Board Elections
Vote For Future AEE Board Members Now!
The AEE Board of Directors Elections are now open. This election will close at 12:00AM EST, August 22nd, 2025.
This vote is to select three Member-At-Large Board Members. The Member at Large position is a three-year term. All positions will commence at the 53rd Annual International Conference in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (USA). The Board represents AEE’s membership in providing oversight and long-term direction for the association’s activities.
CANDIDATES: Chuck Nathan Charleston | Kristin Coffey | Sahala Harahap | Margaret Kelso | Elyse Norton | Marisol Velachiu **Candidate details are also listed below, just scroll down!
Each AEE Member may cast only one vote. Do not share the voting link, this election is for AEE Members ONLY.
Thank you for taking the time to cast your vote in this important election.
Meet the 2025 Board of Directors
What does the Board do?
It is the job of the board, as an informed agent of experiential educators and practitioners, to ensure appropriate association performance and to connect that performance to the membership.
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Refine the long-term visioning for the association
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Monitor the association’s performance in achieving its strategic goals
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Monitor AEE’s financial performance
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Monitor the performance of the AEE Executive Director
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Develop an Annual Agenda that is strategic and helps the board confirm whether the Ends Statements are appropriate and/or needs revising
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Speak with one voice
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Attend two in-person (or virtual) board meetings per year (International Conference, Spring/Summer)
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Participate in monthly video conferences
If you have any questions, please contact one of the Board Development Committee co-chairs, Brad Daniel (RBradDaniel@gmail.com), Melanie Wills (melanie@expsys.co ), or Phil Brown (pbrown@high5adventure.org)
Please find information about each candidate below to help inform your voting decisions. The Candidates are listed below alphabetically by last name.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Chuck Nathan Charleston (Diné) is the Director of the NACA Foundation, and co-founder of the Native American Community Academy (NACA). Charleston is a dedicated leader in education development, economic development, and global engagement. He has nearly two decades of experience in the areas of strategic planning in the development and expansion of international Indigenous language and education models, including resource acquisition, co-creating sustainable systems for organizational development and land-based education pedagogy. He has a TRIUM Global Executive MBA, jointly awarded by the London School of Economics and Political Science, New York University Stern School of Business, and HEC School of Management Paris. He uses these economic strategies based on Indigenous values to support the development of the NACA Foundation and its activities to support other Indigenous-led schools in the NACA-Inspired School Network. As a recent U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) appointee to the Indigenous Peoples Economic and Trade Cooperation Arrangement (IPETCA), he shares his expertise in advancing economic empowerment, policy advocacy, and sustainability.
Chuck has led numerous international cultural exchanges with youth and adult community leaders, facilitating immersive land-based and arts-based learning experiences in Peru, New Zealand, Australia, Western Europe and across Latin America. These programs foster cross-cultural connection, Indigenous solidarity, and community resilience—linking language, land, and leadership through experiential practice. His commitment to nature-based education and outdoor therapy is reflected in immersive initiatives rooted in language revitalization, environmental stewardship, and healing. Cherished highlights include serving as a cultural delegate with the Turkish Cultural Foundation, and developing a curriculum on Indigenous Code Talkers of WWI and WWII and leading educational tours across Western Europe. Most recently, he trekked with a cohort of Indigenous youth on an expedition to summit Citlaltépetl, Mexico’s highest peak—blending land connection, intergenerational healing, and leadership development. He also collaborates with networks of cultural educators, mental health professionals, and land-based practitioners to foster resilience, identity, and belonging across diverse communities. Chuck calls Arizona home, and is based in Albuquerque, NM.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Kristin Coffey’s connection to the Association for Experiential Education began in graduate school, when she attended a conference at the newly opened U.S. National Whitewater Center in North Carolina. The experience left a lasting impression—the creativity, openness, and generosity of the AEE community helped her feel immediately at home. That conference solidified her commitment to a career in experiential education, and AEE has remained a guiding force in her professional development ever since.
Kristin currently serves as Associate Director of Venture Outdoor Leadership at UNC Charlotte, where she is a proud member of a team dedicated to creating transformative experiences that challenge, connect, and build confidence. She brings over 15 years of experience in adventure education and a master’s degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, which shapes her approach to leadership, team development, and organizational effectiveness.
Throughout her career, Kristin has designed and facilitated leadership programs, mentored student and professional staff, and built partnerships to expand access to the outdoors. She is known for her reflective, relational leadership style and her commitment to equity and inclusion in experiential education. Her work is grounded in strategic thinking, compassion, and a belief in the power of learning through experience.
