Advisory council
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School Garden Network has convened a dynamic Advisory Council comprised of local leaders to inform and strengthen our programs and impacts. Our diverse council of professionals are passionate about growing healthy students, families, schools, and communities through garden-based education and support the organization through strategic direction and content development.
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Mary-Sheila Gonnella, NC, BCHN
Nutrition 
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Mary Sheila is a Board Certified Holistic Nutritionist who brings over 12 years of experience in the nutrition, health, and wellness world. Her mastery is holding clinical focus on GI health, hormonal harmony, blood sugar balance, diabetes education, and cultivating right-size body weight. Mary Sheila combines holistic nutrition, clinical Ayurveda, adrenal support, and amino acid therapy to create a unique supportive experience for her clients and students. Her passion makes nutrition concepts come to life and leads her clients to consistently successful outcomes. She has taught nutrition to elementary and middle school students at Salmon Creek School in Occidental for over 10 years. She was a teacher at Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition and Culinary arts for 7 years, and is currently on faculty at the dhyana Center in Sebastopol Ca.
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Ryan Johnston
Organizational Development 
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Growing up in west Sonoma County a big school garden had a formative impact on Ryan’s early years and he’s excited to support extending that opportunity to others through the School Garden Network. Ryan is the Regeneration and Marketing Director for Biotic Beverages, a family-owned kvass producer in Petaluma. Through his career he’s been an educator, advocate, farmer, project manager, entrepreneur and designer. He’s an avid gardener, forager and chef with a deep passion for healthy local food. Ryan is the Board Chair of the Daily Acts Organization in Petaluma.
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Geoff Scott
GIS Mapping 
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Geoff Scott is the Vice President of Real Estate at Jackson Family Investments and a Principal at William Hezmalhalch Architects. For two years he sat the SGN board to bring his technical skills to help oversee the development, implementation, maintenance and growth of the first SNG map using Arcgis. While he no longer acts as a board member, he continues to support SGN's GIS mapping tool, tracking and illustrating the significant impact these edible and habitat gardens are having in our region.
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Carrie Strohl
Curriculum 
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Carrie Strohl is the founder and leader of The School Garden Doctor, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering teachers, schools, and communities to grow school gardens that enhance science education, nurture wellness, and foster environmental literacy. Based in Napa, Carrie is currently growing her signature program, the Dirt Girls, which inspires female youth to pursue science as a career. She supports after-school food education through a Farm-to-School grant collaboration with the Napa County Office of Education; she supports in-school food education with the Common Core Cooking Curricular Resource Guide, which she authored in 2018. With a Ph.D. in science education, she teaches pre-service teachers to embrace science in the K-5 classroom and has delivered many workshop and conference presentations for school garden educators.
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Carol Ann Soltz
Grant Writing 
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Carol Ann Soltz is the owner of The Write Intention, a non-profit consulting and grant writing company. For more than 20 years she has supported non-profit organizations in identifying grant prospects and securing funding for priority projects. Over the course of her grantwriting career, Carol Ann has successfully developed strategic fundraising plans, crafted proposals, and managed projects, generating funding for a range of organizations that focus on education, restorative justice, healthcare, and environmental justice.
Carol Ann began writing grants with School Garden Network in 2022, being drawn to SGN’s mission driven programming. She writes with passion and purpose to support SGN in growing organizational capacity and program expansion, to ultimately increase access to the myriad benefits of gardening for students in Sonoma County. She lives in the rocky mountains of Colorado with her family, on the traditional land of the Cheyenne and Ute people. She is learning how to garden at elevation with nominal success to date. |
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Carmen Snyder
Farming 
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Carmen Snyder is the Executive Director of Sonoma County Farm Trails, a nonprofit started by farmers in 1973 to bring awareness to the importance of local food, to promote agritourism, and to facilitate direct sales. Inspired by Sonoma County’s thriving, diverse agricultural community, Carmen is passionate about supporting local farmers and working to preserve farms forever. She oversees Farm Trails operations and events, from budgets to band selection, and is most interested in cultivating community, bridging gaps, building resilience, and fulfilling Farm Trails' mission to instill an appreciation of ag as the vital part of our lifestyle. Carmen sits on the advisory board of Colorado State University’s Western US Agritourism Project. She also serves as a member of the Sonoma County Food System Alliance, a county-based coalition of stakeholders and leaders working to improve our food system through community engagement and collective action.
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