Teaching Fellowship Graduate

Kiku joined Words in the Wild with little classroom experience but a deep passion for learning and growth. A graduate of San Francisco State University with a B.A. in Environmental Studies, their focus on sustainability and social justice shapes their commitment to equity in education. Kiku is a dedicated reader, writer, and advocate for Environmental Justice, with a background in organizing around student debt and educating Bay Area youth on environmental racism.

As a teaching fellow, Kiku brought empathy, curiosity, and a strong sense of community to both their classroom and 1:1 tutoring. Their belief that every student holds unique brilliance made them a beloved part of our learning community. As a 2-year fellowship graduate, Kiku was inspired to pursue a career in teaching! We could not be more proud and are so excited for the many lives Kiku will go on to change in their future.

Teaching Fellowship Graduate

Zainab is a “teaching ecologist” who holds a Bachelors of Art in Biology from Mills College. Born and raised in Oakland, Zainab has worked with local communities exploring animal behavior and outdoor education. She has a background in non-profits, helping things run smoothly on the programmatic and administrative side. Zainab is passionate about providing space for “the outdoors” to be accessible and centering interdisciplinary approaches to the sciences. In her free time, Zainab enjoys hiking, writing short stories, and reading sci-fi and horror books.

Zainab is a 1-year Teaching Fellowship alumni who is currently a wildlife biology research assistant in South Africa.

Teaching Fellowship Graduate

Nathalie’s lifelong love of learning began in childhood, reading the dictionary and collecting rocks for fun. Her curiosity led her to earn a B.S. in Biology and an M.S. in Zoology from the Université Libre de Bruxelles in Belgium. After finding research too confining, she returned to her passion for education and has spent the past 17 years guiding children and adolescents as a dedicated Montessori teacher.

Eager to deepen her knowledge of literacy instruction, Nathalie joined our Fellowship with extensive classroom experience. After two years as a Fellow, she continued for a third year as a Teacher in Residence, supporting our WordLab, tutoring, and family engagement programs. Nathalie brings a deep belief in every child’s capacity to learn and a joyful commitment to discovery.

Nathalie has returned full-time to the Montessori classroom, equipped with new tools and insights. We’re grateful for all she’s brought to our community and look forward to future collaborations!

Founding Teaching Fellow (and fellowship graduate)

Ella joined Words in the Wild as a teaching fellow in our inaugural Summer Institute (2019). After completing a 2-year teaching fellowship with Words in the Wild, she helped lay the foundation for our cycle of educator and student support as a Words in the Wild Learning Specialist.

She currently supports students and families as an Executive Function Coach, incorporating her knowledge of special education, neuroscience, strengths-based teaching practices, and mindfulness to create individualized learning pathways. She holds a B.A. in Liberal Studies with an emphasis in Literacy and a focus in Special Education as well as a minor in Child and Family Development from San Diego State University. She earned her M.A. in Educational Therapy from Holy Names University.

Find her at Illuminated EF Coaching

Teaching Fellowship Graduate

Paige first joined Words in the Wild as a volunteer supporting remote WordLab in 2020, which influenced her decision to pursue a reading specialization through her graduate studies. She earned her M.A. in Teaching Reading at the University of San Francisco and holds a B.A. in English with a concentration in Literature. As an educator, Paige is committed to creating a nurturing and community-oriented environment in which every student can learn. A lover of books and baseball, Paige has been to nearly every bookstore in San Francisco and many, many Giants games.

After completing a 1-year teaching fellowship with Words in the Wild, Paige accepted a full-time position teaching Kindergarten with SFUSD and continues to support both teachers and students by creating joyful, inclusive learning communities.

Lindi Shepard is a doctoral researcher and adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Education, where her work focuses on nature-based approaches to teaching and learning. She supports pre-service teacher learning as the Teacher Development Specialist in the TeachingWell teacher residency program and her current research projects include developing approaches to shape environmental attitudes at the SPiEE Lab, supporting systems change through Transforming Inclusion Dedicated to Equity (TIDE): a research-practice partnership with Montgomery County Public Schools, and leading evaluation of Maryland State Department of Education’s Outdoor Nature-Based Child Care License Pilot Program. Lindi completed a 2-year Teaching Fellowship with Words in the Wild before transitioning into a role as Teaching Fellowship Director, where she helped to shape our professional learning programs. As an advisor, she continues to collaborate with Words in the Wild on participatory action research initiatives to examine how nature-based learning—particularly through nature journaling—can strengthen literacy learning. This research has been presented at national conferences including the American Educational Research Association, the North American Association for Environmental Education Research Symposium, and the Council for Exceptional Children's Annual Convention. Through both research and practice, Lindi is always looking for new ways to help students and teachers deepen relationships with their human and more-than-human communities. Lindi holds a M.A.Ed. in Cognitive Science in Education from Teachers College, Columbia University and a B.S.Ed. in Special Education from the University of Georgia.

Gretchen’s expertise is on emerging technologies in storytelling, digital journalism, and innovative business models. She is a professor at CSU Northridge, where she teaches Design Thinking in her courses and through applied programs such as the Internal Entrepreneurship desk in student media. 

She is also one of our parents, with two curious kids who are huge fans of Words in the Wild, and holds a B.A. in Mass Communications and an M.A. in Digital Journalism and Design.

Mentor Teacher & Founding Naturalist

As a Master Garden Teacher and Science Curriculum Advisor Ryan is key to integrating literacy and the outdoors using scientific observation as well as music, drawing, and cooking. He also teaches experiential environmental education at a school garden in Oakland with kindergarten through eighth-grade students, and has been part of the team since 2016. He earned his B.A. in Environmental Education from Warren Wilson College and has since been teaching in a variety of ecosystems from the sandy coast of North Carolina to the oak woodlands of the East Bay.

Annie is a team leader, strategist, and coach. She utilizes her experiences in education, business, and athletics to facilitate inclusive and inspiring strategic planning processes. Her ability to work across sectors and with diverse leaders stems from years of advising social impact organizations and businesses, playing Division I college basketball, and teaching elementary kids.

Annie has worked and consulted in public education as a Teach for America alumnae, former Minneapolis Public School District curriculum and data consultant, and strategic advisor to over thirty public schools across the country, including KIPP St. Louis during their regional expansion.

She is a former Big Ten Conference athlete, a current member of the San Francisco Olympic Club Women’s National Basketball team, and serves as a member of the Northern California Board of Directors for Playworks.

Tami supports a variety of wellness, education, and food system organizations with strategy, operations, and communications. With a background in environmental policy and experience as an environmental educator and curriculum developer, Tami uses her quantitative and qualitative skills to design, implement, monitor, and evaluate impactful programs while keeping an eye on organizational goals. Basically, she helps WITW look great (she took most of the photos on our site) while running smoothly.

She is also a parent who loves spending as much time in nature as possible. She earned an M.A. in Environmental Policy & Management from Middlebury Institute of International Studies and a B.A. in Environmental Studies and Biology from UC Santa Cruz.