Laura grew up in the Silicon Valley. She attended UC Davis and received a B.S. in Wildlife Biology in 2004. With a passion for travel, Laura worked as a field biologist in the U.S. and overseas for more than five years. She comes to Rancho El Chorro to learn, teach, and share her love for nature with children and adults alike. She shares her home with a bearded dragon, a crested gecko, and a big, hairy human.

Chrissy is a Santa Barbara native and recently graduated from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo with a B.S. in Kinesiology. She aspires to utilize aquatic therapy to rehabilitate stroke and traumatic brain injury patients. She enjoys pushing herself to new limits as an avid surfer, triathlete and rock climber. During college, she worked as a writer and head of advertising for The Writing Horse, co-owner of Mustang Alley Pizzeria, a High Ropes Course Facilitator, and Lifeguard and Junior Lifeguard Instructor. Her favorite foods are sweet potatoes and chocolate covered espresso beans. Her words to live by: Laugher is to life what shock absorbers are to vehicles. It doesn’t take the bump out of the road but it sure makes the road a lot smoother.

Dana graduated from the University of Washington with a B.S. in Conservation. She completed a one year Internship at Rancho El Chorro and then became a Naturalist. Dana enjoys backpacking and traveling to different ecosystems to discover more about the natural world. She previously worked at Seattle’s EarthCorps Conservation Corps, Dinosaur National Monument, and Wrangell St. Elias National Park. In summer 2009, Dana hiked the 220 mile John Muir Trail in the Sierra Nevada. Dana loves to learn about flora and fauna and teach children to be passionate about the environment.

Jodi grew up on the Central Coast and attended Rancho El Chorro as a 6th grade student and as a high school cabin leader. Upon graduating from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, with a B.S. in Outdoor Recreation, she became a Naturalist at Rancho El Chorro. Jodi is married with two nature loving kids and is a five year cancer survivor. One of her goals is to let nature bring about self-awareness and ecological leadership in students.

Jim has been a Naturalist at Rancho El Chorro for 18 years. He completed a B.S. in Astronomy with a minor in Mathematics. He also completed two years of graduate school in Astronomy & Astrophysics and possesses four teaching credentials from four different states including California. He loves sharing his knowledge of the night sky with students. His favorite activity is teaching in the Bubble (our inflatable Starlab Planetarium). He spends his free time photographing nature and wildlife and has won many awards including Best of Show at the Mid-State Fair. He has published over 60 photos and is active in the local photography club. His primary goal at Rancho El Chorro is to make kids excited about learning.

Clara received her B.S. in Biological Sciences at UC Irvine. At Cal Poly, SLO, she received a M.S. in Biology, a B.S. in Applied Art & Design Photography, and her multiple subject credential. Clara enjoys hiking, backpacking, and birdwatching. She raises exotic finches as a hobby and is always willing to help injured birds and animals. The highlight of Clara’s day is to share the wonder, complexity, and beauty of the natural world with her students.

Growing up in Alaska, Karen has always loved being outdoors in nature. She attended Humboldt State University in Northern California to learn more about wildlife biology. Karen then served two years in Mongolia with the U.S. Peace Corps before coming to Rancho El Chorro. She has enjoyed working here for nine years. During summer breaks, Karen likes to travel to new places and study history, culture and wildlife.

Tom’s love of the outdoors was fostered early on through the Boy Scouts of America. After reaching the rank of Eagle Scout, Tom realized how important nature was to his everyday life. This led him to complete a B.A in Environmental Studies at UCSB. Tom’s experience working with students began in college through their campus Ropes Course. He later became the lead instructor and helped to create a 5th grade team building course for local schools. He spent five years working for Island Packers and the Channel Islands National Park as a Naturalist and an Underwater Camera operator. This experience led Tom to pursue and complete a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential. Tom joined the Rancho El Chorro Staff in 2000 and continues to share the importance of science and nature to students of all ages.

Amie considers herself very lucky to be the Administrative Assistant at Rancho El Chorro for 12 years. She really has the best of both worlds. She enjoys the paperwork portion of her job and also sticks her head out of the office door to enjoy the children, animals, and day-to-day magic of all that happens at Rancho El Chorro each day. She has been known to hold Rojo, the Red-tailed hawk, hike a group of students to the pond, and help carry the python to receive his bath. She has been married to her favorite guy for 27 years and has two wonderful “big” kids. The staff at Rancho El Chorro is wonderful to work with and she loves the children that attend the program They help make her job very rewarding.

Celeste has been an Administrator with SLOCOE for over 20 years. In addition to serving as the Director of the Rancho El Chorro Outdoor School, she is also the Statewide Director of the California Regional Environmental Education Community (CREEC) Network. Since Celeste is active in EE efforts statewide and nationally, she brings a wealth of knowledge and experience about outdoor and environmental education to the Rancho El Chorro program. She received her B.S. from UCLA and M.A. from San Francisco State University. At Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, she completed her credential coursework and received a M.A. in Educational Administration. Married with two college-aged children, Celeste enjoys nature, family time, traveling, and reading.