Portland, and a POC son of immigrants. As a 6th grader at Howard Outdoor School, Paul and his classmate Ronald composed the legendary song, "A Bug Went Up My Nose." Paul returned to ODS in 2016, but has not (yet) composed any more legendary songs. Paul has a deep appreciation for learning and continuing education—Paul coached and performed for PlayWrite, working with at-risk youth in non-traditional education settings (rehabilitation facilities, homeless shelters, etc), while also working as a youth advocate and direct support professional at New Avenues for Youth and Janus Youth Programs. Most recently, Paul has opened and led multiple homeless shelters through Transition Projects, and continues to serve as a Diversity and Equity Training Facilitator. Paul trained as a classical theater actor at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, and has also performed in Vermont, Santa Cruz, Poland, and the San Juan Islands. He currently works with NW Classical Theatre Collaborative, bringing theater to culturally under-served communities, prisons, libraries, and homeless shelters, and is an actor for the Red Door Project, presenting monologues written by survivors of racial profiling, and monologues written by police officers. Find clips and interviews at paulsusi.wordpress.com. Paul's favorite thing about Outdoor School is that it provides a rigorous, supportive educational experience out-of-doors, and offers the chance to encounter and explore new friends, environments, and information outside of our comfort zones, in the best way to help us grow and learn. Outdoor School was critical for Paul in learning to appreciate the environment and embrace the unknown with courage and humility (as he did during his brief stint as a Wildland Firefighter with the Sierra National Forest Hotshots), and he wants to do everything he can to pay those lessons forward.
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Doug “Flank" LloydCollins Outdoor School Site Supervisor
(503) 257-1605 • dlloyd@mesd.k12.or.us Doug grew up on Mt. Tabor and attended Trout Creek Outdoor School as a 6th grader in 1986. He began working in the program as a program leader at Howard in 1997 before departing to work for the MESD at Multnomah Elementary & Middle School. After coaching a number of boys and girls basketball and soccer teams, Doug returned to the program working at Namanu for Outdoor School and then later as the camp director for Camp Fire. Prior to becoming a site supervisor in 2012 Flank worked with children at the Oregon Zoo, Girl Scouts of Northern California and a few other places. If you don’t find Doug outside in the woods, then he’s spending time with family and friends or he's on the golf course.
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Samantha “Satchel" WiseKuratli Outdoor School Site Supervisor
(503) 257-1600 • swise@mesd.k12.or.us Samantha started her Outdoor School journey as a 6th grader at Collins Outdoor School, and continued as a Student Leader there. She volunteered to help students with specific needs while in college, and served as a Program Leader and Animals Field Instructor at the Milk Creek and Arrah Wanna sites. Samantha holds a bachelors degree in Family and Human Services from the University of Oregon, and has 10 years of experience as a social worker with youth in transition (Foster Care, Homeless / Runaway / Juvenile Justice), including supervising a few different residential programs for youth focused on creating safe spaces for social-emotional skill building and mental health. Samantha loves the sense of wonder and inquiry ODS brings out in young people and the intentional community building components that help build relationships that last a lifetime. Samantha enjoys spending time with friends and family, watching the Blazers, drinking coffee, and dreaming of her next opportunity to travel and see a part of the world. "One is not born into this world to do everything, but to do something." —Henry David Thoreau
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Michael “Flea" BraimNamanu Outdoor School Site Supervisor
(503) 257-1604 • mbraim@mesd.k12.or.us Michael was born in Portland and grew up in Gresham (Go Gophs!) with short pit stops in Texas and Germany. Michael was a 6th grader at Howard Outdoor School, and worked as a Program Leader and Field Instructor at the Angelos and Namanu sites. Michael has a degree from the OSU College of Forestry in Natural Resources Education and a Master of Arts, Teaching from Concordia. Before becoming the Site Supervisor at Namanu Outdoor School, Michael taught science at Reynolds Learning Academy. Michael loves that Outdoor School makes science an experience, and not just a subject. Every week, a special community is created that physically exists for just that one week, but the positive impacts can be felt for a lifetime. Michael is an Oregon State Beavers and Portland TrailBlazers fanatic (he even has a dog named Cliff Robinson). "If you ever drop your keys into a river of molten lava, let 'em go, because man, they're gone." —Jack Handey
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Joey “Falco" MataWestwind Outdoor School Site Supervisor
(503) 257-1610 • jmata@mesd.k12.or.us Joey grew up in Portland, attended Angelos Outdoor School in 6th grade, and returned as a student leader in high school. After working several years as a Certified Nursing assistant in acute care programs, Joey returned to Outdoor school as a Program Leader. Before returning as a Site Supervisor for the program, Joey worked for Playworks, and directed a camp for the Girl Scouts of Northern California. Joey has a passion for finding the leadership qualities in folks. He thinks that everyone can be a superhero in their own communities if they try. Yes, he consumes a lot of Marvel content in hopes that one day he will be bitten by a radioactive spider.
