Team

Alice Jansen is our the Education Events Coordinator. She helps plan and organize the Annual Summit and create and coordinate professional development offerings including webinars, virtual tours, and other resources to support TCiNN partners. Alice brings over 20 years of experience in environmental education and conservation to this position. She has worked in various roles with governmental and environmental organizations including the...

Amanda McMickle

Early Childhood Education Outdoor Learning Environments Network Program Manager

Amanda McMickle is a seasoned educator and leader with over two decades of experience in Texas's educational landscape. Currently serving as the Early Childhood Education Outdoor Learning Manager or Texas Children in Nature Network, she brings a wealth of expertise across diverse educational settings, from nature-based preschools to public ISDs. In her latest roles, Amanda has been instrumental in founding NEST (Nature-based Education Support...

Marisa Oliva

Health and Nature Liaison - Rio Grande Valley

Marisa Oliva-Rodriguez is a native Texan, transplanted from San Antonio to the floodplains of Rio Grande Valley. Managing the Edinburg Scenic Wetlands and World Birding Center from 2004 until recently, Oliva-Rodriguez has spent her career helping children and families connect to nature through innovative programming and with the creation of beautiful outdoor spaces. A graduate of Texas A&M University and Pennsylvania State University,...

Alicia Fontenot

Health and Nature Liaison - Gulf Coast

Meet Alicia (\Uh-Lee-See-Uh\) Fontenot (\Fon-te-no\)! She is the Health and Nature Liaison for the Gulf Coast Region. As a native Houstonian, she takes pride in her city’s cultural diversity and growing awareness to be more environmentally conscious.

With a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Texas Southern University, she has always had a yearning for discovering sustainable solutions by understanding the link between human...

Jenny Larios

Health and Nature Liaison

Jenny Larios is a recent graduate from Ithaca College where she received her B.A. in Environmental Studies and Politics. As an undergraduate student, Jenny became a member of Advocates for Youth where she worked on several projects that helped engage and create youth activists across the country. Jenny is a native Texas and currently resides in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Dr. April Torres Conkey

Board Chair

In October 2020 April Torres Conkey joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board. April as been part of the Coastal Bend Children in Nature regional collaborative for several years, currently serving as their communications chair. Sarah sat down with April on October 29th to find out more about her and why she feels so passionately about Children in Nature.

April, why don't you introduce yourself and let us know a little about...

Darcy Bontempo

Treasurer

Darcy Bontempo shares why she joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Darcy, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

I am Darcy Bontempo, recently retired Marketing Director at Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Prior to working at TPWD for the past 23 years, I worked at several ad agencies, including as account supervisor at McCann Erickson in New York City and at GSD&M in Austin, Texas. I...

Dr. Demekia Biscoe

Secretary

Dr. Demekia Biscoe met with Sarah on February 22nd to share why she joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Demekia, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

I am Demekia Biscoe, I was originally born and raised in East Texas, where my love of nature was inspired. I call myself a quintessential country girl. We grew our own fruit and vegetables and being outside was always a part of my day and it...

Keiji Asakura

Board Member

This past January, Keiji met with Alice to share why he joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Keiji, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

I'm a landscape architect with Asakura Robinson. I’ve been in practice for about 45 years. What I'm interested in, passionate about, is the importance of the outdoor experience at any age, but...

Larry Hysmith

At-Large

Larry Hysmith met with Sarah on March 10th to share why he joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Larry, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

My name is Larry Hysmith, I work for Texas AgriLife Extension Service in the 4-H & Youth Development Program. I lead the 4-H Natural Resources Program which provides support across Texas to all local 4-H clubs and groups within the 254 counties of...

Marsha Towns

At-Large

Marsha met with Alice on March 2nd to share why she joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Marsha, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

My name is Marsha Towns. I am the Director for the Gulf Region for the Student Conservation Association (SCA). I'm also a citizen of the city of Houston and I have been living here for the last 10 years. I...

Richard Heilbrun

Ex-Officio

This past September, Richard met with Alice to share why he joined the Texas Children in Nature Network Board.

Richard, please introduce yourself and let us know a little about you:

My name is Richard Heilbrun and I have been with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) for twenty-two years. My current position is the Wildlife Diversity Program Director. In that role,...

Ted Stevens