Alyssa Casey

Mtns. Course Director and Lead Instructor, At-Risk Program Instructor

Allison Croley

At-Risk Program Instructor

"Seeing students realize there is more in them than they know."

Biography

Allison is a California native with a pipe dream to be a professional surfer. Fortunately, she found another passion working for the NCOBS At-Risk Program in Florida and avoided the embarrassment of attempting to surf professionally. Allison is a lead instructor for 20-28 day flat-water canoe courses at both the Scottsmoor and Key Largo bases. Since working for Outward Bound, Allison has developed a sincere love for the at-risk student population and has become a huge believer in compassion-based outdoor experiences. Her favorite part about course is watching her students become more self-reliant and begin connecting the dots between course experiences and home life. 

Charlie Gliniak

Outer Banks, Mtns and FL Instructor

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do" -Mark Twain

Biography

Charlie grew up in Seattle Washington. When in high school Charlie went on a three week sea kayaking trip in the Canadian gulf, which spurred her passion for the outdoors. She attended the University of Oregon, where she gained a degree in Psychology with a minor in Outdoor Education and Leadership. Before working for NCOBS Charlie previously worked as an intern with the Duke Outdoor Adventure’s program and as a sea kayak instructor in the San Juan Islands in Washington. 

Certifications

Charlie is certified as a Wilderness First Responder and in CPR. 

Jen Grady

FL and Mtns. Instructor; Professional Development Program Facilitator

“Find out who you are and do it on purpose.” ~Dolly Parton

 Biography

Growing up with a greenbelt in the backyard of her hometown of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Jen spent many hours exploring this small but wonderful wooded space undisturbed. This combined with family hiking and camping trips to the Cumberland Plateau and Great Smoky Mountains grew her love for the great outdoors.  During her time at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, Jen spent a great deal of time working for the school’s Outdoor Programs and at Watauga High School’s Mountain Alliance program. She received a degree in Business Management and a minor in Recreation Management.  After graduation Jen spent some time working behind a desk but decided that was not the place for her. 

Jeff Goldberg

Outward Bound Professional Senior Facilitator

"To serve, to strive and not to yield."

Biography

As a professional facilitator for over twenty eight years, Jeff has designed and delivered dynamic workshops and programs that create learning experiences focusing on team development, leadership development and cultural understanding.  In addition to working with Outward Bound since 1990, Jeff has also worked with the Anti-Defamation League for over 20 years as a Training Specialist.

His extensive and varied experience, combined with an M.A. in Community Counseling, has enabled Jeff to work with many Fortune 500 companies, major universities and schools across the US.  Jeff’s passion is the art of leadership and to help develop leadership skills in current and future leaders.

Sarah Goldman

Mtns, Outer Banks and FL Lead Instructor; Outward Bound Professionals Facilitator

“Try to be one of those people on whom nothing is lost.” -Henry James

In 1982, Sarah’s mother Cecele attended an over 30 adult renewal course at Table Rock here at NCOBS. Soon after, her father Michael attended an Outward Bound course in the Boundary Waters at the Voyageur Outward Bound School. Both courses served as pivotal life experiences for her parents and therefore growing up, Sarah was consistently told, “you don’t have to college, but you do have to go to Outward Bound.” In 1993, Sarah had the opportunity to embark on her own Outward Bound experience in the Pacific Northwest spending 21 days in the Cascade Mountains. That experience not only served as a familial rite of passage, but also solidified her interest in the outdoors and doing hard things.

Sarah attended university at Virginia Tech and returned home to the Washington DC area after school. She proudly served as a Professional Firefighter/EMT in Fairfax County, Virginia and later as a Police Officer in Arlington County before ultimately relocating to the mountains of Western North Carolina. 

Trish Haitz

FL Base Camp Program Director; Sea Kayak Specialist; Mtns Instructor; Veterans Program Instructor

“'Life is a daring adventure or nothing at all.' ~ Helen Keller"

Biography

Trisha was inspired to work for Outward Bound as an opportunity to give back to the world and make an individual attempt to educate young people about the world around them.  This intention has never waned. Trisha continues to seek out personal inspiration by taking time for adventures and challenging herself to gain new skills. This inspiration is often found from the cockpit of a sailboat, a sea kayak, or from the saddle of a bicycle.  She continues to give back to Outward Bound by serving in a variety of different roles and working with a variety of different populations.  

Spencer Huffman

Climbing Program Manager

Addie Hurwitz

Mountains Instructor

“Trails are like that: you’re floating along in a Shakespearean Arden paradise and expect to see nymphs and fluteboys, then suddenly you’re struggling in a hot broiling sun in dust and nettles and poison oak... just like life” - Jack Kerouac 

Biography

Addie grew up in the Boston area, doing a lot of skiing, running, and sports in general. A desire to do something challenging led her to do 3 summers of backpacking and trail crew teen trips in the White Mountains of New Hampshire while in high school. After entering college very undecided, she randomly found the Recreation, Parks, and Tourism Management major. She felt that a career in the outdoor recreation realm would certainly be something that she could truly enjoy and be fulfilled by. 

