Outdoor U & Abbey Arboretum Staff

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A logo featuring the text "Saint John's" at the top, with "OUTDOOR" written in large green script over a gray tree graphic. Below the tree is a black "U" partially obscured by the tree's trunk and branches.

General Information:

Peter Engel Science Center, 2nd Floor, SJU Campus

320-363-3163

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Outdoor U Educators

A man with a beard and mustache smiles at the camera while standing outside in front of two large tree trunks. He is wearing a teal polo shirt. The background is filled with green foliage.

John Geissler

Outdoor U Director Abbey Land Manager

320-363-3126

A person with short, light brown hair smiles for a selfie in front of a lush, green forest scene featuring a rocky stream and a cascading waterfall in the background.

Nicholas Mertens

Department Coordinator: Outdoor U, Environmental Studies, and Sustainability Office

320-363-3163

A smiling woman with long brown hair stands in front of a wall of large gray rocks, wearing a black jacket over a blue shirt with a white logo and some text.

Sierra Hietala

CSB+SJU Outdoor Education Program Manager

320-363-2136

A man in an outdoor jacket and baseball cap kneels by a shoreline, holding a piece of ice in one hand. Behind him are rocky cliffs, water with floating ice chunks, and distant snow-capped mountains under a cloudy sky.

Owen Connell

Assistant Director PreK-12 Environmental Education

320-363-3133

A smiling woman in a yellow hoodie stands outdoors among green plants, pointing at a leafy branch. She wears glasses, a blue crossbody bag, and holds paper. The sky is partly cloudy and trees are in the background.

Jenny Hengel

Environmental Educator ~ Summer Camp Coordinator ~ Prep School Instructor

320-363-3166

A smiling person wearing glasses and a "Purple Rain" T-shirt stands in a green field, holding a small frog and wearing a wooden name tag that says "Caitlynn." Trees and cloudy sky are in the background.

Caitlynn LaSota

Environmental Educator Community Education Coordinator

320-363-3164

A smiling person wearing glasses and a green sweater holds a spotted baby goat outside on a farm, with a red barn and cloudy sky in the background.

Dayna Wiley

Environmental Education Fellow 2025-26

Abbey Land Stewardship

A man with short brown hair, wearing a green shirt, holds a tray containing small green plants. He is standing in front of the open bed of a pickup truck, outdoors in a sunlit area with trees and a stone wall in the background.

Con Brady

Abbey Forest Professional

A person wearing an orange vest and gray cap is measuring the circumference of a tree with a yellow measuring tape in a forest. The tree has two blue painted lines around its trunk. The ground is covered with fallen leaves.

Elly Backes

Abbey Forest Professional