Meet the Teachers
Listed in alphabetical order by last name.

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Andy Bater
Teacher
Andy is an RYT-500 yoga instructor. He couples yoga with functional real world oriented mental and physical health concepts in his mindfulness workshops. A farmer, Andy grows switchgrass that’s sold to strawberry growers for mulch. His farm also has protected forest habitat for two species of endangered warblers. Andy is extensively involved with state and national agricultural strategy, most recently being appointed by the governor to the Advisory Committee for Pennsylvania’s new Food Policy Council.

Briel Beaty
Organizer and Teacher
Briel is a Traditional Western Herbalist, Reiki Teacher and Yoga teacher. In herbalism her interests lie specifically in how to incorporate herbal medicines easily into peoples lives, immune support for families, educating individuals about the plants that grow around them. You can see her website here!

Jennifer Jourdan
Organizer and Teacher
Artist and writer, Jennifer is an apprentice to herbalist Briel Beaty. Relations with the life around and within are her favorite explorations and dearest treasures. Jennifer works in outreach and development for a community land trust.

Kari Leah
Teacher
Kari Leah, founder of Wholesomely Rooted, is passionate about reconnecting with how our ancestors healed from the soil. Having her masters in holistic health and wellness, she strives to have harmony in movement, wholesome nutrition, herbs, and holistic lifestyle practices while inviting others to join her in this journey.

Yasoda Mensah
Teacher
Yasoda Mensah is owner of Trifolia Natural Products and Botanicals, and Director of the nonprofit Three Leaf Farmden-Synergy Initiatives, which is dedicated to raising consciousness through education, sustainability, utility, and self-realization. She has a bachelor’s degree in Microbiology and Parasitology and a Masters in Therapeutic Herbalism, a field she has been steeped in for more than 30 years. As a graduate of the Institute For Applied Spiritual Technology (IFAST) Facilitator’s course, Yasoda has been a practitioner, educator, and spiritual counselor in the Bhakti yoga tradition for over three decades, living and working on three continents. During that time her passion for and knowledge of the Earth, environment, health, and herbal medicines has grown and deepened.

Bill Russell
Teacher
Bill Russell has been involved with fungi since he first learned to read as a child. His primary interest has been expanding and testing the wide, wide range of edible wild mushrooms of Pennsylvania. As a teacher and writer, he has authored two editions of his field guide: “Wild mushrooms of Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic”, published by Penn State University Press. Bill has given many presentations and seminars in state parks, biological conferences and private organization events across Pennsylvania for many years. He continues providing presentations, and is currently completing his third mushroom field guide book.
Bill is a physicist with graduate studies at Penn State U in microbiology and fungi. After his position at IBM Research Laboratories, he was a faculty research and development physicist at Penn State University. brmushrooms.com

Bethany Stough
Teacher
Gardener, Forager, Outdoor Explorer, Potter, Mother, Lifelong Learner.Northeast School of Botanical medicine graduate (2021) and apprentice to local herbalist Jennifer Tucker, Functional Medicine Practitioner (Institute for Functional Medicine), Family Medicine Nurse Practitioner (MSN and Doctorate Frontier Nursing University), Nutritionist (BS Nutrition Penn State)

Jennifer Anne Tucker
Organizer and Teacher
Jennifer is a botanical and visionary photographer, herbalist and flower essence practitioner with over 45 years of experience teaching plant ways in workshops, conferences and private sessions. She holds a BFA and MFA from Penn State University. Jennifer’s life path changed in 1970 when she met Bill Russell, Keith Wilson and Evelyn Snook and learned wild food foraging and plant medicine ways. She continues following her path and is author of Evelyn’s Ways Cleansing and Nourishing with Plants. Her passion is in co-creating with plants as life-long partners for herself and others. jennifer-tucker.com jenniferanne.tucker@gmail.com