"When we help someone, we help everyone." — Aunt May in Spiderman No Way Home. |
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Scott “Weasel" SievertsenScott's experience with the Outdoor School program spans 4 decades, and includes participating as a 6th grade student, serving as a Junior Counselor (Student Leader), on staff as a Senior Counselor (Program Leader), Field Instructor, and Site Supervisor for both the Outdoor School and 4th Grade Overnight programs. Scott has spent sessions at the Howard, Eagle Fern, Angelos / Sandy River, Namanu, Adams / Milk Creek, and Arrah Wanna sites. Scott once told a group of Student Leaders the year that he started as a staff member at Outdoor School, to which a Student Leader responded, "That's the year I was born!" It was then that Scott knew he qualified as one of the "old" people at Outdoor School.
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Lena “Dove" ColemanOutdoor School Secretary
(503) 257-1601 • lcoleman@mesd.k12.or.us Lena attended Howard Outdoor School as a 6th grader in 1972, and she will never forget her JCs, Rain and Puppy. Lena was never a Junior Counselor or Student Leader herself, but she has manufactured two of them, and was incubating the younger one when she began working as the Outdoor School Knower of All Things. Lena wants to adopt every Student Leader and seasonal staff member she meets; Lena loves you more than you will know. Lena's snark filter begins to fail at about 3 pm, so make sure you schedule all serious conversations for early in the day. Lena Coleman is a wizard. Lena Coleman speaks newt. Lena Coleman for President 20_ _.
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Kitty “Kitty" BoryerStudent Services Specialist
(503) 257-1607 • kboryer@mesd.k12.or.us Kitty was born in Portland, and went to Howard Outdoor School as a 6th grader in 1974, and served as a Junior Counselor at Arrah Wanna Outdoor School in 1980 and a Senior Counselor at Trestle Glen Outdoor School from 1986 to 1988. Kitty earned a BS in Psychology from from Portland State University, and she worked for the Forest Grove School District Cascade Education Corp throughout the 1990s. Kitty has been the Student Services Specialist since 1999, and she loves working with our amazing High School Student Leaders.
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Seng “Shark Bait" SaechaoCommunity Engagement Specialist
(503) 257-1600 • ssaechao@mesd.k12.or.us Seng attended ODS as a 6th grader at Namanu Outdoor School and fell in love with learning and teaching in the outdoors. She has worked in the education sector and environmental education ever since. Seng designed and led a youth environmental education program for five years and the program continues to this day. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources and is currently pursuing her Masters in Environmental Education. Seng loves creating and building connections and relationships with people from different walks of life. Originally from Portland, Seng now lives in Wilsonville, with her dog, two cats, one bunny, and two axolotls. Her non-education aspiration is to open her own bakery one day. (We've eaten her cookies; this is an excellent goal!)
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Peggy “Wolf" SedlakOutdoor School Program Nurse
(503) 257-1606 • psedlak@mesd.k12.or.us Peggy grew up in Wisconsin, and served in the Peace Corps in The Gambia, West Africa as a health volunteer from 1997-1999. Peggy started working for Outdoor School as the Arrah Wanna site nurse in 2003. She then moved to the Howard site, and served as a nurse there for 14 sessions before becoming the Outdoor School Program Nurse in 2011. Since 2001, Peggy has traveled to Maine each summer to work at a summer camp. Peggy is featured as a character in a (true story) children's book, One Plastic Bag by Isatou Ceesay and the Recycling Women of the Gambia. Peggy enjoys seeing the growth in children when they get to spend time learning in nature.
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Jeff “Snake" DallasProgram Specialist
(503) 257-1608 • jdallas@mesd.k12.or.us Jeff grew up in the Estacada area near Portland. He attended outdoor school in sixth grade at Camp Kuratli, and later was a Junior Counselor for the MESD Outdoor School program in the late 70s and early 80s. He spent 6 sessions as a Senior Counselor, and 5 sessions as a Resource Specialist with Outdoor School. In addition to Outdoor School, Jeff worked at a variety of summer camps including Camp Tadmor in Lebanon, OR; Camp Westwind in Lincoln City, OR; Pacific Science Center Science Alive camps in Seattle, WA; and the National Wildlife Federation's Eastern Wildlife Camp in Hendersonville, NC. Jeff completed a degree in General Science and a teaching certificate in Elementary Education from Seattle Pacific University. After graduation he accepted a position with Outdoor School as Site Supervisor at the Angelos / Sandy River Outdoor School site from 1996-2014. He now serves as Program Specialist at Outdoor School restocking supplies and materials, overseeing kitchens, and transporting gear for the outdoor school sites. Jeff's hobbies and interests include science, nature, gardening, natural history, pyrotechnics, reptiles and carnivorous plants. He is also founder and co-owner of Sarracenia Northwest carnivorous plant nursery. When not working, Jeff can usually be found looking for a bog or a really good cup of coffee.
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Lafcadio “Lafcadio" AdamsMinion / Overlord
(503) 257-1600 • ladams@mesd.k12.or.us Though born in Oregon, Lafcadio spent her 6th grade and high school years away from the Portland area, and did not get to participate in Outdoor School until adulthood. Lafcadio worked for an environmental education program in Wisconsin before making her way back to the Pacific Northwest to work for the MESD. She spent 28 sessions as an Animals Field Instructor at the Namanu and Howard sites, beginning in 2001. Lafcadio now works in the Outdoor School office primarily spending time aesthetically arranging electrons. Lafcadio wrote a book, Stargazing for Beginners, based on lessons developed for the StarLab.
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