Director & Park-wide Support

Susannah (aka Teacher Banana) is originally from Hershey, PA, but has been a Brooklynite for 22 years. She holds a BA in English with a minor in Women's Studies, a study abroad certificate from the University of Wales, an MFA in Poetry from Brooklyn College, and has also continued her education with courses and certificates through CUNY's New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute. Susannah has 16 years of teaching experience with ages 2-10. She is certified in Infant, Child and Adult CPR for First Responders and Wilderness Advanced First Aid. She is also certified as a Mental Health First Responder.

Susannah has found her pedagogical home outside in the park surrounded by children and nature. She believes that children are powerful in both body and mind and possess the skills and strength to complete difficult tasks independently. She wants to teach children that it is a sign of strength to ask for help/cry/try again (repeat).

Susannah lives in Kensington with her husband and their two spirited children. She loves baseball (Go Phillies!), birdwatching, swimming, playing strategy board games, 90s R&B, and photos of old amusement parks. She believes Doritos are a food group, does the NYT crossword puzzle every day (nerd alert), and reads 50 books a year. (Hit her up for book recs)!

Assistant Director & Park-wide Support

Nina moved to the big city from the mountains of Asheville, NC. She has a BA in Theatre Studies and a minor in Education from Guilford College.

Since joining BND in Oct 2018, Nina has discovered a newfound love for all things feathered, leafy, woody, and muddy. She feels so fortunate to have found a career where she gets to teach kids to love and care for the earth and all the little critters on it.

Nina lives in PLG with her husband and their little black cat, Bruce. She enjoys crochet, embroidery, birdwatching, binge-watching tv shows, and hiking.

Nina is certified in Infant, Child and Adult CPR as a First Responder and also in Advanced Wilderness First Aid.

Teacher

Alice Ryan spent her early childhood in Germany where she loved to go for walks in the woods with her family. She is a great believer in the forest school philosophy, has over a decade of child care experience, and is grateful to be part of Brooklyn Nature Days. In addition to her love of nature, Alice has a passion for music, dance, and storytelling. She is a graduate of the Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts and loves to sing songs and read to the kids at BND. Alice lives with her husband and two children in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.

Teacher

Bryce Sullivan grew up in the Boston area, where she formed a strong connection to the local landscape, spending much of her free time exploring the city. She went on to complete her undergraduate degree at Bennington College in Vermont, where she developed a dedicated focus on environmental education, working with children of all ages in a variety of indoor and outdoor settings. She is passionate about facilitating meaningful relationships between young people and their environment, and believes that a play-based approach encourages a love of learning rooted in curiosity, empathy, and resilience. A Brooklyn resident since 2022, Bryce enjoys biking, reading, and working in her garden.

Teacher

Cher is originally from southern Connecticut and is a new resident of Brooklyn. They have been teaching early childhood education and Afterschool Education for the past year and assisting in teaching elementary art over the last 3 summers. They got their Bachelors Degree in Fine Arts from the University of Hartford’s Hartford Art School in 2025.

Cher was previously working at a nature based pre-school in New Haven CT and has been in love with the methodologies and practices of a nature based and child led education ever since.

Their connection with nature started long before then in their childhood home with just under an acre of land and a variety of farm animals they considered pets. They now are bringing their love of nature and the arts to Brooklyn Nature Days for the summer of 2026.

Cher is certified in Infant, Child, and Adult CPR and First Aid.ption goes here

Teacher

Derick grew up with two younger brothers on a cul-de-sac in Rockford, Illinois. Every summer and winter the whole family would drive out west to the Rockies to camp, ski, bike, swim, raft, hike, and complete Junior Ranger scavenger hunts.

For the year and change that he spent in northern Colorado during the early stages of the pandemic, Derick was an assistant early childhood teacher at River Song Waldorf School. As a teacher, he is phlegmatic, curious, and holds deep respect for the autonomy of children. He is now happy to call Prospect Lefferts Gardens home and loves all the natural beauty that Prospect Park has to offer. The longest adventure he ever went on was a stretch of el camino de Santiago, from Irún to Bilbao, in five days!

Derick holds a BA in Writing from Sarah Lawrence College, where he was captain of the Men's Swim Team, and an MFA from the Iowa Playwrights Workshop, during the completion of which he learned (among other things) how to play volleyball. When he's not teaching, spot him at a local café and ask about what he's reading.

Derick is certified in Infant, Child, and Adult CPR and First Aid

Teacher

Ila grew up in Topanga, California, exploring the Santa Monica Mountains, the state park just up the street from her house. As a founding student at a nature-based high school in Topanga, she developed a strong connection with the outdoors. During her junior year, she spent a semester in an expeditionary program, where she and other students traversed 500 miles through Vermont and Canada by skiing, canoeing, rowing, and biking. After graduating highschool, she earned her BA in Studio Art from Oberlin College. Ila loves working with children and has experience as a nanny, camp counselor, and substitute teacher. Since moving to Brooklyn, she has enjoyed exploring Prospect Park. In her spare time, Ila likes listening to audiobooks, going on walks, spending time with friends, and painting!

