Our Board

United in our passion for outdoor play

Jennifer Hamm

Jennifer leads nature play groups in the city of Chicago and loves sharing how close and accessible nature can be, even in the heart of the city. 

Jennifer grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and spent much of her childhood outside playing in nature. She developed an appreciation for nature from her father who took her canoeing and camping as a child. She was given free access to his camping supplies and became the de facto tour guide for her childhood friends introducing them to camping, canoeing and all things nature.

In 2018, when her son was 6-months old, Jennifer was excited to discover the Free Forest School community where other families shared her passion for nature play and has been a regular member since. Most of her memories of her son learning to crawl and to walk happened in the forest, through leaves and over logs, and she spent many a Free Forest School outing nursing and napping in the forest. 

Jennifer is a huge advocate of child-directed play and loves the Free Forest School focus on unstructured play because of its ability to support the development of children’s intrinsic motivation and sense of self. She is a student of the RIE approach and has taken their RIE Foundations: Theory & Observation professional training and is also a student at Erikson Institute where she is studying Infant Mental Health. 

In addition to her work around child development, she is involved in working to increase energy efficiency standards in the built environment. She serves as secretary of the board for the Phius Alliance Chicago where she works to provide programming for building professionals in strategies to build more energy efficient buildings. 

Elizabeth Corinth

elizabeth.corinth@freeforestschool.org

Elizabeth Corinth leads nature play gatherings in the Washington, DC region, and also volunteers in support of DEIJ, operations, programming, and communications efforts for the central FFS organization. She has always loved hiking, camping, and exploring in nature, and originally joined Free Forest School in hopes of fostering a love of nature in her kids so they would be on board for outdoor family adventures in the years to come. Through her participation with the organization, she has gained a newfound appreciation for the importance of unstructured play, and has become passionate about providing access to free play in nature to as many kids as possible. She has also become a more relaxed, patient parent who is able to give her kids space to try things on their own rather than constantly feeling the need to step in. Through her work with the Free Forest School organization, she has enjoyed putting to use her background as a teacher, anthropologist, and project manager. She lives in Washington, DC, and is the proud mother of three avid stick-collectors.

Jules Beesley

jules.beesley@freeforestschool.org

Born and raised in Texas, Jules Beesley began a film and television career in California, eventually landing a spot as a video editor on Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. Beesley moved to New York City in 2010 where he transitioned into education, leading and overusing media literacy workshops in dozens of schools across the city. Beesley discovered Free Forest School after moving to Austin in 2017. Unstructured nature play proved the perfect way for him and his then two-year-old son to explore the many beautiful outdoor spots in the area. In 2018 he joined the Board of Directors aiming to help to increase access to free play in the fresh air for all children.

Beesley currently works with Creative Action, a community arts education organization in Austin, TX. He directs and coordinates the digital media and theatre arts integration programs atLee Lewis Campbell Elementary Media and Performing Arts Institute. He loves most collaborating and creating with children as a Teaching Artist as well and looks forward to leading science fiction filmmaking camps this summer.

Andrea Bethards

andrea.bethards@freeforestschool.org

Andrea was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. Nature has been a part of her life for as long as she can remember. As a child, she grew up exploring the outdoor jungle of her backyard, and hiking nearby nature preserves with her family. She headed east for college, graduate school and work, where she lived in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York. While living on the East Coast she enjoyed experiencing the diverse landscapes around her, which, though different from Texas provided the same restorative benefits. She now resides back in Texas with her husband and two young daughters, and has participated in Free Forest School events since 2019.

Andrea is an educator who has worked in a variety of school settings, from suburban and urban private schools to urban public schools. Throughout her career she has sought to serve under privileged communities and her passion is working with English Language Learners. She joins this Board in hopes of building a more inclusive nature play movement and working to diversify public lands.