Meet Our Team
Hi! I’m Alison. Like most people, I wear many hats, and I’m so grateful one of those is owner and administrator of Little Earth Forest School Iowa (LEFSIA). I studied both secondary and elementary education in college before settling on a Bachelor of Arts in Communication. After starting a master’s program, I switched gears and became a registered nurse. I shamelessly admit to being a serial learner. I have always had a heart for serving and spent 20 years working in state public health before leaving to better align with my passion for holistic health and wellness.
Life has been one of my greatest teachers and through its many lessons I’ve learned the importance of finding authentic connection within, to others, and with nature. I love witnessing our students embody these lessons early in their journeys and know such connections will serve them, and the world around them, well. I feel blessed to be part of LEFSIA in many capacities - from building, to planning and visioning for the future, and providing programming that includes Somatic Therapy, kids yoga and culinary arts.
I aspire to emulate the saying, “Do something you love and you’ll never work a day in your life,” which is why I gladly devote much of my time to forest school, leading wellness retreats, and sharing my children’s book The Moon Is My Favorite Color; however, when I’m not “working” I enjoy reading, writing, music, worldwide travel, and family walks and talks.
Bret
Co-Owner; Director of Operations
My name is Regan Gordon and I am so excited to be leading your child at Little Earth Forest School! I have been a teacher for eight years. I taught preschool for one year and Kindergarten for seven years. I am so excited to take my passion for children and outdoors and put them together! My husband and I have two children, Faye who is three-years-old and Cal, who is one. We love to be outside, explore, and see where each day takes us, so Forest School is perfect for us. I love having my daughter Faye to join me at Forest School too!
I am a firm believer in learning through play, especially outdoors, so I could not be any more excited for this opportunity. My passion for learning outdoors sparked after reading Balanced and Barefoot by Angela Hanscom and 1,000 Hours Outside by Ginny Yurich. These two books changed my whole mindset as a teacher and a parent. We started keeping track of how many hours we spent outside, with the goal being 1,000 hours a year. We started in June 2022, and have done it ever since. Living in Iowa makes this a big challenge! Summer always goes great, but the harsh winters make it hard, especially with a baby. It’s fun to see how much time we’ve spent outside each year!
I’m Diana Fry - aka Dandelion Diana. :) I was born and raised on a small acreage in the Des Moines area. I spent two years at Grandview College before I switched my major to nursing. After marriage and three children in three years, I opted to stay home with them. I opened and ran a registered child care for 12 years. A proud moment was when I was selected by the Iowa State University Extension Office as a model child care in Iowa. I later went into administration in the public school system where I worked closely with staff and students in junior high and high school, and I ended my time in public school working in elementary special education.
My husband and I live in Minburn now with our cat, Myles. We love to travel both in the U.S. and abroad.
I have always loved the quote “Into the forest I go to lose my mind and gain my soul.” I am so proud to spend my days with this group of students and adults. Each day I wake up and drink a cup of coffee while listening to the song Calm Down by Rema and Selena Gomez. The song’s beat inspires me as I prepare for my day at forest school where my passion is to model a love and respect for nature and help instill that in others. I help students understand we are keepers of the Earth and must work together to keep it clean and healthy. I believe this will produce kind and caring adults who will make a positive impact in our world.
My favorite poem expresses this same sentiment:
BIRDFOOT’S GRAMPA by Joseph Bruchac
The old man
must have stopped our car
two dozen times to climb out
and gather into his hands
the small toads blinded
by our lights and leaping,
live drops of rain.
The rain was falling,
a mist about his white hair
and I kept saying you can’t save them all,
accept it, get back in
we’ve got places to go.
But, leathery hands full
of wet brown life,
knee deep in the summer
roadside grass,
he just smiled and said they have places to go
too.
Hi, I’m Dan. I’m an educator, musician and storyteller in my third decade of guiding children along their journeys of learning and growth. Although this is my first time having “guide” as an official job title, I have always viewed my role in this light, having observed that given the chance, children teach themselves and one another, under adult guidance. Throughout my career, mostly spent in rural New England, I have worked with preschool, elementary, middle and high school students, both in regular and special education settings.
Part of what draws me toward working with young people is my deep love for the natural world, which is innate in all children. In recent years, I have encountered the tragic reality of children spending virtually their entire lives indoors, mostly staring at screens, even when they live literally on the edge of a forest. I have made it my mission to help show the world a better way.
Apart from working with children, I spend my time taking long walks, playing the piano and writing songs, reading science fiction, Victorian novels, history and poetry among other varieties of literature, fine-tuning my philosophical outlook, and eating too much chocolate. I am excited to have joined the team here at LEFSI because we are creating something new and wonderful; because here is a project grounded in optimism in the midst of a cynical age; and because all the people I have met here are awesome.
Here is a short poem I love:
“Think as I think,” said a man,
“Or you are abominably wicked;
You are a toad.”
And after I had thought of it,
I said: “I will, then, be a toad.”
Hello! I’m Jennifer Senne. I have been teaching music for over 20 years and joined LEFSI this past school year. I have a degree in Music Education and am currently working on my Masters of Music Education in the Kodály approach. Zoltan Kodály, the famous Hungarian composer and teacher, believed in learning music first through experience–listening, singing, and moving. This music philosophy aligns perfectly with the Forest School concept of experiential and project-based learning.
During our music time we learn songs, rhymes and games that enhance the learning concepts for the week. Many of our songs and rhymes are nature-based folk songs that the children learn quickly. Often you will hear them sing the songs organically as they are working and playing. The songs we use are designed to support and enhance their learning. There is something quite magical about children singing amongst the trees.
In addition to teaching music at LEFSIA, I am a professional singer, own a private voice studio, and help direct the Iowa Youth Chorus. I love early morning walks (especially in the new fallen snow), reading, birdwatching, and spending time with my husband, Travis, and our three amazing children.
Hi! I’m Eliza. I grew up in a large family near Los Angeles, CA, wishing I could live the life of Laura Ingalls surrounded by wide open spaces and animals. My favorite childhood memories are associated with exploring local parks, tent camping near rivers, beaches and lakes, and meditating in the mountains. My love of animals and desire to experience seasons in rural America drew me to colleges in eastern Idaho, central Utah, and central Iowa. My favorite job was being the wrangler at a YMCA camp all summer up in the Uinta Mountains, introducing children to horses, riding, and observing nature. The pursuit of degrees in zoology, animal biotechnology, and veterinary medicine have opened doors to many incredible experiences learning and working outdoors.
I love asking scores of questions to everyone I meet, taking classes, and devouring books and podcasts. Thinking outside the box and looking for improvement strategies energizes me. I’ve experienced the power of play and art overcoming language barriers as a childcare volunteer for refugees. My passion for teaching and leadership training has blossomed over many years of teaching children's music classes, through Scouting, almost a decade training ecclesiastical teachers and leaders in the Midwest, teaching human anatomy and physiology courses at community colleges across Iowa, and substitute teaching in our local school district.
My husband and I are raising our four children to thrive outside, participate in the fine arts, go out of their comfort zones, enjoy serving others, and treasure the diversity and wonder inside each person around them and across all cultures and countries. Tourette syndrome, ADHD, OCD, and sensory processing disorder are close to my heart. I appreciate that everyone develops at different paces, and am quick to advocate for those with extra needs. I strive to instill a passion for curiosity and lifelong learning in everyone. I am honored to be part of this Forest School family.