Hannah was born and raised in the watery land of 10,000 lakes, where she grew up in the aptly named suburbs of Forest Lake. At the University of Minnesota, she earned her teaching degree and taught in central Minnesota. Today, Hannah and her husband, Caleb, live in Ham Lake, another aptly named city close to her childhood stomping grounds.

Great conversations, building relationships and getting to know people — that’s Hannah. Her students thrived under her collaborative approach that ensures everyone feels seen and heard. While teaching, she also grew an urban education program into a two teacher program. If you’re a podcast fan and love agriculture, you may have heard Hannah on the “Green and Growing” podcast, which she co-hosts with Sarah Nerswick.

If you want to hear someone fired up, ask Hannah about how teacher confidence impacts everything in the classroom. As Education Director at Green and Growing Education, Hannah puts her passion for teacher confidence into action, teaching concrete skills to help teachers enter the classroom equipped and anchored to solid foundations. As the speaking coach at the Germinate Conference, she also provides those same teachers with opportunities to educate their peers. Every teacher is a specialist in something and Germinate provides the opportunity to pass that specialty on.

Hannah spreads joy and connection from her garden, where she grows and cuts flowers for whimsical bouquets. Yoga with Adriene helps her get exercise into a busy schedule, and live music makes for her favorite date night with Caleb. She also volunteers at her children’s school to get a peek at what’s going on in the life of her kiddos, Willard and Josephine.