Advisory council
|
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.
|
|
Mary-Sheila Gonnella, NC, BCHN
Nutrition 
|
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.
|
|
Ryan Johnson
Organizational Development 
|
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.
|
|
Carrie Strohl
Curriculum 
|
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.
|
|
Beatrix Scolari
Sustainability 
|
Beatrix is a sustainability professional who has been interested in the environment since her mom let her drop out of preschool to raise butterflies in the backyard full time. Growing up in Sonoma County, Beatrix took for granted the abundance of delicious, locally grown food in her community. Her love of food evolved into an intellectual passion at UC Berkeley, where she earned her degree in Environmental Economics & Policy with a minor in Food Systems. After graduating in 2018, Beatrix returned to Sonoma County to work for Straus Family Creamery. As the Sustainability Coordinator, she contributes to a variety of projects that advance Straus Family Creamery’s vision for sustainable farming and food manufacturing. Beatrix manages the company’s TRUE Zero Waste program, tracks Scope 1 & 2 emissions, and helps partner dairy farms implement climate smart farming practices.
|
|
Carmen Snyder
Farming 
|
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.
|
|
Tina Poles
Education 
|
Tina Poles has been teaching at Sonoma Country Day School since 2007 and is also the director of the sustainability and environmental science program. She currently the lower school science teacher and also runs the school garden. Before SCDS, Tina was the Director of School Gardens at Occidental Arts and Ecology Center. In that capacity, she was able to visit hundreds of school gardens around the state, and see best practices in a wide range of schools. As a 2010 fellow at the Leadership Institute for Ecology and Economy, Tina spent the year studying local food systems, energy and waste management, water uses, business practices, transportation and social justice. She was a 2017 fellow at the Center for Climate Protection Center. Tina has a number of publications about School Gardens, including a Handful of Seeds.
|
If you're interested in learning more about our Advisory Council ,
contact info@schoolgardens.org
contact info@schoolgardens.org