Board of Directors
Graham Casden
Trevor Mendelow
Sacha Greene
Don DeMaria
Mike Park
Jerry Walker
Staff
Founder and Director:
Trevor Mendelow
Phone: 720-352-8507
email: trevorm@teens4oceans.org
Trevor Mendelow earned his Master's Degree in Molecular Ecology from Humboldt State University. He has 15 years of experience in education and administration, teaching college for nine years until finding his passion teaching high school.
He formed teens4oceans in 2008 at Kent Denver School with the hope that he and his school kids could engage the future generation in a stewardship mission to preserve their natural marine heritage. In two years, teens4oceans has made great strides, and a recent partnership with The National Parks Service has provided a portal for developing relationships with schools around the nation.
Trevor is the imagination and inspiration of T4O, starting the organization with a home-made website. With the success of the Goliath Grouper Research Project, Trevor has assembled a wonderful team of student ambassadors, a network of scientists, non-governmental organizations, and concerned citizens, who are working together to scientifically address conservation issues. As T4O expands, we hope to begin chapters in other regions, and Trevor will be the main liason between these chapters.
Trevor is also a skilled aquarist, and loves caring for fishes and corals with his students in the Marine Biology Club at Kent Denver School. These aquaria provide easily-accessible means for Colorado students to work with and enjoy marine fish and other organisms, and the aquaria webcams make the fish and the various experiments accessible over the internet.
Director of Field Operations and Project Management:
Mike Park
email: mpark@teens4oceans.org
culture, and captive bred livestock. It is through his business, that Mike first became acquainted with Teens4Oceans. As a member of our organization, Mike was instrumental in designing, building, and installing the webcams, housings, and LED lighting for our programs. His knowledge about marine life and coral is extensive. His creativity and openness to new ideas, combined with an outgoing personality are the kind of leadership qualities students relate to easily. He enjoys spending time in the field and now dreams about establishing a small research station to support marine teaching activities. Mike is a pivotal member of our team, working countless hours on our program on top of working his full time job. He has traveled extensively with Trevor Mendelow and his crew, and recently accepted the position of Director of Field Operations and Project Management. He will work directly with students and mentor them on projects they develop, as well as contributing to the many aspects of the web page and database. Mike was originally from New York and now makes his home in Boulder, CO and where he earned his baccalaureate in Environmental, Population and Organism Biology from the University of Colorado.
Director of Information Technology:
Jeremey Lawrence
Phone: 303-770-7660 x 226
email: jeremeyl@teens4oceans.org
Director of Educational Outreach:
Kellie Mendelow
Phone: 720-352-8665
email: kelliem@teens4oceans.org
Kellie Mendelow graduated from CU in Boulder in 1998 with a BA in Environmental, Population and Organismic Biology. Before attending CU, Kellie graduated with an associates degree in Business and 
Merchandising from Lincoln School of Commerce in Lincoln, NE. Kellie has worked in many different areas of science and in laboratories both within the academic setting and the private sector, including working with college students and in management. Kellie also has a vast experience in business, management and bookkeeping.
Kellie's main focus for the Teens4Oceans program is to bring students together from across the nation and to show young people, especially young girls, that science is not only exciting, rewarding and a key aspect for their future, but also that it is accessible to anyone. It is also her goal to create an extensive mentoring program to connect young students with active scientists in the field. Kellie has been raising her (and Trevor's!) three young children and has only recently been able to participate more actively in the program. She was able to join the team on their trip to the Virgin Islands last summer and she looks forward to being involved in the many exciting projects Teens4Oceans will have in the future. Kellie is very excited about (finally!) being able to contribute more fully in the program and is honored to have recently accepted the position of Director of Educational Outreach.
