Meet the Science of Craft instructors | College of Biological Sciences

Dr. Marlene Zuk - Writing the Wild co-instructor

Marlene is a Regents Professor in the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior at the University of Minnesota. Her research centers on animal behavior and evolution, and she is interested in how people think animal behavior reflects human behavior and vice versa. She is the author of several books for general audiences, including Sex on Six Legs: Lessons on Life, Love and Language from the Insect World and Dancing Cockatoos and the Dead Man Test: How Behavior Evolves and Why It Matters. Her latest book, Outsider Animals: How the Creatures at the Margins of Our Lives Have the Most to Teach Us, was named a Spotify audiobook Editor’s Pick.

Dr. Kathryn Nuernberger - Writing the Wild co-instructor

Kathryn is a professor of Creative Writing at the University of Minnesota and author of multiple books of poetry and nonfiction. Her latest book is HELD: Essays in Belonging, a collection of flash essays about symbiotic mutualisms and ways of being together. She is also the author of the poetry collections, RUE, The End of Pink and Rag & Bone. Her essay collections include The Witch of Eye and Brief Interviews with the Romantic Past. Her honors include the James Laughlin Prize from the Academy of American Poets, an National Endowment for the Arts fellowship, and notable essays in the Best American series. Her co-authored textbook with Maya Jewell Zeller is Advanced Poetry: A Writer’s Guide and Anthology.

Dr. Jennifer Powers - Drawn to Nature instructor

Jennifer is a Professor in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at the University of Minnesota. A field ecologist by training, her research focuses on tropical dry forests in northwestern Costa Rica where she spends a great deal of time conducting field work. She has been involved in educational programming at the Itasca Biological Station since 2007 and brings a strong interest in the intersection of science and art to her teaching. Inspired by the observational methods of early naturalists such as Charles Darwin and Beatrix Potter, who paired careful ecological study with artistic skill, Jennifer combines ecological knowledge with a passion for nature journaling to help students discover new ways of seeing and understanding the natural world.

Carl Haensel - Science of Fly Fishing co-instructor

Carl is an educator, biologist, photographer, writer, author and fishing guide with decades of experience in the field. He has been teaching and guiding fly fishing since 1996 and has authored more than one hundred articles on fly fishing techniques, tips, flies and locations as well as children’s educational literature. He previously owned and operated Around the Bend Flyfishing in Eden Prairie, MN and served as a regional manager for the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, where he managed education, programming, and aquatic resource issues for a large and diverse geographic area. Carl has fished extensively throughout the world, and his photography has been widely published. He is also an educational consultant, an active instructor at multiple levels, and serves as Northern Minnesota Vice Chair for Trout Unlimited. He also co-manages the Great Waters Fly Fishing Expo and co-authored Minnesota Fly Fishing Maps with Jade Thomason.

Jade Thomason - Science of Fly Fishing co-instructor

Jade is an editor, educator, and artist with a background in conservation biology. She’s passionate about writing, book layout, fiber art, stained glass and GIS mapping. She has worked on forest ecology research teams in Washington for North Cascades National Park and in the Tongass National Forest in Alaska for the US Forest Service. Her writing and photography have appeared in publications such as American Fly Fishing, Eastern Fly Fishing, Northwest Fly Fishing, and Pennsylvania Angler & Boater. She is the editor of Trout Unlimited Minnesota and works closely with Minnesota Trout Unlimited. Alongside Carl Haensel, she co-manages the Great Waters Fly Fishing Expo and co-authored Minnesota Fly Fishing Maps.