Dr. Patti Bailie, NPA Trustee, is Assistant Professor of Early Childhood Education at the University of Maine at Farmington. She is also a trustee of the Biosophical Institute Foundation. Dr. Bailie has worked in the field of nature-based early childhood education for nearly 30 years, previously serving as Assistant Director of the Nature-based Early Childhood Education Certificate Program at Antioch University New England, in addition to teaching courses there on nature-based early childhood curriculum. Previous experience includes working at three different nature centers in the Midwest, as founding director of the Schlitz Audubon Nature Preschool in Milwaukee, WI, co-director of the Early Childhood Outdoors Institute in Omaha, NE, and early childhood environmental educator at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes in Cleveland, OH. She also serves on the advisory board of the Natural Start Alliance and as consulting editor of the International Journal of Early Childhood Environmental Education. Her research interests include identifying high quality practices of nature-based preschools. She has spoken and published nationally and internationally about connecting young children to nature.