Kristen Keane

Lead Instructor in the Mtns and FL

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return." - David Bowie

Biography

Kristen is originally from Charlotte, NC. She grew up in a large family and would often be found with her cousins exploring the creek and woods behind her parents house, discovering wildlife or building forts. While pursuing a degree in Outdoor Leadership at North Carolina State University she was exposed to the idea of the outdoors as a profession. She met and learned from multiple former NCOBS staff members who shaped her leadership style. After graduation, she spent a few years working in the Rocky Mountains in Grand County, Colorado where she picked up any job that involved being outdoors and working with people. The winters got longer and colder and family ties were calling, so she decided it was time to come home to NC and found her place at NCOBS. 

Jordan Kincaid

Whitewater Program Manager

What inspired you to work at NCOBS?

What inspired me was the opportunity to coach people through experiences in the outdoors which can change their perception of the world and what is possible for them.  

Miah McClinton

Mtns Instructor; FL Classic Instructor

"My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style." ~ Maya Angelou

Biography

Ann McElfresh

Outward Bound Professional Senior Facilitator

"There is more in us than we know."

Biography

Ann has a passion for creating effective work environments.  As a business coach and group facilitator she has helped thousands of people in corporations & educational systems to discover blind spots and adjust to maximize what works.

Ann’s work as a compassionate consultant, trainer and group facilitator spring from her years as an operating room nurse. In that close and sometimes intense environment, Ann learned about personalities, interactions between people and helped clients manage these interpersonal dynamics to produce solid results.  Ann believes that if you are going to be at work for eight + hours a day, you should enjoy it!  

Eli Mills

FL and Mtns. Instructor

"Your quality of life is in proportion, always, to your capacity for delight. Your capacity for delight is the gift for paying attention." ~Julia Cameron

Biography

Eli grew up on a small farm in north central Iowa. His thirst for exploration started with bike rides on endless gravel roads, forts built on the banks of the Winnebago River, and annual cross-country vacations in his family's big blue van. Eli graduated from Iowa State University with a Bachelor's degree in Child, Adult, and Family Services in 2006 and found his way to North Carolina to accept a position as an instructor in wilderness therapy shortly thereafter. 

Caleb Morrison

Climbing Program Director

"If you want to climb it badly enough, you will. So... why bother?" ~Doug Scott 

Biography:

Caleb has been instructing rock climbing in one way or another for over ten years. He cut his teeth on gritstone in the Peak District of the UK before climbing all over the East Coast of Australia. He started with the North Carolina Outward Bound School in 2013 as an Instructor and Climbing Specialist.

While climbing itself is an obvious passion, what really inspires Caleb is seeing the transformation that occurs when someone overcomes a challenge that they didn’t think was possible. 

Anna Parrott

Whitewater Program Manager, Mtns, FL and Patagonia Instructor

"Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power. " ~Tao Te Ching

Biography

Anna grew up outside of Boston, spending her summers and high school years in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It was through her love of swimming, biking, and soccer that she cultivated a love for the power of nature. She enrolled on her first Outward Bound course in Colorado when she was sixteen, and followed her new found passion to the Bahamas on a sea kayaking course as her senior thesis project in high school. 

Taylor Petty

Mtns Instructor

Stiles Rader

Associate Program Director, Patagonia Lead Instructor & Whitewater Specialist

“Find out who you are and do it on purpose” – Dolly Parton

Biography 

Stiles grew up spending every weekend and holidays in Jonas Ridge, NC with her family. Table Rock and the outdoors quickly felt like home even as a kid. Stiles’s love for the outdoors blossomed in college when she spent time working in Brevard NC, Alaska, and in Boone NC. During her time at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, Stiles spent a great deal of time working for the school’s Outdoor Programs, Recreation Management Department and at Watauga High School’s Mountain Alliance program. She received a degree Recreation Management with a concentration in Outdoor Experiential Education. Stiles was recently the recipient of Boone NC’s Appalachian Adventure Achievement Award for her involvement in the mountain community and dedication to mountain sports.

During her college years Stiles was a student on our 72-day International Leadership Semester course. A life changing opportunity and course that sent her straight to the door of our staffing coordinator.

Jemar Raheem

Outward Bound Atlanta Community Program Coordinator

You must be open. There is no way to translate all the magic of an intentional experience if ,You, the very catalyst are not receptive to its intensity.

Biography

Jemar's work is distinguished by successfully engaging individuals, and communities in leadership enhancing experiences that shift personal perspectives and improve collective achievement.

He always finds new connections to his purpose when outdoors. He believes with each step there is something to be gained. Being aware keeps him receptive to those connections. 

Claire Sharp

At-Risk Program Instructor

Amy Simpkins

Outward Bound Atlanta Community Program Coordinator

What is your role with NCOBS?