Teacher

Jae is a native New Yorker, mother of 2, devout yogini, and nature lover.  When her children were young she facilitated free weekly meet-ups in the park for families and toddlers. Having raised her children in the park, she has witnessed first hand, the power of unstructured play in a natural environment.  As an “edu-carer” she hopes to instill a deep sense of curiosity and wonder, as well as gratitude for the natural world.  She is so very grateful for the resource that is Prospect Park, and honored to join the Brooklyn Nature Days team. 

Teacher

Mariana was born and raised in the Dominican Republic and has called Brooklyn home for the last 5 years. She is fluent in both the Spanish and English language and has extensive experience working with children as a childcare provider for local families as well as a mother to her own two beautiful, inquisitive children. Since her early years growing up in the Dominican Republic, Mariana has always been drawn to nature and the outdoors and is thrilled to be part of a program that matches her enthusiasm for child-led exploration and learning. Mariana’s joyful sense of curiosity is contagious and mirrored in her students excited faces as she empowers them to discover new things about themselves and the natural world around them.

Teacher

Maya grew up in Portland, Maine, where she spent her days exploring the woods and the beaches and attended a forest school herself! Maya has been working with kids outdoors and indoors for the past five years – she has been a counselor at a coastal farm camp, a creative writing teacher, and a tutor! Since graduating from Oberlin College last May with a degree in creative writing and education, she has been teaching environmental science in the Bronx. She loves any opportunity in which she can help kids to stretch their curiosity and imaginations in creative and silly ways. In her free time, Maya loves reading, writing, knitting, and going on bike rides. Maya is incredibly excited to work with Brooklyn Nature Days this summer and share her love of nature and playing outside with campers!

Maya is certified in Infant, Child, and Adult First Aid and CPR

Teacher

Rizzo was raised in the woods of Connecticut and was educated by his parents in the identification and stewardship of nature from a young age. They have always loved children and have been working with kids since his first babysitting gig in middle school. Since moving to New York in 2021, he has been a full-time nanny. He realized you could combine a reverence for nature and child education when he first started working at Woodcock Nature Center: the nature sanctuary, animal rehab and summer camp in Connecticut that he went to as a kid. Since then, they have aimed their career towards being an early childhood nature educator. Rizzo has a BFA in Theater Performance from Chapman University, and is pursuing certification in Nature education for early childhood. Rizzo’s teaching style is centered around empathy and kindness. They believe children deserve autonomy and should be given the space and respect to exercise it. Rizzo LOVES to read and has taught himself ecology, mycology, and sustainable foraging. While not working, he will most likely be found doing those things or community organizing for the Trans and Gender Non-Conforming of Brooklyn.

Rizzo is certified in Infant, Child, and Adult CPR and First Aid

Teacher

Sofia is an educator and artist from Massachusetts, and she often finds curiosity, purpose, and inspiration in the natural environments surrounding her. She has experience working in forest preschools as well as indoor programs. Her educational philosophies center curiosity, exploration, and creativity, which she finds most often encouraged by natural environments. She is a graduate from Boston College, where she majored in Psychology and held minors in Studio Arts & Hispanic Studies. She has also worked for artists, galleries, and personal art projects that center collaboration, the climate crisis, and healing in art making. 

In her free time, Sofia loves making ceramics, cooking, biking, dancing, going to the movies, spending time with her family and friends, and being outside!

Sofia is certified in Infant, Child, and Adult CPR, and First Aid

Teacher

Xylem is originally from the Hudson Valley and currently lives in Brooklyn. They graduated from Binghamton University in 2017 with a degree in biology, focusing on ecology, evolution, and animal behavior.

A lifelong nature enthusiast, Xylem enjoys hiking, camping, and stargazing whenever they can. In their free time, they also love to swim in the ocean, sing, paint and draw, play video games, and deepen their knowledge of their favorite trees.

Xylem is continually inspired by the natural curiosity children bring to the world. They are passionate about helping kids connect with and appreciate nature in meaningful ways. Xylem (formerly going by Kate) has been teaching at Brooklyn Nature Days since 2021.

Xylem is certified in Infant, Adult, and Child CPR and First Aid

Founder

Sarah is a Bank Street Graduate with an M.S. Ed. in Early Childhood Elementary Education, and has taught in a variety of public and private school settings in New York and New Jersey for the past 19 years. She is the 2018 recipient of the Margaret O’Neill Early Childhood Nature Educator Award for her work with Brooklyn Nature Days. Sarah is certified as a Forest School Kindergarten Teacher through Cedarsong Nature School and is currently pursuing her New York Master Naturalist Certification through Cornell University’s Cooperative Extension Program. She currently serves on the Board of the Eastern Regional Association of Forest and Nature Schools (ERAFANS). Sarah holds Permanent Teaching Certification in both New York and New Jersey. She is inspired by children's authenticity, energy, and expression and is rooted in the idea that we are always learning through experience, reflection, and finding the magic in day to day moments. Sarah believes strongly in the freedom, health, and creativity that ample time in nature can provide.