Nettie Pardue

Executive Director

Nettie Pardue's (she/her) roots go deep at Outward Bound beginning as an instructor 21 years ago. She currently serves as the Executive Director at Outward Bound California and has over 20 years of global experience working for Outward Bound in 13 countries.  In addition to Outward Bound, she has worked in the peacebuilding and conflict resolution field with Outward Bound Center for Peacebuilding the United World College and SEEDS Community Resolution Center where she acted as facilitator and trainer for communication, conflict resolution, mediation and cultural competency courses. Nettie has a Master's in Applied Behavioral Science and has presented at conferences in the US and abroad.  

In her early 20's she worked for one of the Kurt Hahn United World Colleges in NM. Working with students from over 80 countries cultivated a sense of the power of outdoor experiential learning and how it can be transformative to underserved and underrepresented populations. Today, she brings experiential outdoor learning to diverse communities. As Executive Director she hopes to inspire and provide access to more staff and students to get outside! 

She is climber / mountaineer (favorite route - Sun Ribbon Arete in the Palisades), kayaker (whitewater and sea) skier, and long-distance runner, completing more than six 100 mile races in the US and Canada. Nettie thrives in pushing herself to overcome my personal limitations and I am always looking for the next NEED (new experience every day).

BJ Allen

Director of Student Services, Director of Equity

BJ (she/her) came to OBCA with a background in clinical social work and a specialty in animal assisted interventions. Her work with experiential therapy and humane education led her to seek a role where she could support programs that foster people's inherent resilience, create a space to learn from one another across differences, and cultivate meaningful connections.

Her investment in this role at OBCA is rooted in the belief that all people have a right to the resources they need to thrive, and that the systemic barriers to access faced by folks with non-dominant identities need to be addressed. She is grateful to work within a community of dedicated, passionate individuals who continually seek to evolve and strengthen our ability to provide relevant, responsive, and responsible programming for all of our participants.

Outside of work, BJ loves to run and hike and spends much of her free time engaged in outdoor adventures across the Bay Area with her partner, kids, and the family dog.

Laura Romanosky

Director of Finance & Operations

Laura Romanosky (she/her) is the Director of Finance and Operations. As a recent transplant to the Bay Area, she enjoys spending time with her sister, exploring the city on foot, and going on mini-road trips with friends.

As a former educator, turned nonprofit administrator, she has seen firsthand the transformative power of outdoor leadership experiences on young people. During her time as a teacher and Special Education Chair, she built relationships with young people with significant needs and their families that solidified her commitment to improving outcomes for all students. While at BCBS, she joined our students on weeklong outdoor education experiences and witnessed how these excursions provided leadership and growth opportunities for all who attended. 

Emma Rapp

Director of Advancement

Emma (she/her) never saw herself in a direct service role - all her career and strengths finders growing up told her to be a teacher but she forged a different path, instead dedicating her career to supporting the work of educators as they change the lives of students.  A serial career monogamist, she came to OBCA 7 years ago after 7 years in administration, fundraising, and volunteer organizing at Playworks, based in San Francisco.

Programs like Outward Bound formed her as a leader, channeling her energy and persuasive powers for good.  She can remember vividly on a 10-day canoeing expedition in Maine at the age of 13, learning, through trial and error, her ability to tank or motivate the group depending on the leadership tack she took.  These days her preferred methods of challenge and discovery include snowboarding, all-female backpacking trips, triathlons, and shaving her commute down to as close to an hour as possible.

Sara Grimmer

Finance and Operations Manager

Sara (she/her) is the Finance and Operations Coordinator of OBCA. In 2017, Sara started as a Logistics Coordinator in the Bay. After learning the nuts and bolts of Bay Area programming, she has transitioned into the role of Finance and Operations Coordinator to better understand how the organization operates in the nonprofit world.

Sara's first introduction to Outward Bound was through her mother, whom completed a month long backpacking and rock climbing course through Colorado’s San Juan mountains in 1974. Growing up with a family that loved backpacking and camping, Sara fell into outdoor education where she led outing trips throughout high school and college. The positive impact the outdoors has had in her life, and seeing how the outdoors brings people together, has driven her to work towards making the outdoors more accessible for all. 

Jason Schmidt

High Sierra Program Director, Director of Program & Safety Director

Jason (he/him) started working for Outward Bound in 2007 at the North Carolina Outward Bound School before heading west in 2009 to instruct in his favorite place on earth, the High Sierra. He then followed the seasons working in Appalachia, Everglades, rivers in North FL and AL, Joshua Tree, Bay Area and always returning to the mountains of California. 

