Meet The Instructors!
Online Classroom Visits are brought to you by professional educators from the National Park Service, Mississippi Park Connection, Minnesota Historical Society, and Friends of the Mississippi River!
Johnna Austin (NPS Ranger)
Ranger Johnna is from Minneapolis and grew up exploring the Mississippi River. She went to Winona State University and spent her college years boating and fishing in the Mississippi River. She loves working with students and sharing her excitement for the river and all of the organisms that call it home.
Sue Dahl (MPC River Educator)
Sue grew up in Richfield, MN, and graduated from St. Catherine University in St. Paul, MN, where she earned her degree in Education. While searching for teaching jobs, she decided to apply for a naturalist position at a nature center. It was then that she discovered she could blend her love of teaching and the natural world. Sue has been in the field of environmental education ever since. Now a River Educator with the Mississippi Park Connection team, Sue is excited to ignite your curiosity and share the wonders of nature with you!
Cathy Eiss (MPC River Educator)
Cathy Eiss has 27 years of teaching experience as an elementary educator, most of it in the Bloomington Public Schools. Upon retiring in 2019, she began working as an educator on the Mississippi River. She is happy to be able to continue working with kids. Cathy has completed the Nexus STEM Equity training at the Science Museum of Minnesota. She had the experience of a lifetime, participating in the Morpho Institute’s teacher professional development program in the Peruvian Amazon. There, she worked with teachers from all over the country on inquiry-based science education in the rain forest.
Wini Froelich (MN Historical Society)
Wini is a Program Specialist for the Minnesota Historical Society at Mill City Museum. She grew up in Brooklyn Park, MN but she has lived in five different states and in Wales, UK. She graduated from the University of WI, Madison with a masters Degree in Fine Arts focusing on acting. She has worked at Mill City Museum since it opened in 2003! So, she loves telling all the stories she has learned about the riverfront, the history of Minneapolis when it was the "milling capital of the world" and the people who worked there.
Abigail ‘Abby’ Olson (NPS Ranger)
Ranger Abby has been in love with water all her life; lakes, streams, ponds, rivers, and especially waterfalls. Over the last decade as a ranger, she has learned a lot about how the water of the mighty Mississippi interacts with the land, animals, plants, and people around it. She's excited to share her stories and knowledge with your students about the geology and otters of the Mississippi River or take a deeper look into the job of a Park Ranger at any National Park.
More Instructors:
Sheila Sullivan (MPC River Educator)