People

My name is Mary Traub. I have been an elementary educator for 30+ years. My expereince began teaching 6th grade in a self-contained classrrom in the 1980's 

For ten years, I  taught or was a substitute teacher in all grades K-8.  Twenty-five years ago, I relocated to New Jersey and began teaching PreK and found my passion in early childhood education.  I taught PreK for ten years and then went to back to school to get my Supervisor Certificate.  I have held several director positions in  child care centers and preschools, most recently at the YWCA and Lawrenceville Presbyterian Preschool. I have always had an interest in nature and felt that children spend too much time indoors.  I have many fond memories as a child growing up on seven acres in Upstate New York.  In 2000, I enrolled in Walden University to start earning my Doctor of Education degree with a focus on Earlfy Childhood.  I am currently writing my dissertation on nature preschools. 

I never know how to start these things. My name is Chelsea but Im known at work as Miss Cece or C squared if you're really into math. I work for a non-profit, Muddy Sneakers, that provides public school 5th graders with hands-on nature-based experiences in locally conserved free public NC lands. We teach them their science standards and how to be in and feel safe around nature. 

 It has been an honor to be a "transplant" from New Jersey and to have found a love of the state that runs deeply. Advocating for the Earth is something I've been doing since I was a child, learning to be wild in cranberry bogs and marshlands in South New Jersey. Since moving to NC I have found my place and focus in Environmental Education and I look forward to settling (Finally) into my dream career. 

I am currently a Senior Education Specialist at the National Aquarium, where I engage hundreds of students in education and youth development programming. I am motivated by my passions to connect others to the natural environment and inspire youth conservation leaders. I also serve as project leader for the Youth Exhibit Guide, YouthWorks, and internship programs, which allow teens and college students to explore careers in marine science and develop valuable workplace skills. Previously, I served in AmeriCorps for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, an educator for Pickering Creek Audubon Center, and camp director for Delaware State Parks. In my spare time, I enjoy hiking, camping, and spending time with family and friends.

After being raised on a farm in New Jersey, Katie migrated to Pennsylvania to attend Gettysburg College, from which she received her B.A. in Sociology, with accompanying minors in Education and English. As part of that education, she interned at ThorpeWood and afterward refused to leave. And so, in time, she was adopted as one of the farm animals, a barefoot creature who subsists on mud and sunshine. Given these muddy roots, Katie is passionate about bringing children and adults alike into her world of buttercups and bugs.

On the home front, Katie and her husband, Alec, cohabitate with a variety of cute creatures, including a small pack of dogs (Ruby, Chester, and June) and two little girls (Josie and Ivy).

Katie is a certified forest therapy guide through The Forest Therapy School.