EE Program Staff
Dave Szczygiel has been in the role of Environmental Education Consultant for the Ann Arbor Public Schools since 1997. Dave is an Ann Arbor native, having attended Wines, Forsythe and Pioneer. Dave started working at the Ann Arbor YMCA in 1976. He is proud to be the longest continuous Ann Arbor Y member. Dave earned a Biology degree (wetlands focus) from Eastern Michigan University and a Michigan teaching certification in 1986. His hobbies include hunting, angling, biking, nature hiking, upcycling, lapidary and more. Dave is also an honorary Kiwanis member.
Dave began teaching in the Ann Arbor Public Schools in 1986. Dave taught 7th, 8th and 9th grade science and completed a Master’s degree in General Science in 1990 from Eastern Michigan University. Over the last 23 years, in addition to conducting daily field trips for the EE program (K-6), Dave has also been involved with collaborative projects such as developing a unit to address Gyspy Moth sampling, developing a Climate Change and Forestry Unit, and working on a variety of projects with partners such as the University of Michigan SEAS, The Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation, The Southeastern Michigan Community Foundation, The Huron River Watershed Council, City of Ann Arbor, Washtenaw County, Scio Township, The Brokaw Foundation, and Argus Farm Stop. Dave has received a recognition award from the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education for significant contributions to the field of environmental education.
Dave is currently helping to develop the Freeman Environmental Education Center initiative for Ann Arbor Public Schools.
Coert Ambrosino has been serving in the role of Environmental Education Teacher since January 2019. Coert is a product of AAPS (having attended Abbot, Forsythe, and Pioneer), with fond memories of EE programming with Bill Browning. He did his undergraduate work at the University of Michigan in Latin American Studies and Environmental Studies, completing a senior thesis on environmental and social impacts of monoculture pineapple production in Costa Rica after attending a semester abroad ecology program there. Coert later returned to UM to earn his Masters degree in Elementary Education.
Before joining the EE program, Coert taught for ten years in North Carolina, Colorado, and Michigan. His professional accomplishments include facilitating district-level professional development, serving as a Gifted & Talented Program school liaison, coauthoring multiple academic articles, and being honored with a statewide recognition award for exemplary teaching. He also has a rich background in camping, having spent two summers working at camps in upstate New York and seven summers at Ann Arbor YMCA Camp Al-Gon-Quian in roles ranging from nature activity leader, to head male counselor, to assistant director. Coert has served in various instructional roles for AAPS, and he is delighted to now work with students from a wide range of grade levels all throughout the district.
Coert is a Certified Interpretive Guide through the National Association for Interpretation. He is a lifelong learner who has completed training in NGSX, Project Wet, and Master Rain Gardener certification. He is also a member of the Michigan Alliance for Environmental and Outdoor Education and has earned his EE certification through its EEC-Professional program.
Environmental Specialists
The EE Program has a small team of talented naturalists who serve as substitute trip leaders and provide additional staff capacity. We are so grateful for the dedication and skill that these awesome folks provide for our students!
Esha Biswas is a graduate student studying Conservation Ecology at the University of Michigan's School for Environment & Sustainability (SEAS). She is collaborating with the Freeman EE Center on her Master's Practicum, which includes restoration ecology, environmental education, and the arts. Esha also works on garden-based food justice education with K-12 students as the Youth Programs Coordinator at Growing Hope, a non-profit in Ypsilanti, MI.
Elle Bogle is a naturalist with Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation. She is a Certified Interpretive Guide and a Certified Master Herpetologist with an area of focus on vernal pools. She leads the vernal pool volunteer monitoring program for Washtenaw County Parks in collaboration with the Michigan Vernal Pool Partnership.
