Staff - 2010 Vermont Session 2 (wild card week)
Advisors
Advisors do lots of things: teach workshops; lead games, sports, hikes, fieldtrips, and other activities; help out with logistics; and other stuff. But most essentially, they connect with campers--individually and in small groups. Each advisor meets daily with his or her group of 11 or so campers, and is generally available for support, hugs, and conversation.
Jake Matilsky, 27
photo by Dave Minchin
I grew up homeschooling in New Jersey, but at fifteen I started working on a ranch in Montana for the father of a friend I met at NBTSC. We worked together for several summers, traveled the west, fixed cars, broke cars, and by the time we were 19 and in Europe, had traveled back and forth across the USA more times than we could count. I began attending community college at 19, and traveled through Europe working and taking pictures. At 20, I began work for the Department of the Interior as a Wildland Firefighter. After spending a few more years with DOI where I worked for Fish and Wildlife and the National Parks Service, I returned to university to receive a B.A. in political science and international affairs from Columbia University. Since graduating, I have been running around the world, taking pictures of poverty and environmental degradation. I hope to attend law school in the near future, focusing on international environmental law.
(Grace adds: for the first 6 years of camp, Grace and Jake were tied for the one and only perfect attendance award. Suddenly he had grown up and gone away and we realized that there had been no ceremony, and that there should have been one -- thus, NBTSC "graduation" was born.)
Amos Blanton, 35
Melrose, Massachusetts
Lately I've been learning to be a husband, and working with the Scratch Team at MIT media lab as an online community moderator and doer of electronic odd jobs. Prior to that I was a therapist working with families at risk of losing custody of their children. Before that I was a student, sandwich maker, consultant, teacher, developer support engineer, blimp groundcrewman, motofoto associate, pizza maker, bus boy, student, student (for too long!), baby, foetus, ?, three toed lemur, British Sailor, and the inventer of Baba Ghanouj. Just kidding about the last part.
Right now I want to find a solution to the puzzle of how to make a living doing something I love a) without being stressed and b) while belonging to a community of people who are open to sharing their experiences. I used to know the answer, and now I do not, which is sometimes hard to accept. If I was a sandwich I'd be turkey, and if I was a motorcycle rider I'd be Evil's twin brother, Good Knievel. I have two (2) prehensile thumbs. I am somewhat prone to worrying, a lover of Indian food, often capable of empathy. I admire those who farm. I once borrowed a steamroller in the night and drove it one block and then parked it. I like to listen, and some have even said I am good at it.
I wish to help the human world with its tendency to over-intellectualize, and yet I only dance sometimes.
History: NBTSC Advisor, 2002 - 2005, 2007, 2009. Counselor 2007 and 2009. I love to work at Not Back to School camp because of the freedom and creativity of the environment, and for the opportunity to listen to and support campers.
Jill Menard, 30
Carrboro, North Carolina
Jill is currently obsessed with aerial dance and circus arts (think Cirque de Soleil). She trained at the Wellington Circus Trust in New Zealand, with the Asheville Aerial Arts in North Carolina, and most recently at the New England Center for Circus Arts in Vermont. She is now running her own fabric and trapeze classes at the Carrboro Arts Center - teaching ages 10-adult how to embrace their inner monkey. She is also working on her pull-ups because upper body strength makes her an aerial ninja!
Before aerial/circus arts, Jill was a dancer. Trained professionally in jazz, ballet, modern; opened her own studio and non-profit dance company; directed/choreographed 5 professional shows; then decided it was time for a change. Hence the circus and hanging-upside-down escapades.
Jill's childhood was spent in a log cabin without running water in the middle of Wisconsin. Her teen years were spent in a hippie town in Arizona, 5 minutes from the Mexican border. Her 20s were spent in New Zealand, exploring the lush wilderness and turquoise blue oceans. And now Jill has entered her 30s and is waiting to see what the new decade holds...
Jill is grateful for her awesome parents who allowed her the chance to explore life outside of the box (e.g. "the system"). Unschooling was an amazing experience where every day was an adventure, every experience was a life lesson, and every person you met was your teacher. And the great thing about unschooling is that it never ends! The lessons keep coming and if you stay open to life, you never grow bored!
