OUR TEAM
Leaders in environmental education and community-based learning
Anna Blazer, Director
Anna Balzer (she/her) is thrilled to serve as the new Director of the Southeast Michigan Stewardship Coalition (SEMIS). In this role she will support the SEMIS team and members to co-create, shape, and implement a collaborative vision for place-based, eco-justice education in the region. Anna will also establish, steward, and deepen connections across the region and throughout a national place-based education ecosystem and help amplify the stories and impact of and bring additional resources to our regional work. Anna has been connected with SEMIS since 2014, first as an AmeriCorps Green School Coordinator with EcoWorks’ Youth Energy Squad (YES) and then throughout 6 years as Program Manager and Co-Director.
Bio for Anna
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Lisa Voelker, Programming Director
Lisa supports the development, design and implementation of professional learning programs for teachers and community partners as well as program facilitation and general event planning. In her role, Lisa coordinates our teacher coaching team and place-based education project design. Other responsibilities include project management, curriculum writing storytelling and reporting, developing and stewarding partnerships with district leaders, non-profits, government agencies, grassroots activists, and other school and community education leaders, and co-leading communications. Lisa has been with the SEMIS Coalition since 2015.
Bio for Lisa
Lisa has expertise in Ecojustice Education, Social Foundations of Education and Place-Based Education pedagogy. Lisa holds an undergraduate degree in Visual Arts Education and a Masters of Arts in Social Foundations of Education, both from Eastern Michigan University. Prior to joining the SEMIS Coalition, Lisa taught Pre-K, elementary and middle school visual arts education and also worked in alternative education classrooms as aid to the main teacher. Lisa grew up in southeast Michigan where the Great Lakes was something she took for granted. As an adult, the responsibility weighs heavy in her heart. Working in collaboration with others on long term and short term projects is something she loves, especially with teachers! One of her favorite job aspects is how much the team laughs and works well through creative and challenging ideas.
Place-Based Education Consultants
Sarah Halson, Education Specialist in Outdoor Learning
Sarah (she/her) is honored to be a member of the leadership team at the Stewardship Coalition (SEMIS). In this role, she supports teachers in their PBE curriculum planning, specializing in outdoor learning. Sarah also supports planning and facilitation of professional development, provides expertise in guiding new initiatives, Community Forum planning and connecting with our community partners. Sarah has been a member of the SEMIS Coalition since 2009, when she joined as a community partner representing The Greening of Detroit.
Bio for Sarah
She has over 20 years of experience in field-based and school-based environmental, outdoor and place-based education program development and management at several Metro Detroit nature centers and as the Environmental Education Director at the Greening of Detroit. She was selected as the Informal Science Educator of the Year by the Michigan Science Teachers Association in 2012.
Sarah holds a Bachelor’s in Environmental Studies and Science, Technology and Society from Pitzer College, Claremont, CA in 1998. She currently lives in Oak Park, MI and loves spending time with her family reading, cooking, singing, hiking, camping and gardening. Favorite place is in her hammock in the backyard, but favorite place to visit is the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario.
Willie King III, Place-Based Education Consultant & Youth Voice Specialist
Willie serves as a Place-Based Education Consultant & Youth Voice Specialist for the Southeast Michigan Stewardship Coalition. In his role, Willie’s responsibilities consist of developing new place-based initiatives for youth activism and civic engagement, developing arts infused PBE initiatives, and cultivating stewardship and art based community partnerships. He also supports planning and facilitation of professional development and provides expertise in classroom content.
Bio for Willie
Willie King III is a Place-Based Education Consultant & Youth Voice Specialist for the Southeast Michigan Stewardship (SEMIS) Coalition. A proud Detroit Westsider, Willie is dedicated to empowering youth through education, activism, and community engagement. He develops and facilitates place-based initiatives that amplify youth voices, promote civic engagement, and integrate the arts into education. His work also includes professional development for educators and fostering stewardship-driven community partnerships.
Willie holds a degree in History with a minor in Political Science from Eastern Michigan University. Beyond his role at SEMIS, he is one of the Charter Founders of Kings of Color Incorporated and brings over a decade of experience as an activist, mentor, and educator. His past roles include restorative graduate assistant, math intervention teacher, and long-term substitute at WIMAHI, along with work at EcoWorks’ Detroit Youth Energy Squad, Engineering Design Services Inc. (Growing Detroit Young Talent program), and Washtenaw Parks and Recreation.
Committed to being an agent of change, Willie strives to uplift both communities and individuals on their personal growth journeys. Outside of work, he enjoys watching anime, becoming a better father, and spending time at Riverside Skatepark.
