Board of Directors
The primary role of a Board member is to guide the strategy of the NOLS Employee Association. Board members participate in ongoing conversations, as well as monthly meetings. We represent the creative ideas and pressing concerns of NOLS employees to the Board of Trustees and Executive Team.
Anna Santoleri (she/her)
NEA President NOLS Field Instructor, Program Supervisor out of the Rocky Mountain Branch
Anna started her NOLS journey in 2019 as an IC student. Prior to that, she worked as an outdoor educator and classroom teacher in a number of places, including Yosemite, Malaysia, a Massachusetts women’s prison, Yellowstone, and a high school in Chula Vista, CA.
She came to NOLS for the technical skills; she’s stayed because of the invaluable adaptive/interpersonal skills she’s learned along the way.
To her, working with the NEA is a way to put these skills into practice: actively listening to better understand employees’ experiences, creating a vision based on what she’s seeing and hearing, and collaboratively enacting this vision to achieve a common goal with those in and beyond the NEA. Outside of NOLS, Anna is an avid gardener and plant mom.
Sanjana Govind
NEA Vice President Field Instructor
I am from Bangalore in the Southern part of India. My first course with NOLS was a WFR, followed by my student course at NOLS India, three seasons as an Instructor in Training, and then the IC.
Outside of NOLS, I started an organic food company, studied interior design, worked as a bike mechanic, led courses for Where There Be Dragons, and trained as a Thai massage therapist.
I joined the NEA to help and support people of the organisation. I am committed to representing the interests of all employees and those coming to work in NOLS locations using J-1 visas. NOLS has given me so much through my life, not just a career but community and purpose, and it is truly a pleasure and a privilege to represent all NOLS employees through the NEA.
Aila B. (she/her)
Physically in Lander, Wyoming but always day dreaming about a better world for all. After a summer semester in 2005 at the RM, she was enthralled with NOLS, the mission, the people and the work being done for experiential education as well as the environment. She was lucky to score a seasonal job at the TVB during the summer of 2006.
Since, Aila has held several in-town roles at the RM and HQ. After a decade hiatus she is back in the Gulch helping get tasty rations into the field, but always looking at ways the systems can be improved.
MBA, M.Ed Elementary Education RM Rations Team
Bryan Sarg (he/him)
Bryan is based in Lander, WY by way of many places. He has had previous ‘careers’ in the US Marine Corps, teaching skiing and snowboarding in Colorado and a short stint reading books to kindergarteners in Florida... this was his favorite job by far.
Bryan began his NOLS journey as a Wilderness Medicine and Rescue Semester student in 2017 and took his IC in 2018. Bryan’s favorite place in the Winds is in the East Fork Valley and his favorite trailheads to drive to are up Union Pass in the Winds. But, for Bryan, the canyons are the most special place to go. bryansarg@gmail.com
Field Instructor, Bus Driver, In-Town Pinch Hitter
Elie Rabinowitz
Elie joined NOLS as a field instructor after taking an IC in 2019. He currently leads hiking, flat water paddling, and winter courses for NOLS. Elie lives in Lake Placid, NY, working in outdoor education for NOLS Northeast, as well as North Country Community College's Wilderness Recreation Leadership program, and leads trips as part of North Country School's Outdoor Program. He also works as a backcountry ski guide for Skylight Mountain Guides.
Prior to working in outdoor education, Elie taught elementary, middle, and high school. He has taught Spanish, ESL, woodworking, farm-to-classroom education, and outdoor education.
Outside of work, Elie spends a lot of time outside with his wife Becca and his dog Rooster. His favorite activities include hiking, skiing, canoeing, walking, cooking, baking, foraging, and woodworking.
Field Instructor
David Valenzuela (he/him)
Born and raised in Santiago de Chile, David is now based in Coyhaique, Aysén Region (Chilean Patagonia). He discovered NOLS in 2015 through a Semester in Patagonia course, made possible by NOLS Patagonia's scholarships for Chilean students.
After working as a geologist, he left the industry over ethical concerns to pursue something more meaningful. Since starting as an IIT in 2018, he's worked mainly in hiking, mountaineering, and climbing, recently moving into a program supervisor role at NOLS Patagonia and NOLS Rocky Mountain.
He sees the NEA as a bridge between international staff and the US-based NOLS community. Outside NOLS, he's learning new instruments and speaking Spanglish with the world
Patagonia & Rocky Mountain Program Supervisor and Field Instructor
Griffin Leemon (he/him)
Griffin got his start in NOLS equipment rooms in 2016 and took his IC in 2024. Prior to field work, Griffin has worked in harm reduction research alongside individuals experiencing homelessness, and health equity research within the 2SLGBTQIA+ community. Following the 2026 Alaskan backpacking season, Griffin left his behavioral health consultant role at Seattle Children’s Hospital to pursue graduate level studies of clinical mental health counseling in Portland, OR.
NOLS is a community that Griffin is proud to belong to, and is passionate in the effort to make NOLS a place where everyone feels the same sense of community. Working alongside all NOLSies, Griffin hopes to engage with inequities, and support access to opportunities, success, and belonging. Beyond work, Griffin’s natural habitat is a dancefloor, and he’s liable to take your portrait with his film camera.
Field Instructor
Lily Zino (she/her)
Lily is based in Lander, WY and works at NOLS HQ in the Custom Education department. She grew up in Southern California and got curious about NOLS after her sister returned from an expedition in the Winds.
She made her way to Lander in 2023, with plans to just stay for the summer. Surprise, surprise - the community and the mountains convinced her to stay! You can find her around town playing pickup volleyball, riding her bike, watching the USWNT, or skiing poorly in the winter.
Client Service Manager Custom Education Team
Micah Rarick
Micah first discovered NOLS at age 16 as a student and has been drawn to the organization ever since. After almost 10 years in the military and another NOLS course as an adult, he left active duty to become an instructor and continue running around in the woods talking about leadership. He’s currently based in Seattle with his wife and their cat, Herman.
He hopes to work through the NEA to continue improving NOLS for the benefit of students, instructors, and the organization as a whole.
Field Instructor
Trisha Domenie (she/her)
Wilderness Medicine Instructor
Trisha is based in New England, where she took her first wilderness medicine course as a teenager. She came to NOLS through the ITC in 2018. Beyond her official work as an instructor, she loves to visit the NOLS branches and be immersed in the magic of those communities.
Trisha spent over a decade working as an outdoor leader and educator, primarily with children and adolescents. Later, she switched gears to healthcare, earning first her WEMT, then RN. She currently works both in the hospital and as a summer camp nurse when she isn’t teaching for NOLS.