Prince William Forest

“These are your people!” Former NatureBridge staff member Cassie Hughes often thinks about this exclamation from her then-girlfriend (now spouse), which was elicited by her first visit to campus to see Cassie at work at Prince William Forest Park. Looking back now, Cassie agrees that her partner’s words succinctly summarized her NatureBridge experience; for Cassie, the best part of working at NatureBridge was “the people, for sure. An enthusiastic, passionate, fun group of people” who were incredibly supportive of Cassie and her family during several major life events and challenges.

When your classroom is the great outdoors, teaching and learning can happen anywhere! That’s the attitude Drew Gallant brings to his work with NatureBridge as a multi-campus educator. Drew first joined NatureBridge as an educator at our Prince William Forest campus in Virginia in the spring of 2022. From there, his multi-campus adventures have taken him to two of our California sites, Dangermond Preserve and Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Although it’s located across the country from his childhood home of Maine, Drew now considers our Golden Gate campus to be “home.” This isn’t surprising, considering his favorite NatureBridge memory is that of sighting a pod of dolphins off Rodeo Beach with a group of Golden Gate students!

Congratulations to Kim Hanson who recently accepted the permanent position of Mid-Atlantic Regional Director after serving as Interim Director for the Mid-Atlantic Region. Now in her third decade of working for NatureBridge (she began in 2002!), Kim brings a wealth of experience, wisdom and vision to the role.

NatureBridge recognizes and is grateful for the land upon which we are privileged to run our programs and the indigenous peoples who continue to care for and have stewarded these places for thousands of years.

As a physician in Washington, DC, Laura knows all about the importance of the physical and mental health benefits of spending time outdoors. That’s why she has been on the board for our Mid-Atlantic Region (MARE) campus located in Prince William Forest for the last six years.

This past Spring our Prince William Forest campus reopened after a two-year hiatus. In addition to the joy of having students back, we had the honor of welcoming Jason Brown, a teacher who holds the title of having attended more NatureBridge programs in Prince William than any other teacher in our 50-year history. We checked in with Jason to learn about his experience with NatureBridge over the years, the way nature has impacted his own life, and what keeps him and his students coming back year after year.

Welcome to the second park featured in our Sense of Place series: Prince William Forest Park. In 2012, NatureBridge opened its first east coast campus at Prince William Forest Park, the largest green space in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Located just 35 miles from the city, this 16,000 acres of woodlands are where nature and history unite. Here, students explore a Piedmont forest ecosystem while challenging themselves physically, building meaningful relationships and discovering a caring relationship with the natural world.

Since March 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic has shut down the increasingly popular programs in Prince William Forest, where programs like NatureBridge are a rarity. The campus pivoted to distance learning and “school yard” programs with excellent results. Still, teachers and students have been clamoring for in-person programs to return as soon as it is safe to do so.

On the eve of April 16, 2012, Vanessa Morel busied herself with last-minute preparations in Prince William Forest Park; in less than 24 hours, the first group of school children would be visiting for NatureBridge’s inaugural program in Prince William.

“I was like a mother hen that just couldn't settle,” says Vanessa, the Founder and Principal of NextGen Conservation who was NatureBridge’s first Washington D.C. Director at the time. “It was time for me to go home and leave it in the hands of the overnight staff, but I almost couldn't leave because I just felt this awesome responsibility. Would it all work out?”