Laura Florence, Education Specialist in Great Lakes Sciences and Environmental Education
Laura Florence is an Education Specialist with SEMIS Coalition, and a life-long enthusiast of the Great Lakes. She is a scientist, place-based educator, and builder of relationships. Laura joined SEMIS in 2015, following two decades of work in aquatic science research, public outreach, and environmental education. At SEMIS, Laura champions Great Lakes literacy, leads our NOAA-funded Environmental Literacy and Bay Watershed Education and Training (B-WET) grants, and contributes to high quality professional learning across the Coalition.
Bio for Laura
Laura is passionate about connecting people to the ecosystems they inhabit, and a highlight of her work at SEMIS is seeing people understand what a watershed is for the first time! Born and raised in Jackson, Michigan, Laura has made Ann Arbor her home for over 30 years. Laura holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Anthropology and a Master of Science in Aquatic Ecology, both from the University of Michigan. Prior to joining the SEMIS Coalition, she managed research, outreach, and education projects at the NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab, Michigan Sea Grant, and the Great Lakes Commission. She has served on the Board of Trustees at the Leslie Science and Nature Center and Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, contributed to advisory committees for the Ann Arbor Public Schools, and coached in the Washtenaw Elementary Science Olympiad.
One of Laura’s favorite places is the University of Michigan Biological Station in northern Michigan, and she escapes to the shores of the Great Lakes with her family any chance she gets.
Paula Sizemore, Ecojustice Education Consultant
Paula Sizemore is a recently retired SEMIS Coalition Earth Science teacher of over 30 years who headed the science department at Ypsilanti Community High School (YCHS) in the ACTech program. In her role with the SEMIS Coalition, Paula provides extensive coaching to teachers, teacher teams, and works with instructional coaches on site to design, plan, and coordinate place-based education projects with member schools. She also supports the design, direction, and partnerships within our IWOK initiative as well as facilitation of professional development throughout our annual learning series. Paula’s approach to place-based learning connects social-ecological justice with a science and local community, and what she values most about SEMIS is the depth of teamwork and collaboration.
Bio for Paula
A Master Place Based educator with 30 years combined classroom, administrative and coaching experiences, Paula seeks to inspire young people through making deeper connections to their school, home and neighborhood environments. Together with SEMIS Coalition community partners, school district leaders and students, a common goal emerged: use green infrastructure to create sustainable, clean school campuses. Since 2018, Ypsilanti Community students, teachers across disciplines have connected to learn how to successfully mitigate human impacts on school campuses through ongoing legacy projects. Mathematics, science and business classes joined together to design and install rain and pollinator gardens. In 2022-23, two projects were completed: a two-acre prairie resplendent with classroom grown natural Michigan flowers and plants is beginning its work to mitigate runoff. And in the Grizzly Woods, a 32 seat outdoor classroom learning space was created from winter deadfall. From data collection and analysis, research and exposition of local challenges includes food apartheid, plastic pollution, understanding our Great Lakes systems – SEMIS Coalition partnerships inspire lifelong stewards of home, and place.
Special Project Consultants
Dr. Nigora Erkaeva, Postdoctoral Researcher
As a postdoctoral researcher, Nigora leads the Coalition Indigenous Ways of Knowing (IWOK) Initiative and supports daily functions like planning, facilitation, and leading of professional development, budgeting, and building local and international research communities to share the impact of place-based and ecojustice approach to education. She works with teachers to center IWOK wisdom, knowledge, stories, and curriculum materials in their teaching connecting them to indigenous partners. Her work entails creating learning pods and book clubs to delve into indigenous histories, struggles, and critical analysis of the purpose of education. Nigora also puts together professional learning series for teachers and community members to engage into meaningful conversations as well as creating focused educational programs to center indigenous perspectives into our learnings and teachings.
Bio for Nigora
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Dr. Ethan Lowenstein, Advisor on Special Projects
Bio for Ethan
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Matt Siegfried, Resident Historian
Bio for Matt
Matt is a historian, writer and researcher originally from Cincinnati, Ohio who has lived in Michigan since 1996. A graduate of Eastern Michigan University with degrees in History and Historic Preservation, much of his work has been on connecting local history to broad historical moments. With a focus on race, class, gender and power in our social landscape, Matt believes that the ground and built environment we walk through every day is alive with worlds of history and can speak to us about why we live the way we live.
Matthew’s portfolio of work projects include researching and writing Historical Markers for the State of Michigan, ongoing presentations and tours with the Ypsilanti Public Library, and the Ann Arbor Public Library, serving on the board for the African American Historical and Cultural Museum of Washtenaw County, collaborating with local teachers on historically and place-based education murals, guest lecturing and tours for Eastern Michigan University’s School of Social Work, Academic Service Learning, College of Education, and History Education department.
Matthew has done extensive research on Ypsilanti’s historic African American neighborhood and communities, including a website, South Adams Street @ 1900 (https://southadamstreet1900.wordpress.com/).
A coalition's primary strength is in its members
Southeast Michigan Stewardship Coalition is a regional hub of the Great Lakes Stewardship Initiative.