Kristin’s research and training interests lie in supporting first-time managers and leaders. Got thoughts on how to make that leap into leadership a little less awkward? She’s always up for a mocha latte and good conversation about what helps emerging professionals navigate leadership with confidence and clarity.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Sahala Harahap brings 26 years of experience in both profit and non-profit sectors, focusing on cultivating engagement experientially through the perspective of living systems change. He has collaborated with over 100 organizations across public, private, and social sectors. Sahala is a Board of Trustee member of Gemala Ananda Elementary School (https://www.gemalaananda.sch.id), a small private institution he founded alongside his wife on the principle of school-parent-community partnership. He also volunteers in various capacities, including as a member of the Expert Panel at Bina Antarbudaya - The Indonesian Foundation for Intercultural Learning (https://bina-antarbudaya.or.id); a Chair of the International Association of Facilitators Indonesia Chapter (https://iaf-id.org), and a Council Member of Association of Experiential Education APAC region.
Sahala earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and a Professional Degree as a Psychologist, which qualifies him to conduct psychological assessments, along with a Master’s Degree in Strategic Management. He is a Compassionate Systems Certified Master Practitioners – a framework for cultivating living systems change from the Center for Systems Awareness at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Systems Awareness Lab (https://systemsawareness.org). In 2016, he was honored with the Dharma Karya Utama Award by the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Republic of Indonesia, the highest commendation an individual can receive from the Minister.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Margaret is based in Asheville, North Carolina, the ancestral land of the Eastern Band of Cherokee. She is serving as the Executive Director for Talisman, a program offering summer camp and alternate programs for neurodivergent participants. She also serves as a Risk Management Advisor with Cornerstone Safety Group, a membership based organization supporting risk management, medical, and mental health services for travel and adventure programs. She began her outdoor education path at the School of Environmental Studies, a high school on the Minnesota Zoo property and began her career at Alaska Crossings. Her first AEE conference was in 2010 in Las Vegas and it changed her trajectory entirely. She went on to work with multiple wilderness therapy organizations, most notably with Open Sky for seven seasons as their Health Director.
Margaret is the mother of two beautiful children and her furry critters, her better half is a therapist who she met at Alaska Crossings, and the guardian to her adult brother with severe developmental disabilities. Margaret brings a unique view on team and relationship building having been guided through life by her younger brother who showed her the value of authenticity, creative problem solving, and laughter as the cure for almost everything. She deeply values play and movement and believes adults would likely get a lot more done if they spent even just a few more minutes outside a day.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Elyse Norton’s career has woven through diverse roles, including challenge course facilitator and trainer, student teacher mentor, choir director, and educational trainer and consultant. She currently balances her time between teaching music at Oak Grove Elementary in southern Vermont (USA) and facilitating trainings and workshops that equip educators with experiential tools and strategies to create meaningful connections and restorative learning communities. She holds a master’s in Music Education, and has done considerable post-graduate work focusing on experiential learning, mindfulness, trauma informed, and restorative practices.
Raised in rural northern Vermont, Elyse grew up immersed in music, the outdoors, and agricultural life. She trained as a classical vocalist, explored the woods and developed a love of thru-hiking, and raised dairy cows for local farmers. These early experiences helped to shape her values of curiosity, community, and joy, intrinsic in all aspects of her life today. Outside of work, Elyse lives her values through trail running, skiing, backpacking, and adventuring with her husband and lazing about with her dog. She’s currently learning to play the harp and delights in leading pub sings in her community.
Elyse’s diverse background across formal education and experiential learning gives her a unique lens on the power of experiential practices in a wide range of contexts. She is steadfastly committed to equity, access, and inclusion, and the values AEE upholds in its work across the globe. Her experience as both a classroom teacher and facilitator allows her to bridge multiple communities, and she is excited to contribute her perspective, creativity, and collaborative spirit to the AEE board.
Watch Short Introductory Video
Marisol is a Mexican-born, San Francisco Bay Area local. She’s the Managing Director for BioLink Depot, an Oakland-based non-profit organization that brings educators access to free science materials to promote hands-on education. She began in this role as a volunteer before transitioning into a Director capacity. She brings over 10 years of experience in experiential education in a variety of roles, ranging from outdoor school facilitation, classroom teaching, and curriculum design to case management and administration & operations. Marisol has also served on the board of directors of several nonprofits, including the Temescal Business Improvement District and The Mosaic Project, both based in Oakland, CA.
Marisol received her BA from San Francisco State University in Sociology and, after 10 years of work experience, an MA in Business Management at Mills College. In her formative years, she participated in two pivotal character-developing experiential education programs: “Project Courage,” a two-week backpacking expedition at age 12, and a 22-day Mountaineering Outward Bound course at age 17. These two experiences, along with other teacher-led outdoor experiences, imparted a lifelong love for nature, community, and environmentalism. These days, she enjoys gardening, cooking, racquet sports, occasionally spinning a staff or poi, and is in nature wherever possible. Marisol’s career trajectory has been rooted in connecting resources to underserved communities in the pursuit of a more equitable and just future.
Meet the 2025 Board of Directors
If you have any questions, please contact one of the Board Development Committee co-chairs, Brad Daniel (RBradDaniel@gmail.com), Melanie Wills (melanie@expsys.co ), or Phil Brown (pbrown@high5adventure.org)