Teachers & Staff

Keith Barron

Lead Teacher, Roots (PreK/K)

Keith spends his days in the cabin with our youngest group, where nothing gives him more joy than listening to the children create stories and act them out.  He loves the excitement of helping children develop their projects and challenging their play.

​

Keith has been teaching young children for over 20 years.  He graduated from Ohio University with a BA in Early Childhood Education, followed by an MA in Reading Education.  From his earliest experiences in education, he was drawn to the idea of researching children and how they make connections with their world.  Hoping to share this passion, he has spoken as a keynote and featured speaker on topics from school gardens to integrating superheros into curriculum.

Matt Johnson

Lead Teacher, Shoots (1-2)

Matt believes that children who are intrinsically motivated to learn through interest-based projects are empowered to apply their learning in more relevant and meaningful ways.  He is a major proponent of place-based education and engaging children in their communities and the natural word.

Matt has a diverse background in the field of education and enjoys challenging children to think critically while building on their strengths and self-esteem.  He holds a BA in Music Education from Ohio University and a Master's in curriculum and instruction from the University of Denver.  He has worked as a teacher in Kindergarten-3rd grade in Denver and with toddlers and preschoolers at the Ohio University Child Development Center.

Betti Calhoun

Lead Teacher, Saplings (3-4)

Betti loves to apply her up-to-date training in ELA and reading to support students by meeting them wherever they are in their literacy journey.  She is also equally excited to use the students' interests and her experience in outdoor education to create engaging, cross-curricular projects rooted in a sense of place and environmental stewardship.

Prior to joining the faculty at Solid Ground School, Betti taught 4th & 6th grade in area public schools.  She additionally served as an Outdoor Educator for Big Brothers and Big Sisters and an Edible Schoolyard Teacher at Community Food Initiatives.  She graduated Cum Laude with a B.S. in Middle Childhood Education and later earned her math endorsement in math at Ohio University.

Maddy Kennedy

Lead Teacher, Branches (5-6)

As an educator, Maddy embraces a teaching philosophy rooted in creativity, student-centered learning, and the belief that education is a collaborative journey between students and teachers.  Her primary goal is to foster a classroom environment that cultivates curiosity, empowers students, and ensures their individual needs and interests at the forefront of her lesson planning.

Maddy graduated from Montana State University with a BS in K-8 Elementary Education and a minor in K-12 Art Education.  As a teacher, she has worked with students in grades K- High School, teaching fine arts, reading, math, creative writing, and life skills.  Maddy enjoys finding new ways to integrate hands-on, creativity-based learning in every subject she teaches.

Christin Butler

Executive Director, Co-Founder

An avid, life-long learner, Christin seeks to support a strong sense of community at Solid Ground School and to promote the value of nature and play for the human spirit.  She oversees all things related to learning, teaching, and organizational development at Solid Ground School.  She can often be found in the classrooms providing additional one-on-one support to students who need it.  While imagining up a new project sends her energy soaring, it is working directly with students and teachers that grounds her the most.

​

Christin graduated summa cum laude from Ohio State Univeristy with a M.A. in Foreign and Second Language, with a B.A. in English and a minor in Spanish from Indiana University, and has a CELTA and has completed PhD coursework in curriculum and instruction.  She additionally won the 2023 Community Sustainability Recognition Award from OU's Office of Sustainability for her work at Solid Ground along with Weston Lombard.

Heather Hively

Administrative Assistant

Heather is your source for all things payment-related!  She provides invaluable administrative support to Solid Ground School.

​

Heather graduated Cum Laude from Kent State University with a Bachelor's of Business Administration in Finance.  She has worked as an inventory accountant, record store owner, and substitute teacher.  Prior to joining Solid Ground's staff, she was a homeschooling parent and an Administrative Specialist in the Office of Inclusion at Ohio University's Heritage College of Medicine.

Weston Lombard

Nature & Entrepreneurship Teacher, Co-founder

As our Nature & Entrepreneurship Teacher, Weston facilitates hands-on experiences that engage our students directly with the natural environment and our local farm.  As the founder and owner of Solid Ground Farm, he created the outdoor environment at the farm and has invited engagement and participation for students and visitors alike.

After graduating from business school at Ohio University in 2005, Weston turned his passions for sustainable agriculture, outdoor adventure, and youth education into a series of youth education programs.  He then teamed up to start Rising Appalachia's Rising Appalachian Warriors (RAW) summer camps.  This work, his past role as Director of Ohio Brew Week, and his long-running coordination of the Youth area at the Ohio PawPaw Festival, he was awarded the Rural Action Sustainable Livelihood Award.

Rina Caldwell

Nature & Entrepreneurship Teacher

As a Nature & Entrepreneurship Teacher, Rina strives to deepen a connection between the children and the intricate web of life here on the farm and beyond. Whether it be introducing bugs, plants, amphibians, or reptiles, her passion for wildlife leads to exploratory outings with students to get up close with thriving ecosystems, drawing connections with interactions and art. As a budding Wildlife Rehabilitator, she has been able to bring our students one step closer to the 15 Wildlife Ambassador Animals we currently love and care for.

​

Rina has a Bachelor’s Degree from Ohio University in Outdoor Education and an Associates Degree in Natural Resources Management from Hocking College. She is additionally Rising Appalachia's Program Director & RAW Camp Coordinator.

Autumn Warren

Nature & Community Teacher, Americorps

Autumn is a full-time Americorps member who teaches our Nature & Community Class in consultation with Christin.  She has made it her professional mission to bring communities together using native ecology and believes in the power of connecting people to nature and teaching them the skills to live with the land.

​

Autumn teaches using creative story-telling and collaborative projects in her work with children.  She graduated from Ohio University with a Bachelor's in Outdoor Education and a certificate of Diversity Studies.  She has additionally completed an apprenticeship in natural building with Rising Appalachia.

Brian Cristi

Americorps

We are happy to welcome Brian Cristi to our team at Solid Ground School!  Brian will be providing extra hands and support in our classroom and beyond for the rest of this school year and in the early part of next as our new halftime AORC Americorps member.  He will also be joining the team at RAW Camp this summer.  If you see Brian around, please introduce yourself and welcome him to our school!