Welcome to our 2016 AmeriCorps cohort!

Lindsey Carver
The Conservation Fund

Lindsey serves as the AmeriCorps community outreach and volunteer coordinator in support of a partnership between The Conservation Fund, Conservation Trust for North Carolina and North Carolina Community Development Initiative. She will focus her efforts on the A.M. Howard Farm pilot project in Cary in partnership with the Piedmont Conservation Council. After graduating from the College of William & Mary, Lindsey served her first AmeriCorps term with Rebuilding Together Alexandria in northern Virginia. Upon moving to the Triangle, Lindsey began studying and practicing sustainable and urban agriculture. She recently graduated with a master’s degree in agricultural education from North Carolina A&T State University and seeks to support the development of sustainable food systems in the Triangle through outreach and education. Outside of AmeriCorps, Lindsey enjoys photography and spending time outside with her husband, Kevin Howell, and their rescue dog Azure.

Noel Myers
UNC Environmental Finance Center

Noel Myers is an AmeriCorps member who joined the Environmental Finance Center (EFC) in 2016. He is developing environmental finance curricula to be taught to local students and community members, aiming to increase interest in finance as a positive catalyst to environmental improvement. Prior to joining AmeriCorps and the EFC, Noel attended Oberlin College where he received a B.A. in economics and environmental studies. He has previous experience working with revolving loan funds, socially responsible investing and local carbon offsetting initiatives while studying at Oberlin.

Nina Quaratella
North Carolina Coastal Federation

Nina is serving AmeriCorps as a coastal community engagement specialist at the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s Wrightsville Beach office. Nina earned her Bachelor of Science in environmental science with a double minor in biology and geospatial technologies from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Originally from Rhode Island, Nina fell in love with coastal North Carolina and is working to create educational programs, organize volunteer events, and conduct habitat restoration for the community to help protect the state’s beaches. Prior to serving with AmeriCorps, Nina was an intern at Carolina Beach State Park and Cape Fear River Watch and later worked seasonal environmental education jobs both down south and in the northeast. Nina enjoys playing volleyball, geocaching, hiking and traveling.

Barbara Goldentyer
Triangle Land Conservancy

Barbara Goldentyer is hosted with the Triangle Land Conservancy coordinating and running nature education programs. From Cary, N.C., Barbara previously worked at Hemlock Bluffs Nature Preserve where she designed and ran nature education classes and summer camps. Barbara completed her bachelor’s degree at Warren Wilson College in Asheville, North Carolina. In 2015, she also earned her master’s degree in sociology from N.C. State University with a concentration in social inequalities. She enjoys hiking, traveling and finding animals outside.

Ashley Toscano
Alliance Medical Ministry

Originally from northern Virginia and the panhandle of West Virginia, Ashley moved to North Carolina in 2014. She received a B.A. in international studies and Spanish from West Virginia University and a master’s in Hispanic studies at Virginia Tech. Although fascinated by different languages and cultures, Ashley has always had a passion for animal rights advocacy, health and the environment. Through courses and involvement with school organizations and volunteer opportunities, she realized that she wanted to serve in a position which would foster these passions, all while enabling her to gain skills within those fields. Having served as a member in AmeriCorps’ Energy Express program, she knew she’d find great opportunities through CTNC. She is now working at Alliance Medical Ministry in Raleigh where she oversees their community garden and various wellness programs. This position helps to improve the community’s health by providing exposure to agriculture in an urban setting where there is limited access to fresh, local and organic produce. After completing her term of service she hopes to continue helping others to find a passion for growing the food they eat while nourishing their bodies and the environment with love and wellness.

Chris Sajdak
Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association

Chris Sajdak is ECWA’s new AmeriCorps service member. He is a Michigan native and is coming to Durham by way of Indiana. He has a B.A. in geography – GIS from Indiana University and assisted in research in both food sustainability and dendroclimatology. While in school, Chris worked as a trip leader both at his university and at a summer camp, leading children and adults on extended backpacking, canoeing and rock-climbing trips around the country. During his service, Chris will be providing environmental education to the areas within the Ellerbe Creek watershed, in addition to working with event planning, outreach and as general support for ECWA.

