Jenni Malone - Director jmalone @

Jennifer Gillespie-Malone, Director, has worked with the Nature Discovery Center since 1990 and has been a full-time staff member since June 1994. She developed the Nature Detectives program for pre-schoolers and the Nature at Your Doorstep program for school groups. She is co-author of Nature at Your Doorstep: Real Word Investigations for Primary Students. Jennifer has a Bachelor of Arts degree in History, with an emphasis in Asian Studies from the University of Rochester, New York. She has a Master of Arts degree in Dance Ethnology from UCLA. She is a certified facilitator for several nationally recognized environmental education curricula. Prior to coming to the Nature Discovery Center she volunteered at the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center for eight years. She designed and coordinated a native plant trail that was planted by the students of Rummel Creek Elementary School in Houston, Texas. In October 2002 Jenni was awarded the Environmental Education Award from the Citizens' Environmental Coalition of Houston.

Mary Ann Beauchemin - Senior Naturalist mbeauch @

Mary Ann is the Senior Naturalist, Teacher Workshop Coordinator and currently teaches most of the Nature Detective and Sneak A Peak classes at the Nature Discovery Center. She has worked here at the NDC since 1988. She enjoys bird watching, gardening for birds & butterflies and learning something new every day! Mary Ann has a MS degree in Environmental Education from Southern Oregon University and worked as a naturalist at the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center, the Austin Nature Center, the Sunriver Nature Center (Oregon) and the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.

Eric Duran - Staff Naturalist eduran @

Eric arrives from a far away land to take on the duties of Staff Naturalist. These duties shall include; setup and care of the Discovery Rooms, and teaching and creating a variety of educational/interpretive programs and literature. Eric has performed the role of environmental educator and naturalist at Armand Bayou Nature Center, the Houston Zoo, Moody Gardens, Patuxent Research Refuge in Maryland, Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in southern Florida, and Sacha Lodge on the Napo River in Ecuador. He has fieldwork experience with Loggerhead Sea Turtles, Amphibian Call Counts, Sharks, Piping Plover, American Woodcock, Whip-poor-will, a variety of bird nest box surveys, and King Eider on the Arctic Tundra of Alaska. His avocational activities include herpetology, bird watching, comedy writing for public radio, art stuff, and saving the world from destruction, one heart at a time.

Anne Eisner - Outreach Coordinator aeisner @

Anne Eisner is a people person. Having been the Office Manager, beginning in 1993, for eight years and improving her science knowledge she was given the responsibility of outreaches. In the summer the outreach coordinator goes to many libraries and schools with a variety of programs to attract new visitors. She now has a fan club of many pre-k and elementary children who have seen her perform "Join the Insect Club" or "Back to the Bone". (Just ask her two kids how many times she has been recognized in a store or restaurant.) She has also become the Education Coordinator who arranges the field trips for schools. Anne, a University of Houston graduate, a former Commercial Property Manager, a wife and Mom, enjoys her new career of watching a child's eyes light up while making a new discovery about science and nature!

Joanne Carlson Go - Business Manager/Naturalist jgo @

The position of Business Manager/Naturalist at the Nature Discovery Center intrigued Joanne because it is a mixture of many things she enjoys - children, nature, and numbers! In her role as our new Business Manager, Joanne will draw on her skills and strengths in special event coordination, volunteer management, and her experience in serving as both a community and board liaison. Joanne has a passion for working with children, and looks forward to working with our young visitors and students as a Naturalist at the Nature Discovery Center. Joanne has worked as a preschool teacher at The Parish School, HeartsHome Early Learning Center, and The Fay School, and she co-authored The First Years: a parent and caregiver's guide to helping children learn. Joanne also served as the Tot*Spot Exhibit Manager and curator at The Children's Museum of Houston, providing an interactive environment for infants and toddlers to explore with adults. Joanne has a Bachelor of Arts in Teaching and a Masters of Science in Child Development. She lives in Bellaire, Texas, is married and has one son. Joanne enjoys supporting the healthy development of children and families.

Maura Denman - Staff Naturalist mmaple @

Maura Denman is a Staff Naturalist here at the Nature Discovery Center. Maura is a native Texan who has also lived throughout the Midwest and in Alaska. Maura has spent a good deal of time exploring Costa Rican rainforests and the behavior and ecology of the animals that inhabit them. She is particularly fond of amphibians, especially poison arrow frogs! Maura joined us after having taught undergraduate biology courses at small liberal arts colleges for several years. She is excited to be on staff at the Nature Discovery Center where she will be working in the Discovery Rooms and assisting with our exhibits, outreaches, and classes.

Cindy Sherman-Staff Naturalist and Administration csherman @

Cindy originally hails from New Mexico, while her family currently lives in Missouri and Texas. Cindy graduated from Vassar College in New York with a B.A. in History and has a master's degree in History and a Certificate in Museum Studies from the University of Delaware.  She completed a museum education internship at a zoo in Missouri and worked at a nature center in Illinois. She has had a wide variety of pets, both of the domestic and exotic kind, her whole life, and has always been fascinated and enthusiastic about nature. Cindy recently worked as an educator in an archaeology museum/natural history preserve in Lubbock, Texas.

Laura Stokes - Discovery Room Coordinator and Collections Curator lstokes @

Laura joined the Center in April of 2008. She is a recent graduate of the University of Maine at Presque Isle and holds a B.S. in Elementary Education with a concentration in History. In addition to working to enrich the discovery room exhibits, Laura guides children on school field trips at the Nature Discovery Center.

Jessica Lozano - Pre School Educator jlozano @

Jessica graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a B.A. in Geography and the Environment. She is passionate about the environment, and believes that we must conserve, recycle, and educate to preserve what we have for future generations. Jessica taught our Nature Detectives classes in 2008, but left to pursue her graduate education. Jessica returned to us this summer (2009) to teach our Sneak-a-Peek classes for 3.5 to 5 year olds, and she'll be teaching Nature Detectives this fall as well.  We are thrilled to have her back!