Meet The Board
Executive Committee
President, Rose Vallor, Ed.D – Bozeman, MT
Rose teaches inquiry science and environmental education in Southwest Montana, with the goal of getting kids outdoors. Rose is currently developing an outdoor science program getting kids to their local river to learn about water quality and riparian habitats. She’s contributed her passion, leadership, and teaching skills in outdoor, informal science programs such as Bridger Nature Center, Ennis Good Thyme camps, and Montana Outdoor Science School, and traveled the state as a MT Project WET State Coordinator and Project Learning Tree facilitator. Since finishing her Ed.D, she teaches science education and other teacher preparation courses at MSU. She firmly believes that learning and caring about the natural world begins with stepping outside your door. Rose lives in Bozeman, where her goal is to spend time outdoors every day!
Secretary, Kyle Wonders, Missoula, MT
Kyle is currently working as the Citizen Science Coordinator at a nonprofit called Watershed Education Network, based out of Missoula. He has been involved in the environmental education field for 4 years and through this time has gained experience doing many different styles of environmental education. While discovering his passion for Environmental Education, Kyle has also been studying at the University of Montana. In the spring of 2024, he will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Biology, with other studies in climate change studies, wilderness studies, nonprofit administration, and environmental ethics, all fields that he feels come together to make him a more effective educator. Kyle enjoys spending time birding, backpacking, cheering on the Griz, and learning more about the world to be explored.
Treasurer, Naomi Alhadeff – Missoula, MT
Naomi joined the National Wildlife Federation team in Missoula and functions as the Montana Education Manager and the Montana Project WET Coordinator. Her passion lies in communicating with the public about our state’s wildlife and the habitat we all share. She graduated from the University of Montana’s Wildlife Biology program and has been involved in environmental education, both in and out of the classroom, with state agencies, conservation districts, and non-profit organizations in Nebraska and Washington before returning to Montana. The National Wildlife Federation’s goal to protect our wildlife and build upon our conservation heritage blends well with her work with the Garden for Wildlife program as well as Eco-Schools USA. Having worked both in and out of the classroom she enjoys sharing her love for wildlife with kids and adults throughout Montana. She is an avid gardener, an ever-improving hunter, and an amateur thespian.
Heather Jameson
Heather joins us from a background in environmental studies and teaching. She started her career as an Interpretation and Education Ranger at Glacier National Park and has spent the last decade in the education field most recently as the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Wildlife Education and Outreach Specialist for Northwest Alaska.
In her current role as the Strategic Initiatives Lead for the Montana Afterschool Alliance, Heather is leading the development of the Montana STEM Ecosystem. The initiative aims to create an interconnected network of organizations, institutions, and individuals working collaboratively to promote science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) learning opportunities in the state.
She holds strong to the belief that her experiences with the outdoors have led to her respect, curiosity and understanding of our environment. Through her service on the board, she hopes to support opportunities and resources for youth to form their own connections and sense of place in our natural world.
Board of Directors
Emily Chilcoat – Billings, MT
Living the Montana dream, Emily moved to Billings in 2014 from Ohio. There she received her degree in Natural and Historical Interpretation and realized there are more wide open spaces for her to discover. Since moving to Billings, she’s enjoyed the low humidity, sunny skies, and amazing views for miles upon miles. Currently, the Center Director for Montana Audubon’s education center in Billings, where she gets to engage community members and see firsthand the amazing impact nature education has on our youth in the big city of Billings. Joining MEEA has been a great pleasure and an amazing learning opportunity to work with and get to know others from around the state who all share a similar vision of uniting, supporting, and connecting educators to promote nature education throughout the state.
Anne Grant – Helena, MT
Anne is a co-principal investigator and program manager for the Native FEWS Alliance at University of Montana and an Indigenous education consultant. She received a M.S. in Environmental Studies in 2015 and was the first Elouise Cobell Fellow for the UM College of Humanities and Sciences. Anne is a member of the Blackfeet Nation who advocates for and writes culturally relevant curriculum. In addition to serving MEEA, Anne also serves on the Blackfeet Indian Land Conservation Trust Corporation Board, cofounded by Elouise Cobell. She brings her experiences as an educator, professional artist, consultant, and academic to the MEEA board. When asked what the characteristics of a great board member are, Anne says that, “great board members are humanists. They are honest, caring people who believe in and support the mission of the board they serve.”