Erica Connery
North Carolina Coastal Federation

Erica is serving as a coastal community engagement specialist at the North Carolina Coastal Federation’s Manteo office. Growing up in Hillsborough, North Carolina, she has always been drawn to the coast, making frequent trips to the beach with family and friends whenever possible. Since completing her degree in environmental science from N.C. State in 2012, she has lived in several places along the Carolina coast pursuing the field of environmental education. In 2016, Erica became an AmeriCorps member at the Coastal Federation. She is excited to explore the northeast coast of North Carolina and work with communities in the area, hoping to inspire students to appreciate and enjoy the outdoors as much as she did as a child. When she’s not teaching others about coastal environments, she loves hanging out with her dog and paddle boarding around the marsh.

Elaine Nichols
Tar River Land Conservancy

Elaine Nichols is a CTNC AmeriCorps member serving as a land management associate with Tar River Land Conservancy.  She will be working to prepare TRLC’s Ledge Creek Forest Conservation Area for public access. She recently returned to North Carolina after serving her first AmeriCorps term as an assistant crew leader for a conservation corps based out of Denver, Colorado. Before that, she earned her B.S. in environmental studies from University at Buffalo with a dual concentration in policy education and resource management. Elaine has always considered North Carolina home and she is excited to be back in the area to share her excitement for conservation and community service.

Shalanda Grier
Piedmont Regional Triad Council

Shalanda is serving with the Piedmont Regional Triad Council as the outreach & Stormwater SMART coordinator. She will serve 19 municipalities, providing educational programs, presentations and content pertaining to stormwater and water quality. She recently graduated from Hampton University, earning a B.S. in biology and a minor in leadership studies. As a North Carolina native, Shalanda has always been involved in community service. She sees her service as an AmeriCorps member as another avenue to expand her reach to meet community needs. Shalanda enjoys reading, hiking, exercising and watching HGTV in her free time.

Laura Speer
North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences

Laura serves at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences as the environmental accessibility & inclusion AmeriCorps member. She coordinates, develops and teaches programs for special populations within the community. She hopes to inspire everyone to be a leader of environmental change by giving them an appreciation for nature and showing that scientific knowledge is accessible to all. In her spare time, Laura enjoys books, long hikes and backpacking trips, concerts and hanging out with snakes.

Larissa Lopez
Balsam Mountain Trust

Larissa is the CTNC AmeriCorps member at Balsam Mountain Trust serving as educational outreach coordinator. She is working to provide accessible environmental education to school children and the public throughout Jackson and Haywood counties in Western North Carolina. Through the Adopt-a-School program, Larissa delivers live-animal programming to 4^th and 5^th graders that supplements their biological and environmental sciences curriculum. She is also expanding on pollinator programs, with an emphasis on monarchs, for 1^st and 2nd-grade students to engage them in an outdoor classroom environment and citizen science. Larissa will also be translating programs into Spanish for Latino school children and families who would otherwise not have access to the material. Larissa holds a B.S. in natural resources with a concentration in ecosystem assessment and a minor in forest management from North Carolina State University in Raleigh, North Carolina. She enjoys hiking, reading, traveling, yoga and live music.

Melissa Keeney
Durham Public Schools Hub Farm

Melissa left her hometown in Maryland to study environmental technology & management at N.C. State University in 2009 and has been working towards making communities around the Triangle more sustainable ever since. Her true passion lies with the local food movement and she’s ecstatic to have the opportunity to serve with student groups at the Durham Hub Farm. In addition to teaching students about local food production and environmental stewardship, she has been conducting community outreach to recruit volunteers and develop partnerships, scheduling student and volunteer groups, coordinating monthly workdays, creating monthly newsletters, and assisting in developing a core curriculum for the farm. Melissa is an artist and musician on the side and is excited to be showcasing her work around Durham this year!

