This spring, the Mazamas and our partner, Friends of Outdoor School, decided to team up to host an intern to help develop youth programming which will further the missions of both our organizations. You may know Friends of Outdoor School as the organization which exists to support access and funding for outdoor school programs across the state. They have also run the Adventure WILD summer camp out of the MMC for the past three summers. Both Friends of Outdoor School and the Mazamas are interested in partnering on and expanding the Adventure WILD camp to raise awareness and funds for the good youth education work our organizations are doing. Our shared intern will review successful camp models, conduct market research, and develop a business and marketing plan for an expanded Adventure WILD camp. After interviewing a number of great candidates, we chose Jenny Dempsey Stein as our youth program development intern for this fall. Jenny is a Mazama member, outdoor enthusiast and experienced researcher. Read below for more about her, and you’ll see why we feel lucky to have her working with us!
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| Jenny, on the left, pictured here with her husband, kids and mother-in-law at the Mazama Lodge |
Jenny Dempsey Stein has worked for public organizations for many years. She got her start with Americorps and the U.S. Forest Service, conducting wilderness inventories of Northern spotted owl populations off trail and at night, surveying streams and educating visitors at Multnomah Falls Nature Center. She served as an Outdoor Education instructor in New Hampshire, where she facilitated ecology, ropes challenges, snow shoeing, skiing and wilderness survival activities. Jenny spent ten years serving the public, providing administrative support to Metro’s Parks and Greenspaces and Open Spaces acquisition programs, and coordinating Metro’s popular, widely used Disposal Voucher cleanup program. In addition, she supported Metro’s Community Enhancement grant program and managed a grant funded cleanup guide publication.
A Mazama member since 1998, Jenny’s family has recently participated in Mazamas Family Mountaineering 101 classes and hikes. She applied for the youth program development assistant internship because she has pursued projects throughout her career that support environmental education and natural resources stewardship. Jenny worked more recently with Oregon Community Foundation as a research and writing consultant exploring best practices for Oregon outdoor schools. She also volunteered with her local school, actively supporting the PTA’s school improvement committee, green team efforts and several Mazama Lodge fundraisers. Most recently Jenny completed a graduate certificate in sustainability at PSU, and is studying graduate ecopsychology at Lewis and Clark College.
Welcome, Jenny!