Carolyn Taber, Missoula, MT
Originally from the East Coast, Carolyn graduated from Ithaca College’s Park School of Communications in 2008 and moved to Colorado shortly thereafter. In Colorado for 6 years, Carolyn co-founded Earth Explorers, a nonprofit that connects student filmmakers with working scientists in their community. Seeking a new challenge, and looking to reconnect with family in Missoula, Carolyn joined the team at the Missoula Butterfly House and Insectarium to focus on informal science education and instructional design. Ever the lifelong learner, Carolyn earned her Masters in Museum Studies from the Harvard Extension School in 2022. Out of the classroom Carolyn enjoys mountain biking, floating the river, skiing, reading, and chasing her niece and nephews around.
Shauni Seccombe – Great Falls, MT
Shauni grew up on her family’s dairy farm at the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains in upstate New York, where she experienced firsthand what it means to thoughtfully engage with her local landscape. After her college graduation, she served as a Montana Conservation Corps (MCC) volunteer and has called Montana home ever since. In addition to her time spent with MCC, Shauni has worked for the United States Forest Service, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, the National Forest Foundation, the Center for Natural Resources and Environmental Policy, and has served as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at the University of Montana where she taught a course in Conservation Education. Most recently, Shauni led the development of a narrative-based curriculum for the Life in the Land Project which includes three Indian Education for All lesson plans that honor the Mighty Few District of the Crow Nation, The Blackfeet Nation, and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes. As a board member with MEEA, Shauni is excited to advance accessibility to the outdoors, promote environmental literacy, and support the mental and physical benefits that come with connecting to your local landscape. She is an avid outdoorswoman, mountain mama, voracious
reader, and foodie.
Michelle McCarthy
Michelle has been with the Office of Public Instruction since August 2015. She was a middle school science, social studies, and math teacher at Bridger Schools. She also served as their RtI and Test Coordinator. She has also been a ½ time principal/teacher in a three-room schoolhouse. As an adjunct faculty instructor at MSU-Billings and MSU Bozeman she taught undergraduate and graduate K-8 & 5-12 Science Methods and Ed Tech courses and was involved as a teacher leader in the Partnership to Reform Inquiry Science in Montana (PRISM) grant for six years. She earned her Bachelor of Science Education, SPED minor, and Master of Education at MSU-Billings. She completed the coursework for her doctorate at MSU Bozeman but never started the dissertation, so she ended up with an ABD.
Chris Pavlovich, M.S. – Livingston, MT
Dr. Chris Pavlovich, Director of Program Services and Evaluation, Ripple: The Center for Education and Ecosystem Studies. Affiliate Faculty, Master of Science in Science Education Department, Montana State University. Chris Pavlovich holds a PhD in Curriculum and Instruction and a Master of Science in Science Education awarded by Montana State University. She served as a 5th grade teacher for 14 years in Livingston, Montana. Chris founded Watershed Warriors, a place-based, interdisciplinary watershed education program based on a mission of stewardship, application, and access. Her goal in science education is to engage teachers and students in place-based, project-based pedagogies to decrease the border between science and classrooms. She holds steadfast that science education is for all. She was named 2022 Montana Environmental Education Association Formal Educator of the Year; awarded the 2022 Presidential Innovation Award for Environmental Educators; awarded the Teresa Veltkamp Advocacy Award for Excellence in Indian Education in 2021; awarded Presidential Awards for Excellence in Math and Science Teaching in 2020; recognized by the Montana Science Teachers Association in 2018 for Distinguished Service to Science Education; named Montana Watershed Teacher of the Year by the Clark Fork Watershed Education Program in 2017; and awarded Montana Educator of the Year by the American Fisheries Society in 2013.