Erin Victor
Keep Durham Beautiful

A Michigan native, Erin Victor is serving as the environmental outreach and volunteer coordinator at Keep Durham Beautiful. Erin recently completed her M.S. in conservation ecology at the School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE) at the University of Michigan and has a B.A. in health sciences with a concentration in environmental sciences from Kalamazoo College. Her thesis research looked at the influence of livestock grazing on vertebrate diversity in Naxos, Greece. Prior to graduate school, Erin worked on a human-elephant conflict project in Ruaha National Park in Tanzania with Wildlife Connections. Erin is passionate about environmental conservation and environmental education.

Paige Engelbrektsson
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust

Paige is serving as an environmental education and stewardship AmeriCorps member with Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust. She is a Virginia native and graduated in 2012 with a B.S. in biology from the College of William and Mary. Since then she has put her degree to good use ranging across the country to work in environmental education. In addition to assisting with HCLT’s Kids in Nature programs, she will be building trails and creating a new ambassador program to reach visitors. She spends any free time making music and crafts, riding horses and exploring wild spaces.

Rachel Tove-White
Durham Public Schools

Rachel serves as one of two AmeriCorps members for the Durham Public School’s energy and sustainability coordinator. Her efforts will be focused on implementing recycling into Durham’s 30 elementary schools along with other energy and sustainability projects. Prior to this service term, Rachel attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she graduated with a double major in environmental studies and communication studies and a minor in city and regional planning. During her time at UNC, Rachel studied coastal energy at the Outer Banks of North Carolina and alternative energy strategies and urban designs in Germany, Sweden, and Denmark. She created documentaries at Pilot Mountain as well as in Germany and Spain. Upon graduation, Rachel served her first AmeriCorps year with City Year in Miami where she worked in a middle school connecting students with resources to help them succeed. She is now excited to be back in North Carolina and serving another AmeriCorps term.

Jessica Bast
Durham Public Schools

Jessica Bast is a CTNC AmeriCorps member serving as an energy and sustainability specialist in Durham Public Schools. She is working to enhance the recycling program throughout the school system and to educate students, their parents and teachers easy and innovate methods to save energy. Jessica has had a passion for addressing environmental issues since high school, and she recently graduated from Elon University with a B.A. in environmental studies. She looks forward to gaining experience in the nonprofit sector and to educate those throughout the school system to make a positive environmental impact and live more sustainably.

Monica Ospina
Keep Durham Beautiful

Monica is serving as the environmental outreach and volunteer coordinator at Keep Durham Beautiful. She was born in Colombia and raised in Miami, F.L. Monica earned a B.S. in environmental studies and a B.S. in biology with a minor in chemistry from Florida International University. Monica assisted Florida International University’s School of Environment, Arts and Society in educating the public on environmental issues. She is eager to inspire North Carolina residents to become passionate about their environment. Monica loves to swim, hike, dance, read and eat chocolate.

Victoria “Tori” Duval
Western North Carolina Nature Center

Tori graduated from the University of North Carolina at Asheville with a degree in environmental studies. During her final semester, she served as an intern for the WNC Nature Center in the animal department, where she learned to care for some of the amazing creatures that western North Carolina has to offer. After graduation, she accepted an internship at the Cradle of Forestry in Pisgah National Forest. It was there that she discovered her passion for environmental education, spending 8 months teaching children about the importance of the natural world and the history of Pisgah National Forest. Because of the opportunity that AmeriCorps has given to her, she is now able to combine her interests in education and animals by serving a 6-month internship at the WNC Nature Center, helping to design and participate in off-site education programming.

Welcome to our 2015 AmeriCorps Cohort.

We’re lucky to have a great group of AmeriCorps members working throughout the state to connect more people to the outdoors and environmental education. Our AmeriCorps is thriving because these folks are so dedicated to public service. Their ten-month term of service  continues until late January, and then a new team will begin February 1. Here’s a quick sketch on each of our talented AmeriCorps members.

