I have been Head of Education at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, NY since 1985. I received my Bachelors of Arts degree in Environmental Studies from Antioch College in 1976, and a doctorate in Plant Ecology from Cornell University in 1986. My ecological research delves into the ways that plants interact with each other and the physical environment, with an emphasis on physiological ecology and hydrology. My primary work at the Cary Institute has been in advancing the field of ecology education. I develop curricula for elementary, middle and high school classrooms, lead professional development programs for teachers in sites across the nation, and carry out research into how students and adults learn ecology. I am the Education Team Leader for the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, a Long Term Ecological Research (LTER)project studying and teaching about Baltimore as an ecosystem, and a co-PI of the Pathways to Enviromental Science Literacy MSP Project taking place at 4 LTER sites across the country. I have directed the Institute’s REU program in independent research for undergraduate students for the past 25 years, and serve on the Biology REU Sites Leadership Council. I am PI for two exploratory DRK-12 projects: Ecosystems and Evidence (with Rebecca Jordan at Rutgers and Jackie DeLisi at EDC) and Data Explorations in Ecology Project (with David Strayer and Stuart Findlay from Cary Institute). I also am co-PI for the BioComplexity and a Changeable Planet DRK-12 project with Gilly Puttick and Brian Drayton from TERC. I was the first Vice President for Education and Human Resources of the Ecological Society of America (ESA, 1995-2000) and received the Eugene P. Odum Award for Excellence in Ecology Education from ESA in 2003.