This year at camp Jill is looking forward to sharing innovative dance fun, creative writing, juggling, hula hooping, awesome partner balancing, card tricks, healthy sugar-free raw CHOCOLATE desserts, the art of being silly and so much more!
NBTSC history: Advisor, Oregon Session 1 - 2005, and Vermont Session 2 - 2009
Mike Reddy, 32
Albany, New York
I went to suburban public schools in second rate midwestern cities my whole life. I rejected the high school social scene and immersed myself in diy/punk and hip hop culture--becoming involved with the Sitcom Collective, Food Not Bombs, and a burgeoning scene of young dj's, b-boys/girls, and graffiti writers. I went to Loyola University Chicago, a Jesuit school, because college was expected of me, because Loyola gave me a large academic scholarship, and because Chicago was the most influential city nearby.
I planned to study photojournalism so that I could expose the horrors of industrial growth, but the more I learned about the media and hegemony, the less I wanted to be a part of it. I ended up with a degree in Communication with a concentration in Social Justice and minors in Peace Studies and Philosophy.
Though I excelled in both public school and college, I’ve consistently been working to forge an existence other than the prescribed 9-to-5. I refuse to sell my soul for “security.” I am passionate about living and learning and am convinced that there is no one right way to do either. I love kids and being a positive role model and friend, and as such I am determined to learn about and defend the land and bioregions that we all depend upon for sustenance.
I've traveled around much of the world, worked with mentally ill and homeless adults, organized and participated in college speaking tours, eco-defense action camps, collective infoshops, squats, and free-stores, and taught at the Albany Free School (a school without tests, grades, or set curricula) and the Tamakoce Wilderness Program for homeschoolers. For the last several months I've been living and working at the Wagbo Farm and Education Center in the northwoods of Michigan. I can't wait to share my insights with campers and to learn from your unique experiences and perspectives.
Evan Wright, 28
Seattle, Washington
Advisor and project leader
Evan began his practice of self-education after reading The Teenage Liberation Handbook at 15. His curriculum included unlearning many unspoken lessons from school and re-establishing his own direct personal relationship to learning. He explored the British Museum; worked at a London soup kitchen run by nuns; raised harbor seal pups, disentangled sea lions from fishermen's nets in Mexico, and assisted in research of 5 ft. long green sea turtles in Costa Rica. Without school he studied the life of Albert Einstein, assisted with research on whales, and explored the writing of educational visionaries and critics.
Evan enjoys creating projects that bring people together and foster community among diverse groups of people. He serves on a nonprofit that offers leadership training in Seattle and is the founder/director of The Education Empowerment Project. For five years he was the founding director of a week-long adult unschoolers' gathering called Quo Vadis. As an adult, Evan has specialized in creating projects that bring people together. He enjoys facilitating connection among challengingly diverse groups of people and fostering community among those who may not fully appreciate what they have in common.
Evan has participated in Not Back to School Camp for a decade: for many years as an advisor and as a camper before that. At camp Evan has led or co-led workshops and discussions on: Marine Biology, How to Build an Underwater Robot, How to Change the World in 90 minutes, Stone Sculpting, Investing, How to Make Homemade Pasta, The Life of Albert Einstein, How to Begin a Project or Event, The Supreme Court of the United States, Barn Raising (a networking activity), Blues Dancing, The Effective Unschooler, and How to Get What You Want.
Denise Green, 30
Rochester, New York
Denise enjoys advising at NBTSC because the mere sight of a large group of young folks free to learn as they please, supported in their interests, many of whom have never set foot in a school, is something that she used to only dream about on long, tortuous bus rides to school back before she found the Handbook and convinced her parents to give the whole "home education" thing a shot.
These days, now that college is a thing of the past and her Sign Language Interpreting business has been up and running for a few years, she can be found enjoying this next phase in her life when she enjoys traveling (Central America, Europe, New England), nesting, gardening, and creating (her first quilt, original clothing, and humble pizzicato tunes on her violin, Eden). More recent research interests include pregnancy and un-hospital births, Plato's Symposium, how technology is affecting human interaction, and music theory.
NBTSC history: camper, 1997 (Oregon). Cook, 2006 (VT). Advisor, 2007-2009 (VT).