Megan Berthiaume –Community Garden and Wellness Program Coordinator

Alliance Medical Ministry

Born and raised in Maine, Megan moved to North Carolina in 2014. After graduating from the University of Maine with a Degree in Nutrition she served one year as an AmeriCorps VISTA at a Community Farm in Massachusetts. She is now working at a non-profit medical clinic in Raleigh where she oversees a community garden and the clinic’s wellness programs. This position helps to improve the community’s health by providing exposure to agriculture in an urban setting where there is limited access to fresh, local, and organic produce. After completing her term of service she hopes to work with community or corporate wellness programs in order to improve the health of individuals in the community.

Cynelsa Broderick– Education and Outreach Coordinator

NC State University Sustainability Office

Cynelsa is serving in NC State’s Sustainability Office, where her role involves bridging sustainability and diversity initiatives on campus. She’s excited to be providing environmental education and connecting resources to underserved populations. A graduate of the University of Delaware with a degree in Environmental Engineering and a passion for the arts, she is interested in creatively working with communities and showing the importance of not only taking care of one another, but of our environment as well.

Kalysha Clark –Stormwater Smart Outreach Coordinator

Piedmont Triad Regional Council

Kaly Clark grew up in Lexington, NC, the Barbecue Capital of the World. She attended North Carolina State University where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and a minor in Nonprofit Studies. She is the Stormwater SMART Outreach Coordinator at Piedmont Triad Regional Council. Following the culmination of her AmeriCorps term, Kaly will be returning to NC State where she will pursue her Masters of Science in Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology. In her free time, she volunteers with her high school marching band and is learning German. In the future, she hopes to focus on wildlife conservation research and continue to educate people about coexisting with the natural world.

Erin Crouse – Community Partnership AmeriCorps Member

The Conservation Fund

Erin Crouse serves as the Community Partnership AmeriCorps member at The Conservation Fund, as part of a collaboration between The Conservation Fund, Conservation Trust for NC, and the NC Community Development Initiative to develop pilot projects around shared conservation and community economic development goals. Erin was born and raised in Western North Carolina, and even though growing up in the Blue Ridge Mountains instilled an appreciation in her for the natural world, she did not consider conservation as a career path until she was an undergraduate student at UNC-Chapel Hill, and spent her summers working as a camp counselor. She is currently finishing up a Master’s degree in Natural Resources at NC State University, and has strong research interest in citizen engagement in land-use planning processes. Outside of school and AmeriCorps service, she serves as chair of the Chapel Hill Parks, Greenways, and Recreation Commission.

Danielle Frank – AmeriCorps Member

Marine Quest (at UNC Wilmington)

Danielle grew up in the mountains of Western North Carolina playing in streams and rivers.  Yearly family vacations to different coasts led to her curiosity about the ocean and all of the living creatures it contains. Danielle has two degrees from UNCW – a Bachelor of Science in Marine Biology and a Master of Science in Environmental Studies, concentrating in Marine and Coastal Education as well as Coastal Management. She has years of experience teaching students of all ages both inside and outside of the classroom. After spending one summer with MarineQuest, she decided to serve as an AmeriCorps Member as MarineQuest’s Program Coordinator. Danielle has helped enrich the underserved communities of southeastern North Carolina during her service term. In her free time, Danielle can be found kayaking, enjoying the outdoors, reading, or spending quality time with friends and family.

Katia Griffin-Jakymec– Education and Outreach Assistant

Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership

Katia Griffin-Jakymec serves as Education & Outreach Assistant for the Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Partnership. She is a recent graduate of Duke University, where she studied International Comparative Studies and Documentary Studies, with experience in video production, audio documentary and writing. She is eager to share the wonders and importance of the Albemarle-Pamlico estuarine system with new and underserved communities throughout the watershed and the public at large.

Amanda Miller – Community Engagement Specialist

NC Coastal Federation

In 2013, Amanda obtained a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Zoology with Youth Ministry and Chemistry minors from Olivet Nazarene University. Before joining AmeriCorps she interned with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as a Red wolf caretaker. She has found a home on the Outer Banks volunteering with the Marine Mammal Stranding Network, NEST, and playing guitar in the worship band at Wanchese Assembly of God. Her current goal is to educate others on conservation to make life-changing events through one person at a time. She believes that her service with the N.C. Coastal Federation through AmeriCorps will help her reach many people to bring life-changing benefits for our great coast.

