Middlebury Area

Program coordinators act as the core organizer of their local VMN program. They maintain contact with VMN participants and help organize volunteer projects.  They attend field trainings for free and also receive a stipend for the year.

Monica Przyperhart is the Middlebury Area program coordinator. She is happiest when surrounded by woods and wildlife. Originally from the Sierra Nevadas of California, Monica has early memories of chasing frogs through culverts, scrambling up talus slopes to find peak-dwelling sky pilots (a favorite wildflower), and following the park rangers around Yosemite before becoming one herself.  After early ventures “out west” teaching outdoor education and studying salamanders and pollinators, UVM’s Field Naturalist graduate program brought Monica to Vermont.

In addition to plenty of time in the woods, this introduced her to the worlds of land conservation, community engagement, and conservation planning, where she has worked with various Vermont organizations, all with the goal of maintaining connectivity and resilience across the Northern Forest.  These groups include the Staying Connected Initiative, VT Fish & Wildlife Department, and Cold Hollow to Canada.  Monica now teaches environmental science labs at Middlebury College.  You’re also likely to find her with her two daughters and husband, finding new swimming holes or looking for the perfect climbing tree near her home in Middlebury. The best thing about coordinating the Middlebury Area program is getting to meet so many amazing naturalists who are practically her neighbors and thus discovering her own “natural community.”