Cooks
At camp, our fabulous cooks prepare 3 meals a day, harmonizing with each other and with the many campers who help out in the kitchen. Food at NBTSC definitely does not happen in a factory atmosphere; while making dinner, the kitchen crew is liable to sing together and to discuss life, the universe, and everything--or garlic, blackberries, and pizza crust, which often amounts to the same thing. Anyway, because they have so much interaction with campers we consider them unofficial advisors and hire them with that in mind--they are advisor-caliber folks who can also make magic with potatoes and other miracles of nature.
Joshua Nicoson
Albany, New York
"Josh in a nutshell," by anonymous:
Joshua Nicoson is an utter genius. He was born in Manhattan, and until most recently has lived in such places as New Jersey, Indiana, Illinois and Vermont.
Laughter unabated, the thinnest darn feet, redbeard to be reckoned with, a capacity to meet folks young and old right exactly where they're at in the most allowing of ways, degree in structural engineering, a degree in architectural nerdiness, more knowledge of sports facts than most would give a bleep to know and even the ones who do he knows more than, pool shark--yikes, eats onions like they're apples, has a son who if he's lucky will grow up to be much like his father.
Marlene Depierre
Maui
It's a pleasure to welcome Marlene (who happens to be Nicole's mom and Lou's grandma!) back to camp for the second year in a row. She once did a fabulous job of coordinating our Oregon kitchen, and Nicole learned many of her own amazing ways with food direct from her mama. She says:
I am excited to work as a head cook and enjoy spending time in the kitchen with you.
I am part of the World Wide Association of the Study of Dreams and It would be my pleasure to assist any one of you in your understanding of your dreams. I do not interpret them, rather, I'm more like an interviewer asking you questions that lead you in the discovery of your own understanding of your dream symbology.
I am an esthetician as well and can advise you on how to take care of your skin using simple home remedies.
A few months ago, I purchased a copper Alembic still and started making my own essential oils and hydrosols which have enriched my existence on so many levels. I love using hydrosols in my cooking or drinking water.
I have an extensive knowledge on nutrition and continue to educate myself. I consider myself an eternal student.
I love swimming and I play frisbee golf almost every Saturdays which I have Josh (previous breakfast cook) to thank for.
I recently acquired a new passionate job by recovering old family slides from the garage where time, weather, neglect, molds and fungi have turned these slides into beautiful artwork . I now have a new relationship with molds. Meanwhile, I am mesmerized by this phenomenon and I intend to share it with the world.
I love to be part of the staff at NBTSC because I learn so much from you. It is always a great adventure!
Cameron Lovejoy, 22
Columbia, South Carolina
I am a passionate 22 year-old autodidact with an amazing unschooled life. My days are filled with travel, adventures, swing dancing, cooking, organic farming, drinking tea, research, love, community, music, journaling, backpacking, conferences, good hugs, yoga, family, friends, learning, and never-ending growth. My biggest accomplishment as a grown unschooler happened earlier this year. I successfully directed an unschooling gathering for 150 amazing people called The Autodidact Symposium (www.theautodidactsymposium.com). It was magnificent and included a bunch of the NBTSCamp community!
Mel Shaw, 23
Amherst, Massachussetts
I am very excited to be done with college this year (graduated in May!) and get back to learning what is important in life and reading whatever I want! Also, I am thrilled to be coming back to NBTSC to cook some awesome and delicious food! Since cooking at camp last year I have explored the wonderful world of creating different dishes and foods. To date I have made some great breads, made a few layer cakes, dabbled with Kombucha, and successfully mastered the art of yogurt making.
I was home/unschooled my whole life up until college, and since then have switched schools and majors three times, as I found the drudgery and strictness of conventional schooling tedious and uninspiring. As I am a west coast girl by birth, I have moved several times, from the west coast to the east coast, traveled across country, been to Mexico and Costa Rica and even lived for a few years in England.
Asides from traveling, I began working/volunteering at an organic farm when I was 11 and since then have worked at a turkey farm, a bakery, a couple coffee shops, a research greenhouse and even worked cleaning windows for a summer. I've also had several different educational experiments including being a certified bike mechanic, completing a certificate in a seasonal law enforcement ranger academy, dabbling in Spanish, and getting through sustainable agriculture courses for my B.S.