Zachary Lee – Community Engagement Specialist

NC Coastal Federation

Zach is originally from Spotsylvania, Virginia and grew up vacationing throughout coastal North Carolina. In 2014 he moved to Carolina Beach, and in 2015 he became a member of AmeriCorps. His service is a 10-month commitment hosted by the N.C. Coastal Federation’s southeast office in Wrightsville Beach where he is designing experiential education programs to engage the local community. He is an avid surfer, traveler, and lifelong learner.

Melissa Keeney – Outreach and Education Coordinator

Durham Public Schools Hub Farm

Melissa left her hometown in Maryland to study Environmental Technology & Management at NC State University in 2009 and has been working towards making communities around the Triangle more sustainable ever since. Her true passion lies with the local food movement and she’s ecstatic to have the opportunity to serve with student groups at the Durham Hub Farm. In addition to teaching students about local food production and environmental stewardship, she has been conducting community outreach to recruit volunteers and develop partnerships, scheduling student and volunteer groups, coordinating monthly workdays, creating monthly newsletters, and assisting in developing a core curriculum for the farm. Melissa is an artist and musician on the side and is excited to be showcasing her work around Durham this year!

Sam Stokes – Fire Safety Program Coordinator

Wake County Soil & Water Conservation District               

Originally from Birmingham AL, Sam is working with the Wake County Soil and Water Conservation District to start a dry hydrant installation program, increasing fire safety and reducing insurance premiums for farmers. Sam most recently conducted prescribed burns and Longleaf Pine restoration with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, and coordinated a film fellowship program with the Southern Environmental Law Center. Sam graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with a BA in Mathematics and Economics.

Alicia Vasto  – Stewardship and Outreach Coordinator

LandTrust for Central North Carolina

During her service, Alicia is focusing on community outreach by developing the “Nature Inspires” Art Contest in Salisbury, and leading a Summer Paddle Series on various streams in The LandTrust’s 10-county region. She is also heading a park project in Star. Alicia returns to The LandTrust after previously interning with the organization during the summer of 2012 and completing her master’s project for The LandTrust, which was a management plan for its largest simple fee-owned property. Alicia received a B.S in Environmental Science from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Environmental Management degree from Duke University. She is an avid explorer of America’s national parks and forests, and in her spare time enjoys reading and yoga.

Erin Victor – Environmental Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator

Keep Durham Beautiful

A Michigan native, Erin Victor is serving as the Environmental Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator at Keep Durham Beautiful. Erin recently completed her M.S. in Conservation Ecology at the School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE) at the University of Michigan and has a B.A. in Health Sciences with a concentration in Environmental Sciences from Kalamazoo College. Her thesis research looked at the influence of livestock grazing on vertebrate diversity in Naxos, Greece. Prior to graduate school, Erin worked on a human-elephant conflict project in Ruaha National Park in Tanzania with Wildlife Connections. Erin is passionate about environmental conservation and environmental education.

Rebecca Walling – Education Outreach Coordinator

Balsam Mountain Trust

Becka Walling is the Education Outreach Coordinator for Balsam Mountain Trust. Here role is to expand education outreach in the community. She is working with the Adopt-A-School program in Jackson and Haywood County elementary classrooms, in addition to starting a new outreach program focused on monarch butterfly conservation and citizen science. Becka is an experienced field biologist, environmental educator, and outdoorswoman. She is passionate about working with all living things (but especially the maligned ones: invertebrates and fungi), and sharing her love of the outdoors with others. Becka holds a B.A. in Biology from Carleton College in Minnesota and an M.S. in Forest Ecology from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

Seth Williams- Education and Outreach Coordinator

Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association

Seth Williams came all the way from Washington state to join the Ellerbe Creek Watershed Association. Seth is helping ECWA pursue its goal of further involving the community in its programs and activities as well as helping develop their Environmental Education program. Seth recently finished a three-year Peace Corps service in the small West African nation of The Gambia. During his service Seth supported small impoverished communities through environmental education, technical support, and other forms of community outreach.