Nurture Nature Center (NNC) is a joint project of two nonprofits with a shared name and purpose: the Nurture Nature Center Inc. (NNC, Inc.), formed in 2007 and headquartered in Easton, Pennsylvania, and Nurture Nature Foundation (NNF) created in 1991 and headquartered in New York City.  NNF maintains a separate website that summarizes all of its projects, including NNC, and its leadership is described there. The leadership of the NNC, Inc. is described below.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jane K. Stanley is an attorney with over thirty years of  legal and financial experience involving tax exempt organizations. She is an honors graduate of Columbia Law School and Harvard and a Fulbright Scholar.

Rachel Hogan Carr is a social scientist with a master’s degree in environmental policy design from Lehigh University, who has been a community leader in the Lehigh Valley for many years and has recently gained national recognition for her work at NNC. A summary of her background is included below.

Nicholas Zumas is a lawyer who lives in Bethlehem and has practiced law there since 1975. He attended Lehigh University and has a masters of law degree from New York University, and a J.D. from Dickinson School of Law. Zumas has dedicated significant legal and financial expertise over the years to help a number of local nonprofits.

SENIOR STAFF

Executive Director

Rachel Hogan Carr is the Executive Director of the Nurture Nature Center. She holds a master’s degree in environmental policy design from Lehigh University, where she focused her research on improving flood risk communication through social science. Rachel helped to found NNC, and prior to that, worked as a community organizer and in urban real estate development. She has served as principal investigator on several flood-related research and education projects in partnership with National Weather Service and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In 2011, Rachel was named Distinguished Informal Science Educator of the Year by the American Meteorological Society. She serves on the boards and leadership teams of several local organizations, including the Easton Hunger Coalition and Karl Stirner Arts Trail, Inc. She also serves on professional advisory boards including: National Weather Service Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center’s Customer Advisory Board; Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Residual Risk Subcommittee of the Technical Mapping Advisory Committee; State College Weather Forecast Office Integrated Weather Impacts Team.  She has been active in Easton civic initiatives, including as a co-founder of the Downtown Neighborhood Association. Rachel is a Certified Floodplain Manager.

Science Director

Kathryn Semmens is the Science Director of the Nurture Nature Center. She holds a Ph.D. in environmental and earth sciences from Lehigh University, along with a master’s degree in marine policy from the University of Delaware and a bachelor of science in environmental studies from Ursinus College. Kathryn was employed previously as a postdoctoral associate at the Agricultural Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture and has also worked for the Pew Environment Group in Washington, D.C.  Her awards include a NASA Earth and Space Science Fellowship for doctoral research, a Udall Environmental Scholarship and a EPA Greater Research Opportunity Fellowship for her undergraduate studies. Kathryn’s interests focus on the nexus of science, policy, and community. Her responsibilities at NNC are to help advance the organization’s outreach efforts on scientific and environmental issues generally, with a special emphasis on floods, climate change, and social science research.

Art Director

Keri Maxfield, Art Director of the Nurture Nature Center, has been working in the visual arts for over 25 years. She received her BFA with a double concentration in Studio Art from Kutztown University. Keri’s work ranges from the creative to the highly technical. She is skilled in design and visual communication of scientific data and social messaging. As Art Director, Keri is in charge of supervising and unifying the visual arts and arts education components of the Nurture Nature Center in accordance with its mission. She coordinates art exhibits in the building’s four gallery spaces and oversees the visual interpretation of science content both at center and its grant projects. She is part of NNC’s social science research team, studying projects focusing on environmental risk messaging, including NOAA/NWS product design. Her interests lie in the overlap between art, science and society and she has managed eight grants through the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts that engage local artists and community members in creating visual art in response to local environmental issues.

Development Director

Kim Kmetz joined the Nurture Nature Center staff in August 2024 as the Development Director.
In this new position in the organization, she will build the development function and expand community and philanthropic support for all NNC projects and programs. Kim is looking forward to spearheading development efforts as NNC continues to grow.
Kim has over 20 years of experience in non-profit management and community development initiatives. She holds a B.S. degree from Thomas Jefferson University with a major in Textile Management and Marketing. Kim began her career as a sales and account representative for two major textile firms in New York City. She then spent 11 years as a full-time mother. Although it seems that Kim was born with a passion for community relationship building and pulling people together, it was during those years as a full-time mother that she developed her love for Easton and its people through her volunteer involvement in community activities. She saw first-hand the positive impact that volunteering and community engagement can have on our families, neighborhoods, and environment. It is through these connections with the community that people truly grow to love where they live and honor that place.
Kim returned to the workforce in 2002 as the Manager of Volunteer Resources for Easton Heritage Alliance and The 1753 Bachmann Publick House in downtown Easton.
In 2006, Kim took on the role of Main Street Manager at the Easton Main Street Initiative, a program of the Greater Easton Development Partnership. She oversaw and guided more than 100 volunteers who worked toward strengthening and revitalizing Easton’s central business district, applying the Four Point Approach of the Main Street program.  Easton Main Street Initiative was named the #1 performing Main Street program in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 2009, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
She served on the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Downtown Center (PDC) from 2008 through 2014 and currently serves on the Board of Directors for Keystone Core Services, a subsidiary of the PDC. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Easton Business Association and The Village on College Hill, an aging-in-place organization. Kim is the chairperson of the College Hill PorchFest Committee and the Live in Nevin Park concert series planning committee.

Director, Buy Fresh Buy Local – Greater Lehigh Valley

Research Specialist

Patrick Painter is the Research Specialist at the Nurture Nature Center. He holds a master’s degree in Environmental Policy Design from Lehigh University, and a bachelor’s degree in International and Area Studies with a certification in Global Engagement from the University of Oklahoma. During his academic journey, Patrick focused his studies and research on global climate change and sustainable development, and had the incredible opportunity to study abroad in Arezzo, Italy where he interned with the city’s Department of Governance, Innovation, and EU Policies. At NNC, Patrick will help with social science research efforts. Patrick is excited to explore the human-nature relationship through NNC’s research efforts, a topic of interest that he credits to his time as a Youth Ambassador for NNC’s CREATE Resilience project, and as a Community Fellow for NNC.