Prior to establishing Beez Kneez Creative in March 2016, Nette’s career path led from interning with a large animal veterinary clinic in Zumbrota, Minnesota and at the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago, Illinois, to working as a classroom teacher, and then bridging the biology and education backgrounds through environmental education.
First as an educator at the MK Nature Center in Boise, Idaho and then at the Smithsonian’s National Zoological Park in Washington DC, Nette gained experience with outdoor education and informal learning. Following graduate school, she was a research assistant for the Institute for Learning Innovation, assisting with the first phase of the Why Zoos & Aquariums Matter project. From 2009-2016 Nette led nation-wide education initiatives and oversaw the professional development program at the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA).
Nette holds a Master of Arts in Education from American University and a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Swarthmore College; she earned a teaching certificate in secondary science and taught middle school science for three years in Saline, Michigan.
In 2010 Nette completed the Conservation Psychology Institute at Antioch University New England. She is recognized by the American Management Association for completing the course The Effective Facilitator: Maximizing Involvement and Results.
Conservation Education Leadership 