Asides from these continuously evolving educational interests; I love to read, write, knit, chill, sing, bike, hike, run, make music, and play games. I am also very passionate about all things sustainable, green, recyclable, and reusable. I also love conversing with people over how to make life decisions and how to make our passions become our livelihood.
I am ecstatic to be a part of NBTSC again after having been a camper in 2003 and 2004, junior staff in 2006, and cook in 2009.
Dish Queen
Allie Hendrick, 23
Madison, Wisconsin
I quit school in 10th grade after I read the Teenage Liberation Handbook. Since then, I have been on a journey of discovering a more beautiful, genuine and adventurous way of life. I love biking, writing, cooking, singing, dancing, growing food and making things. In 2008, I helped develop the High Desert Center in Paonia, CO, a friendly place to learn skills for sustainability. I am currently fascinated by creating with wool and felt, publishing my zine, School's Out, performing in musicals, and living in community with my 5 great roommates. This March, I went to Oaxaca, Mexico where I visited Universidad de la Tierra, an innovative activist organization and radical learning space. In the next few years I would like to become fluent in Spanish and help build connections between the U.S. and Mexican radical education movements. In the meantime I am finding/creating meaningful work, and striving to live with minimal cash and grand style. I am excited to return to Vermont and meet/reconnect with all the amazing people at NBTSC.
NBTSC history: Dish Queen 2009, Vermont Junior Staff, Oregon 2006, Camper, West Virginia 2003-2005
Night Owl
In early camp years, we had a few vigorous staffers--the most memorable was our beloved Billy (Upski) Wimsatt, also the author of a couple marvelous books--who tended to stay up all night right along with campers. More recently, as our staff aged and wrinkled, this niche didn't get filled as automatically, so we made an official position. Now, at each session somebody sweet and strong stays up late--until 2 or 3 a.m., depending on when most campers have nodded off--to be a reassuring and attentive adult presence.
Dian Clark-Graham, 28
Media, Pennsylvania
I have been unschooled my whole life. When people ask if I feel like I missed out not going to "regular" school I say, "Well, maybe I would have liked to go to a prom." I very much enjoyed the way my mom decided to help me learn. Since I was not force fed information I got the chance to develop a loving relationship around learning. Not Back to School Camp is a big part of my journey into adulthood. Being part of camp helped me to see that I wasn't as different as I had thought -- that all over the country and world there were others who thought and felt and believed like I did. Today I live and work in a small town. I've worked at Trader Joe's for the past six years as a crew member, then a supervisor, and now as a crew member again. In my spare time I garden at a CSA, I just learned how to knit and crochet, I enjoy cooking, and I just started a ceramics class. I have knowledge in: everything Trader Joe's, unschooling, being a manager of a grocery store, being a sister, depression, knitting, eating disorders, dealing with death, enjoying each day to the fullest, alcoholism, getting over being a nail biter, listening to my body, meditation and lots more!
(Grace adds: Dian's modesty never fails to shock me. I can't believe she doesn't mention the fact that she's a singer-songwriter. While that's no longer in the forefront of her life, most people who experience Dian singing are moved, even changed.)
camp history: Oregon: camper 1998-2000, junior staff 2003. Vermont night owl 2009.
Junior Staff
The junior staff does all kinds of logistical and grunty stuff that frees up the senior staff to focus on caring for campers directly--they scrub lots of pots and pans; supervise bathroom cleanup, the dish-line, and other chores; wake people up in the morning; count heads twice daily; cook; and do all kinds of other important stuff. We really appreciate and love our junior staffers! Their week on jr. staff also enables us to get to know them in a different context and find out how we think they might do in the future as potential senior staff, and it helps them see what being on staff entails. (Lots of fantasies are dashed, actually, when people discover for themselves how hard the staff works, so not everyone ends the week begging to join the senior staff!) Almost always, junior staffers are 19-21 year olds who have come to NBTSC previously as campers. Once in a while, they are folks completely new to our community. (As a bit of historical trivia, Nicole, Damian, and Jasmine all made their first appearances at camp as junior staffers.)
The VT Session 2 Junior Staff team is Ben Hayes, Kelsey Adams, and Jamie Page.
Back to administrative staff page
Oregon staff
Vermont Session 1 staff