I schedule, design, deliver, and evaluate the safety and meaningfulness of NCOBS’s programs in Atlanta. 

What inspired you to work at NCOBS?

I began my work with OBA through the AmeriCorps program in 2005 and loved working with the students we served through environmental education and ropes course/leadership development programs. I continue to be inspired by the students' sense of wonder and passion for developing as young leaders in the Atlanta community and the community's enthusiasm for supporting our growing program.

Michelle Sissine

Outward Bound Professional Senior Facilitator

"You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation." ~Plato

Biography 

Michelle Sissine has nearly three decades of experience facilitating groups on outdoor challenges and in the classroom.  She concentrates on growing the soft skills necessary to  become more intuitive and effective leaders.

Michelle believes that experiential learning is key in unwinding ineffective behavior patterns and embodying new ways to move through the world.  “Engaging in safe processes under the care of skilled facilitators, in environments conducive to physical, mental, and emotional risk-taking, encourages the development of individuals and teams from the inside out. It improves leadership and positive change within communities and at at every level of organizations.”

Anthony Sousa

Mountains, Outer Banks and Florida Instructor

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

Biography

Anthony grew up playing in the outdoors with his family in Maine and never stopped his lifetime interest in outdoor experience and education. Anthony discovered Outward Bound and began his journey toward being an instructor as a student on a veterans program course in the Florida Everglades. In Outward Bound he found a community that shared his ethic of service beyond self, love for the environment, and dedication to improving lives of people of all ages and backgrounds. Anthony has been a volunteer leader with the Sierra Club and their youth outings program for several years and found many parallels in Outward Bound.

Jennifer Stewart

Outward Bound Professional Senior Facilitator

“Be nice. Stay safe. Have fun every day!”

Biography

Jennifer draws on 30 years of experiential education providing adventure trips and challenge course programs at several Georgia universities.  She has made her career out of facilitating individual and team leadership programs for students, administrators and business, organizations.   She is passionate about opportunities for people to learn about themselves, others, and effective team dynamics.  

Bob Stout

Outward Bound Professional Senior Facilitator

Lizzie Thompson

Mtns and FL Lead Instructor

"I believe COMPASSION -- for our world, each other, and ourselves -- is at the heart of every Outward Bound course. Engaging with students in discovering what that means is why I instruct. "

Biography

Lizzie sees her role as a North Carolina Outward Bound instructor as that of an educator, risk manager, mentor and constant learner. In her years with NCOBS, the thing she's loved most is getting to see students overcome challenges -- be they physical, mental or interpersonal -- that they never thought they could. Their strength is what keeps Lizzie coming back to NCOBS and what she thinks will keep her working in education in some way or another for the rest of her life. 

Before coming to Outward Bound, Lizzie grew up in Washington, DC. In college, Lizzie became involved with a pre-orientation backpacking program, which sparked her excitement about education in the outdoors. 

Lila Todd

Mtns Instructor

"We are crew, not passengers." ~Kurt Hahn

Biography

Lila Todd began working with North Carolina Outward Bound School as an Intern in the Blue Ridge Mountains. She made this decision after completing a 28-day Blue Ridge Mountains Backpacking, Climbing and Whitewater Canoeing course out of the Cedar Rock Base the summer before her senior year at NYU. It was during this experience that she realized the impact that challenge, self-reflection, and the outdoors can have in one’s life. She realized her passion for helping others develop their potential and has been working with Outward Bound ever since. Lila works most with Struggling Youth in the North Carolina Mountains. When not in the field, Lila spends her time doing yoga, reading books and eating lots of fruit as well as going on adventures of her own to places such as Patagonia, Nepal and Peru in order to push her own limits and continue to grow as an outdoor professional.

Michelle Tuday

Mtns Instructor; Climbing Specialist

"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving." ~Albert Einstein

Biography

Michelle split her time studying Outdoor Experiential Education and playing Varsity Field Hockey while attending college at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. Prior to education focused in the outdoors, Michelle grew up participating in the Girl Scouts and exploring the woods and creeks near her home in Delaware. She has worked in residential and wilderness therapeutic settings, summer camps with special needs as well as gifted students, and had a year long stint as a head naturalist, leading environmental and early childhood education programs at a state park. 

Lindsay Ward

Program Director

Biography

As Lindsay’s mom will tell you, the one thing she never wanted to be growing up was a teacher. (Astronaut, gardener, rally car driver, and fitness professional were all more highly ranked than teacher.) But to everyone’s apparent surprise, Lindsay discovered a passion for teaching others about nature and leadership and has adjusted smoothly into life as an outdoor educator. Lindsay has instructed many of the different course types offered at NCOBS, including backpacking, whitewater canoeing and rock climbing in the North Carolina mountains and coastal canoeing in the Florida Everglades. Her favorite courses to work are all-girls courses, which may stem from her history as a lifelong Girl Scout. The opportunity to use personal challenge to empower students to care for themselves, for others, and for the world around them is what keeps Lindsay coming to work every day.