Sophia grew up in the Bay Area, but has called the Central Coast home for the past 6 years. She holds a B.S. in Environmental Management and Protection with a minor in biology from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and has a background in environmental policy and terrestrial biology. For the past five years, Sophia has worked for NOAA’s Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, first starting off as a volunteer science communications intern and is now serving as the Coastal Discovery Center Coordinator/Southern Region Liaison. Currently, she manages the sanctuary’s visitor center at W.R. Hearst Memorial Beach which is part of the SLO Coast District of State Parks.
There, she oversees sanctuary educational programming out of San Luis Obispo County, provides community outreach to help visitors develop connections to our oceans. Prior to her role at NOAA, Sophia spent two years in Yosemite working in the outdoor industry, helping lead backpacking trips in the park’s wilderness for recreational enthusiasts of all ages. Outside of her professional endeavors, you can most often find Sophia backpacking, hiking, or skiing in the Sierra Nevada mountain range.
As an environmental educator, Sophia has witnessed the value that spending time in nature can have on the next generation of environmental stewards and hopes that during her time on CCSPA’s board, she can bring more awareness to their mission of connecting youth with their local parks. She hopes to bring her expertise as community liaison and her knowledge of State Parks into her role as CCSPA’s Board Secretary.