Jason is a proud AmeriCorps alum who was drawn to Outward Bound during that time for OB's commitment to service. His favorite OBCA tasks revolve around service: he participated in the Service Bus, managed a beloved OBCA program, the Youth Leadership Corps, organized staff involvement at the yearly Yosemite Facelift.

Melissa Tang

Bay Area Program Director

Melissa (she/her) is passionate about bringing equity to opportunities that connect all young people to the power of the outdoors.  Her most memorable outdoor experiences growing up were going to the park next to the library, admiring the waves at Ocean Beach, and growing veggies with her grandparents. Being born and raised in SF, Melissa has deep connections to the Bay and a commitment to bring more opportunities to grow & learn outside.  

Melissa brings over 10 years of experience leading youth programs that engage diverse communities in the Bay Area.  Most recently she's lead a collaborative of 10 community partners that represented diverse neighborhoods in SF for the Mayor's Youth Employment and Education Program.  She's also engaged youth with the outdoors at Enterprise for Youth's Environmental Stewards Programs, CommunityGrows, and at the California Academy of Sciences. 

Melissa completed the Youth Outside Rising Leaders Fellowship to deepen her practice in cultural relevancy and social justice. She also holds a BA in Geography and Environmental Studies from UC Santa Barbara and a Master of Nonprofit Administration from the USF.  

During her time off Melissa loves to explore the farmers market to inspire her next dinner menu, connecting with friends and family over food, biking, hiking and gardening. She also loves to travel to off-the-beaten-path locations and always looking for an adventure.

Sushi Au

High Sierra Logistics Manager

Sushi (she/her & they/them) started their Outward Bound journey when the 2018 Outdoor Educators Semester course walked through the Waller Center's doors(where she was working in San Francsico at the time). Inspired by the group and OBCA's mission, she interned in the Bay Area spring 2019 and worked as a Logistics Coordinator in the High Sierra summer seasons of 2019 and 2020. They fell in love with the community, the students, and the work (even cutting 45 pounds of cheese). After a short stint in wilderness therapy, Sushi returns for the 2021 season as the Logistics Manager! They are excited to support staff, to grow and learn in their new logistics manager role, and they profess their love of "organizing chaos".

Sushi loves experiencing new cultures and connecting with people, which means leaving pieces of their heart around the world. When traveling or out in the wild, Sushi contemplates intersectionalities of identities; finding a cat that'll go backpacking; social justice and love; ways to leave the world a better place; home and belonging; how vests function; and what peak to climb/hike/backpack next. 

Emily Ford

Development Coordinator

A decade ago, Emily (she/her) was a participant on an Outward Bound climbing course that ignited her career in the outdoors. Since then, she has guided multi-day river trips through southwest canyons, instructed thousands of students in the rugged North Cascades mountains, and supported international community-based conservation programs. She believes that people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities have a fundamental right to access outdoor spaces, where they can grow a deeper connection to nature, to themselves, and to their communities. Outside of the office, Emily enjoys birdwatching, climbing, biking, and spending time on the water.

Jeff Podmayer

Southern California Program Director

Jeff Podmayer (he/him) has worked for Outward Bound California in many different capacities since 2014. Jeff grew up in Washington State and found a joy for being outside, in whatever form, there. He attended an Outward Bound course in the North Cascades when he was 19 and was in his “challenge zone” most of the time. He started as an Instructor in OBCA’s High Sierra program and was amazed by how the outdoors can be used as a metaphorical container to learn, change and grow. Working with amazing people, personal growth and the fluid nature of Outward Bound programming has kept him coming back. He brings a passion for the SoCal program through the many OB courses he has worked in Joshua Tree National Park, his previous administrative experience, and a detail-oriented focus on many aspects of the changing and evolving Southern California program. When he isn’t sitting behind his computer screen as the Southern California Program Director he enjoys spending time with friends, long walks, drinking coffee, and eating pizza. 

Jeremy Robertson

High Sierra Associate Logistics Manager

Jeremy (he/they) comes to the position with an impressive range of experience, from running his own high school business "SnowZone Snowcones", to working as a farm manager, to spending most of the last ten years working for a plethora of outdoor organizations, including OBCA as a course director and instructor.

His experience in logistics from other programs--along with his proven eye for detail and solution-oriented thinking--will aid innovation and continued growth in the Sierra logistics scene. Outside of the office, you'll be able to find him cutting a rug during live music shows, playing one of the 20+ games he keeps on hand, or baking/cooking delicious things to eat.

