Nature Preschool - Our Staff

Carey Donahoe, Naturalist Teacher
Carey’s education experience is a B.S degree in Early Childhood with a Minor in Developmental Psychology from the University of Minnesota, and a M.S. program in Early Childhood Studies at Walden University. She is an advocate for developmentally appropriate high quality early childhood education being child directed and outside! She believes It is the teachers job to follow the child’s lead and develop lesson plans hitting all of the developmental domains and MN state standards for preschool development that are inspired by topics and themes that the children are authentically interested in. Carey’s goal is to build resilience and confidence in the children, to foster a sense of awe and wonder in the world around them, and to nurture individuality and creativity as they walk through each day.

Deb Mikelson, Naturalist Teacher
Deb has a Bachelor's degree in Environmental Education from the University of Minnesota. She started at the Minnesota Zoo as a college intern, then joined the Education team as an Interpretive Naturalist, and has over 20 years of teaching experience at the Zoo. Deb has led a variety of classes for a wide range of audiences, including toddlers, preschoolers, school-aged students, scouts, families, and summer zoo campers. Most recently, she taught the Wild Wonders preschool program and very much enjoyed her time with the preschoolers, exploring the zoo and the surrounding nature areas of the campus. She is looking forward to meeting the next group of preschool nature explorers! In her free time, Deb enjoys spending time with her husband, two kids, and two cats.

Jessica Ehrenreich, Lead Teacher/Director
Jessica has a B.S. and an M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education, both from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Jessica has worked in early childhood classrooms both as a teacher and an administrator and came to the Zoo to build the Nature Preschool program in 2022.