Wallowa Mountain Institute - Staff Naturalists
"For in the end, we will conserve only what we love. We will love only what we understand. We will understand only what we are taught."
~Baba Dioum, Senegalese ecologist & poet
Wallowa Mountain Institute's naturalist staff are inspiring teachers who are dedicated to quality stewardship education. With more than 75 years of combined environmental education experience in the region, WMI's team is a great resource for local natural and cultural history knowledge. Most of our naturalists instruct both our youth and adult programs, and each possesses a range of backgrounds and talents. All naturalists are trained in first aid and CPR.
Holly Akenson, WMI Director. Holly graduated with honors from Eastern Oregon University with a BS in Biology and a BS in Education. She received a Masters in Wildlife Resources from University of Idaho. Holly previously worked for University of Idaho for 13 years as Manager/Scientist of Taylor Wilderness Research Station where she developed and coordinated field programs for university students and conducted carnivore and bighorn sheep research and long term monitoring in the Idaho wilderness. The rest of her bio can be read on Wallowa Resources' Staff Page.
Penny Arentsen, WMI Youth Stewardship Education Program Coordinator: Penny has a B.A. in Geology from Colorado College and an M.S. in Watershed Science from Utah State University and Environmental Education from the Teton Science School. She is the coordinator for WMI's K-12 Youth Stewardship Education Program. The rest of her bio can be read on Wallowa Resources' Staff Page.
Amy Busch, WMI Youth Stewardship Education Specialist: Amy has a BS in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara and her Masters in Environmental Education from Southern Oregon University. She helps develop and facilitate WMI's K-12 outdoor science programming. The rest of her bio can be read on Wallowa Resources' Staff Page.
David Duncan, WMI Staff Naturalist: David has a B.S. in Wildlife Biology from University of Idaho. He taught high school biology for a number of years and is currently a pastor for a local church. He and his wife, Stefanie, have 3 children and, as if that isn't enough work, they are building their house, which is 100% off the grid and self-sufficient. David's love for the outdoors, science, and teaching is contagious.
Janet Hohmann, WMI Staff Naturalist: Janet has worked with WR-WMI as a research biologist and educator since 2000. She's been wildlife biologist and outdoor educator for over 30 years. janet earned a BS in Wildlife Biology from the University of Montana and has worked as a field biologist for the US Forest Service, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the Nature Conservancy. Her main research focus has been on non-game species, including various amphibians, small mammals, neotropical songbirds, forest and prairie grouse, hawks, and owls. Over the past 25 years, she's also worked as a backcountry interpretive guide, a guest speaker for school classes, and a trip leader for Elderhostel International.
Todd Kruger, WMI Staff Naturalist: Todd attended Walla Walla College and studied social work. Following college, he helped develop the recycling program for Walla Walla College. He directed the Big Lake Youth Camp for 4 years, training and managing 12-15 counselors, as well as coordinating approximately 400 students each week. He also directed Discovery High, a residential teen boys home for juvenile delinquents for 2 years. From 1998 to 2001, he was co-director and lead instructor for TRAILS (Teaching Responsibility and Individualism as Life Solutions), a youth leadership backpacking program in Wallowa County. For 15 years, Todd has owned and run Twig, a 2nd hand recycled material craftsman company, which produces functional items from recycled materials. He’s very passionate about recycling and helping make Wallowa County’s environment a better place for all.
Andie Lueders, WMI Staff Naturalist: Andie is a nature fan and seasonal avian biologist living in Enterprise, OR. She has lived in Wallowa County for three years, and is beginning her fourth year studying grassland songbirds of the Zumwalt Prairie with Oregon State University. Grassland songbirds have become her taxon of interest over the years, with research studies taking her to Colorado and North Dakota. She has also studied shorebirds and forest songbirds in California, the Dakotas, Michigan, Minnesota, and Virginia. But in all of these places, she’s always looking at and enjoying other taxa as well. Andie holds an M.S. in Ecology and a B.S. in Biology. In the winter she manages the local ice skating rink in Wallowa County, and has been thrilled to discover the supreme joy of playing ice hockey.
Cheri Miller, WMI Staff Naturalist: Cheri has a BS in Wildlife Science from Oregon State University. She’s spent 9 years working as an Eagle Cap Wilderness Ranger and 11 years as a Wildlife Biologist for the US Forest Service in Enterprise and John Day, OR. She is currently working with conservation easements for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and on raptor surveys on local timber lands. She resides in Wallowa where she and her family raise hay, cattle and hair sheep. Cheri spends her free time running two daughters around and horse back riding with the family.
Lisa Armstrong-Roepke, WMI Staff Naturalist: Lisa has a Bachelors in Art from CSU Fullerton and earned her teaching credential at CSU Chico. She earned her MA at Gonzaga University in Administration, Curriculum and Instruction. She also spent a summer of intensive studying the philosophy of Montessori education. She brings more than 10 years teaching experience, at a variety of grade levels ranging from primary to community college. The college-level courses focused on sustainable living practices and ways for educators to implement solar education into their classrooms. Lisa and her husband own a civil engineering and home design firm, specializing in ‘green’ projects, such as straw-bale construction and passive solar design. Lisa is passionate about educating people, riding her bicycle, and is an active volunteer in the community.
JoAnn Snead, WMI Staff Naturalist: Jo Ann Snead is a naturalist of many colors, so to speak. She earned a B.S. degree in Wildlife Ecology from the University of Florida in 1976. After relocating to the Northwest, she was employed as a lab tech in Forest Physiology, Fish Pathology and as a tutor for Community College Physics classes. On the Oregon coast she worked as a field tech collecting data for a Columbia River estuary research project, served as a naturalist interpreter at the Cannon Beach tide pools and tutored Chemistry students. She has worked as a research assistant at Point Reys Bird observatory and at the Delta Wetland research center in Manitoba, Canada. JoAnn was a resident of Malheur Field Station in SE Oregon before comming to Wallowa County to work with the Forest Service as a Forestry Tech and then Botany field surveyor. In 1999 she began working with children as a literacy programmer, storytelling and playing music. This interest developed into a preschool science program using books and music to teach everything from Physical Science to Physiology. Shortly thereafter she began to develop programming for school age children as well as adults on promoting literacy through science. She presently teaches Science Preschool to Grade 3, runs an out-of-school program and assists in outdoor classes for Wallowa Resources.