America's Ocean Challenge Liaison:
Soames Summerhays
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Soames Summerhays (left) and Trevor Mendelow (right) |
Director of Research and Scientific Oversight:
Dr. Diana Toebbe
email: dianat@teens4oceans.org
Dr. Diana Toebbe loves the process of science, and feels strongly about responsible stewardship of the planet. She earned her PhD in Biological Anthropology from Emory University in 2005. She is a devoted high school teacher who has a passion for working with children of all ages, and understands what young people need to know about the natural world and the scientific investigation of the myriad wonders all around us. "Doc" as she is known, oversees our research program, and aids students in the identification of questions, the development of experimental design, and the analysis of data. Her goal is to help young students publish their research both on the T4O website and in mainstream journals. Working with our educational group, Doc consults on the development of educational materials that serve to engage young people and excite them to learn about the ocean and marine ecosystem structure and function. In addition she has extensive experience development educational modules to familiarize students with the scientific study of marine ecosystems.
Click here to see an example of a module that Doc developed for Earthwatch.org. Doc is excited to work with us in the field this year, incorporating her anthropological experience in our LME projects. She loves photography, raising her children to become first-class nerds, and spending time with family and students.
Director of Aquatic Safety:
Sage Dalton
phone: 303-440-8883
email: sage@oceanfirstdivers.com
Sage grew up in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Whether it was surfing, sailing or snorkeling, he started very early in life, spending the majority of his time on the ocea
n. Sage’s first experience scuba diving was at the tender age of twelve when he got certified in the Florida Keys. The first dive was all it took; his life was never the same. Sage became aPADI Instructor as soon as he could and his scuba career has taken him from a divemaster on a glass-bottom boat in Florida all the way to Course Director at one of the largest Career Development Centers in the country. Sage also managed scuba operations at resorts in the British Virgin Islands and Turks and Caicos.
As Director of Aquatic Safety, Sage supervises all SCUBA and Aquatic Safety Programs at Teens4Oceans. He has worked with the T4O team for six months and is an invaluable member of the organization.
Director of Environmental Programs:
Sacha Greene
phone: 303-440-8883
email: sacha@teens4oceans.org
Sacha LOVES the ocean and has a passionate desire to protect the environment. She is amazing with young people and she makes people feel calm underwater. Sacha is developing educational programs and teaching modules that capture peoples' attention and makes them want to learn about how ecosystems function.
Sacha had her first ocean experiences as a toddler in Mexico and France and quickly became fascinated by its expansive beauty. At the age of seven while on a family trip in Hawaii, she decided to become a marine biologist and hasn’t looked back. Growing up in Colorado has presented some challenges for Sacha, but she’s taken every every available opportunity to learn about and spend more time in the ocean.
Sacha received her Open Water certification at the age of fifteen and has been traveling in search of new and exciting dive sites ever since. Her enthusiasm for diving and the underwater world has only increased over the years and Sacha became a PADI Open Water Instructor in 2008.
Sacha started her formal marine ecology education in San Diego, but has alsostudied in the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos. Her best diving has been in Hawaii, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica and Dominica. Through her travels and continued education, Sacha became especially passionate about resource management and conservation of reef ecosystems. She now spends most of her free time diving and exploring new places.
Director of Marketing:
Graham Casden
phone: 303-440-8883
email: gcasden@teens4oceans.org
Graham is an ard
ent supporter of Teens4Oceans. He has traveled all over the country with groups of school kids and has helped get T4O off the ground. He was born in Jackson Hole, WY but moved to California as a child. At the age of eight snorkeling in Grand Cayman, he noticed a group of divers exploring a wreck deep below. He remembers well the feeling of the bubbles rising to the surface and bursting against his skin. He realized he had to be down there. After eighteen years on the ocean, Graham moved to Boulder to attend the University of Colorado and study marketing and entrepreneurship. His love for traveling and the ocean have led him to dive destinations all over the world. His favorites include Micronesia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Australia, Cocos Island and the Caribbean.
The seed for Ocean First Divers was planted in the summer of 2005 after returning from a trip to Blackbird Caye in Belize. Graham wanted a way to continue exploring the reefs of the world while protecting the environment he loves. Over the course of the next fifteen months, he worked diligently to create a company that embodies the qualities of people who love diving and the ocean with the worthy goal of preserving our reefs for generations to come.
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