Staff

Lisa Bardwell, President/CEO, 303-433-2956

Formerly executive director and one of the founders of FrontRange Earth Force, Lisa is now President/CEO of Earth Force. Lisa has a PhD from the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources. Prior to joining Earth Force to help found the Denver office, Lisa taught at the University of Michigan, and in Utah and Colorado. She has always been committed to finding ways to better engage students in learning and their communities. Her expertise in environmental education, community development, service-learning, environmental problem-solving, and how our environment influences people's well-being and ability to function made Earth Force a natural fit. She became a Board member of Earth Force in 2005, and CEO in 2007.

Catherine Brenner, AmeriCorps*VISTA, Washington, DC,  202-695-3332

Catherine graduated from the University of Delaware with a bachelor’s degree in Human Services. She has always enjoyed working with students and is excited to share her love for the outdoors with a younger generation.  After her year of service she hopes to continue in the non-profit industry continuing to work with elementary and middle school students.

Dan Brown, AmeriCorps*VISTA, Philadelphia, 301-730-0280

Dan graduated from the Pennsylvania State University with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies. His previous experience has been in environmental education for a Parks and Recreation nature center in Western Maryland. After his year of service he hopes to continue in the non-profit or environmental remediation industry.

Susi Brunkhardt, Vice President of Operations, 303-439-7659

Susi has over 30 years of experience in human resources and financial management, with the last 15 years in the non-profit sector. She began working in the financial field at 17 with Home Savings of America where she remained for 18 years. She worked in various branch offices with her last position as Vice President, Branch Manager in Los Gatos, California. After moving to Colorado she discovered her passion in utilizing her management, financial, and human relations skills to serve non-profit organizations in the Community Service sector. Prior to coming to Earth Force she worked for Habitat for Humanity and The National Audubon Society.

Tatiana Christian, AmeriCorps*VISTA, Philadelphia, 718-717-4857

Tatiana graduated from Hollins University with her Bachelor's in French, with a Film minor. Her previous experience is varied, ranging from being a court recorder in NYC, to working as a Canvasser in Seattle. Although she has no work history in environmental education or non-profit work, she's thankful for the opportunity to work with Earth Force.  The experience is teaching her a lot, and after her year of service, Tatiana hopes to continue doing work in environmental education in the non-profit sector. 

Donna Ferguson, Field Support Specialist, 303-433-0016

Donna joined Earth Force and the Operations team in the fall of 2010, with over 30 years of experience in business, finance and human resources. She worked for several years with various financial institutions in a variety of positions including supervising a staff of 10 people. After moving to Grants Pass, Oregon to raise her children, she owned and operated her own small business.

Jennifer Hanson, Grants Manager, 303-433-0016

Jennifer Hanson works part-time from Minneapolis and spends the rest of her time learning with her two young boys, growing as a community herbalist, and permaculturing her yard. Jennifer's professional background includes stints as Director of Operations for a non-profit strategic planning practice and as Executive Assistant at a progressive church in New York City.

Alyssa Hawkins, Vice President of Programs, 612-823-0396

Alyssa directs Earth Force's nationwide programming. In this role, she leads a dynamic team of staff who develop and maintain innovative partnerships focused on embedding environmental service learning into communities. These partnerships include corporations, school districts, not-for-profit organizations and institutions of higher education. Alyssa spent several years directing the GREEN (Global Rivers Environmental Education Network) Program for Earth Force, working with pre-service teacher education programs and facilitating corporate-community partnerships for Earth Force. Alyssa graduated from the University of Minnesota's College of Natural Resources with a Bachelor of Science degree in Water Resources. She spends her free time training for marathons and triathlons, trying to cook Indian food, and pretending to have a green thumb.

Liz Henry, Director of Community Partnerships, 303-819-3478

After graduating from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington with a BA in Spanish, Liz moved to Colorado and received her teaching certification from the University of Denver. She then spent three years teaching 3rd and 5th grade English Language Learners in Northwest Denver. Liz earned a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction, with a focus on Urban/Multicultural Education, from the University of Denver. Having implemented the Earth Force process with her students, Liz supported teachers bringing service learning into the classroom in Denver. She is now working nationally, reaching out to communities across the country interested in using Earth Force.

Hayley Ivins, Development Manager, 480-442-9571

Hayley coordinates innovative development, fundraising, and communication efforts across Earth Force. She also manages Earth Force's social media engagement strategy. Prior to joining the Earth Force team, Hayley worked in the civic education and philanthropy sector, coordinating statewide law-related education programs and community outreach efforts in Arizona. She has a passion for empowering kids and adults to become positively engaged in their community and holds a B.S. in Biology & Society and a M.S. in Bioethics, Policy & Law from Arizona State University.