Jessica Haist

Associate Program Director - Staffing and Programs

Jessica (she/her) hires all field staff positions for OBCA including instructors, interns and logistics coordinators and schedules all return field staff at all 3 OBCA locations. Jessica started as an instructor at our High Sierra Basecamp in 2006 and has worked her way through many positions over the years including course director and staff trainer.

Originally hailing from Ontario, Canada, Jessica was called to the mountains of Western Canada to pursue her passion for rock climbing and being outside. She then worked her way south, working with youth and adults in the Sierra and receiving her Master's Degree in Adventure Education from Prescott College. She has now settled down in her beloved Sierra Nevada's in Mammoth Lakes with her husband where she enjoys climbing, skiing, and biking in the mountains year-round.

Matt Patchell

Development Officer

Matt (he/him) is a member of the high-energy team that helps to fund the Outward Bound California mission by engaging members of our community in our work.

Matt loves trail running, road cycling, hiking, food, reading, and exploring Bay Area neighborhoods and trails with his partner Ruth. Their college-age kids Zach and Nina are sources of pride and inspiration.

Erin Thacher

Communications Coordinator

After five years of supporting logistics at OBCA's High Sierra basecamp, Erin (she/her) moved into the world of storytelling and communications. She brings a deep knowledge of OBCA's wilderness programs, an eye for graphic design, and a learner's mindset. While she will always feel most at home chatting with students over a plate of food, she is honored to collect and share their stories with the world. 

She is a transplant to the mountains from the flatlands of Kansas. Before her time at Outward Bound California, she had never slept under the stars. Although it took her a few years to develop what she calls "mountain legs," she now loves to travel the world in search of mountains and street food.

Lindsay Blake

Student Services Manager

Lindsay (she/her) started at OBCA as a member of the student services team in January 2017. She is currently the Student Services Manager and is grateful to have found such supportive and amazing people to work with!

Lindsay’s love of the outdoors truly began in 2001, when she challenged herself to try something new and signed up for a 10-day backpacking trip on Washington state's Mount Adams as part of college orientation. She was pushed way out of her comfort zone and loved the whole experience! Helping students and their families prepare for their own meaningful and transformative experience is something she now enjoys in her role at OBCA.

In her time off, Lindsay enjoys getting away from her desk and computer screens! Currently she's enjoying kayaking and day hiking with her family, and is doing her best to instill in her child a sense of wonder and love for nature.

Elena Chin

High Sierra Associate Program Director of Course Delivery

Elena Chin (she/her) will be joining the High Sierra admin as the Associate Program Director of Course Delivery. Elena identifies as a cis, straight, half first-generation, US woman of color. Elena has been working in the Outdoor Education field for 7+ years, including as a field instructor for OBCA in the Bay Area and with NOLS since 2013, spending many nights in the field. More recently Elena has been in the role of Field Staffing Recruitment and Development Coordinator for NOLS.

Elena is also an AMGA Apprentice Rock Guide and her deep technical background and educational experience will be a great addition to the HS admin team. Outside of work Elena loves rock climbing, cat GIFs, and spending quality time with people.

Eli Fox

Outreach Coordinator

"It feels really wonderful to be working for an organization such as Outward Bound." - Eli Fox (he/him) When he was 14 years old, he had the opportunity to go on a 21-day multi-activity course in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  On that trip, like so many people, he felt a new sense of pride and accomplishment which only arises when completing the rite of passage that is Outward Bound.  At that point, he learned from his instructors that working in the wilderness is a viable career path, so he set out on it, and 12 years later he now works for Outward Bound California! 

He could not be happier, as it is extremely fulfilling to be offering similar transformative experiences to what he went through and seeing the different lessons and experiences these young adults (and adults and veterans) are taking away today.  

Collier Honora Modell

Joshua Tree Program Manager

Sean Altman

Bay Area Associate Program Director

Sean (he/him) is the Associate Program Director for the Bay Area program at OBCA and helps manage staff training and development along with program leadership. Sean is also involved with the development of curriculum-rich outdoor programming for our program partners.

He grew up exploring much of California's natural spaces with his family, climbing in the Santa Cruz Mountains, and running rivers in Idaho. It wasn't until college that he understood that he could make "the outdoors" a career and graduated with a degree in Outdoor Education. Sean has worked in many aspects of outdoor programming including wilderness therapy programs in Oregon and managing a summer wilderness program in Yosemite before coming to Outward Bound in 2016. "Being a part of the shaping of our future has always been a driving force for me to work with youth in the outdoors."

When he's not working with instructors and students, he loves to work with his hands whether it's cooking, woodworking, gardening or restoring classic cars.