Meet Darien Becker, Welty’s new Environmental Educator!

Welcome Darien Becker, our new environmental educator at Welty. Darien received her bachelor’s degree in environmental biology at Cornerstone University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, with an interest in ecological research. She also found a passion for environmental education after assisting the education coordinator at a research institute, leading bird walks for the public and school groups, and completing an education internship at a local nature center. The problem with this internship, though, was she didn’t interact with students as much as she would have liked.

L to R: Darien holding a Blue Racer in Michigan; a Greater Prairie-Chicken in Oklahoma; an American Alligator in South Carolina; and a Common Snapping Turtle in West Virginia.

Immediately after graduation in 2016, Darien moved to Oklahoma to study Greater Prairie-Chickens (a species of conservation concern in Oklahoma) as a research technician. She then moved to South Carolina for a year and worked as an environmental educator. There, she taught students about topics such as barrier island formation, maritime forest succession, and a plethora of plants and animals like insects, birds, fish, amphibians, and reptiles (including alligators–wild and captive!).

After finishing a school year in South Carolina, Darien moved to Kansas, where she studied grassland birds (similar to the work she did in Michigan and Oklahoma) with students from Emporia State University and Wichita State University. When the summer in Kansas was over, she moved to West Virginia and completed her master’s degree in wildlife and fisheries resources at West Virginia University. For three years, she studied the effects of different land use practices on turtle movement, abundance, and heavy metal bioaccumulation (such as lead and mercury). You can find some of her published research collaborations in Wetland Science in Practice, Jalaplavit, Herpetological Review, and Ecology and Evolution.

On her days off, Darien enjoys hiking and birdwatching with her husband and dog. She also has started learning how to rollerblade! Darien has a passion for plants and animals (especially birds and reptiles) and loves to share her love for nature with others. She is looking forward to meeting you and getting to learn more about the awesome wonders Welty has to offer.

We are so excited to have Darien on staff. The Board recently voted to expand the Environmental Educator position to full-time, and we are lucky to have her expertise at Welty. During the summer she will help with summer camp and field trips, but also start planning with Aaron on the fall programs and getting ready for NSF teacher workshops. Great things are in the works!