Cara Lynch, Senior Program Manager, 505-977-3025

Cara works alongside community partners to develop collaborative approaches of youth civic engagement. She is a former high school English teacher who has experience working and living in Central America, South Africa, and the United States. She received her M.Ed. in 2003 and is passionate about structuring opportunities for our youth to work alongside field specialists and civic leaders in order to strengthen their learning experience and our communities. Cara enjoys traveling, hiking, biking, soccer, and poetry!

Ashley Miller Helmholdt, Program Manager, 303-433-0016

Tash is a Colorado native with a background in science education. She taught secondary science for six years before joining our staff. Tash completed her BS in Biology at Spellman College in Atlanta, Ga. Her interests, inquisitive nature and career choices have afforded her the opportunity to further her education in the areas of both education and anthropology at the University of Colorado at Denver.

Kurt Moser, Program Manager, 703-684-0178

Kurt received his M.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from George Mason University and his B.A. in History (Native American Studies emphasis) from Dartmouth College. While his graduate work and peer-reviewed publications centered on mitigation wetlands and ecosystem modeling, his activities also included water quality monitoring and fish surveys in Potomac River tributaries, and he also was high school summer program instructor for a course in urban water issues. Prior to graduate study, Kurt was an information technology professional and consultant. A 19-year Alexandria resident, Kurt currently serves on the city's Environmental Policy Commission.

Kristen Mueller, Communications Associate/Program Manager, 314-640-4413

Kristen graduated from the University of Delaware with her a bachelor's degree in Communications and a minor in Political Science. Her previous experience is in marketing and communications for a public relations firm and a small business. After working for several years, she decided to switch gears and do a year of service with Americorps VISTA. Kristen was placed with Earth Force, supporting programmatic work in the Philadelphia area and doing communications for the organization. She has since been hired on full time and is a Communications Associate/Program Manager.

Stacey Rafalowski, Senior Program Manager, 843-795-0555

After earning her bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of South Carolina Upstate, Stacey left her hometown of Spartanburg, SC to pursue her MS in Marine Biology at the College of Charleston. Stacey was awarded a National Science Foundation GK-12 teaching fellowship, which allowed her to become involved with Charleston county public schools. As a teaching fellow, she worked with students and educators to develop projects and lessons that involved local environmental issues. She has been active in the Charleston community through the graduate student association at the Grice Marine Laboratory and through volunteer work with schools in low-income areas. With Earth Force, Stacey combines her strong science background and teaching experience to engage partners and educators in supporting young people's journey to become lifelong, active stewards of the environment.

Donny Roush, Program Manager, 303-433-0016

Donny brings over 19 years of experience to Earth Force including 6 years of as an executive director, 3 years as a development director, and 10 years of program management. He has worked for Expeditionary Learning Schools, Odyssey School, Denver Audubon, Idaho Museum of Natural History, and Idaho National Laboratory. In 2001, he became the first-ever executive director of the Idaho Environmental Education Association, where he built a network of 20 schools demonstrating environment-based education in the age of No Child Left Behind. That accomplishment was recognized in 2006 when the organization was Affiliate of the Year within the North American Association for Environmental Education. Donny holds an MS in human dimensions of natural resources from Ohio State and a magazine journalism BS from Bowling Green. In 2009, he became a Certified Master Environmental Educator. He is co-author of Environmental Communication: Skills and Principles for Natural Resource Scientists, Managers and Engineers (2010).

Jan Sneddon, Director of Community Partnerships, 317-257-1740

Jan has a Masters of Science in Environmental Science from Indiana University's School of Public and Environmental Affairs and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Appalachian State University in North Carolina. Before joining Earth Force in 2005, she was the Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator for Hoosier Riverwatch, Indiana's statewide program for volunteer stream monitoring and watershed education, where she taught water quality workshops and supported volunteer water monitoring efforts for over 3 years. Her teaching experience has ranged from teaching secondary science in Ghana, West Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer to environmental education on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Jan supports Earth Force partnership efforts in communities funded through General Motors doing our GREEN program.

Emily Vercoe, Director of Community Partnerships, Next Steps, 303-921-8141

Emily Vercoe comes from a diverse and varied background, which resembles a river with many tributaries rather than a linear flow. She has been an elementary and middle school educator, field instructor, policy analyst, campaign manager, as well as a leader in the nonprofit sector. Emily holds a bachelor’s of arts in fine arts and education and a masters’ degree in Nonprofit Management. This background allows her to blend her teacher and magician roles to lead Next Steps and other education programs in a clear and efficient manner. While not at work, Emily can be found in the backcountry, on a bike, or playing with friends, family and the dog.