Connect with Jeffers Foundation
Jeffers Board of Directors
Mike Fairbourne
VP & Assistant Secretary
Galen Erickson
Director of Communications
Kelly Johnson
CFO
Suzanne Fuluvaka
CAO/Board Secretary
Dr. David Grack
Director of Educational ProgramsJeffers Advisory Board of Directors
Sil Pembleton
Associate Director of Education
Cara Rieckenberg
Jeffers Advisory Board
Anna Dutke
Jeffers Advisory BoardJeffers Directors Emeritus
Paul W. Oberg
Former CEO
Fergus R. Woolley
Former CEO
Dar Fosse
Former Board Secretary
Dr. Tom Westerhaus
Former Director of EducationJeffers Pond
Jeffers Foundation came into being as a result of a bequest from Bob Jeffers, who owned and developed property in Prior Lake, Minnesota. A significant portion of the property was a hilly terminal moraine with a beautiful, small, deep lake surrounded by pristine woods. As the property was developed, Bob desired that these beautiful natural areas be preserved for physical, spiritual, and psychological renewal as well as for the education of all who visit.
Jeffers Pond welcomes you to its paths, vistas, and special places where you can
experience and enjoy nature, to learn, refresh, and renew.
A Message from Paul Oberg, former Chairman of the Board
A principle mission of Jeffers Foundation is to “foster environmental stewardship through education”. We at Jeffers have found that environmental stewardship cannot be “taught” but can only be “inspired”. Therefore, Jeffers has adopted a practice for our professional development workshops consistent with the “scientific method” in which “hands-on”, experiential learning is supported by teaching careful observation techniques using all our senses, reinforced by journaling your observations with drawings and words in notebooks.
In close collaboration with local teachers, Jeffers has developed teaching support materials and programs available through this website and free of charge to those who participate in one of our workshops.
Jeffers Guiding Principles
Educated Children
Earth’s Best Environmental Stewards
It is our conviction at Jeffers Foundation that teaching children in and about the out-of-doors is an essential element in their learning to love nature and become responsible earth stewards. It follows that a major mission of Jeffers Foundation is to encourage and make possible for young people experiential outdoor education. Therefore, we support initiatives which encourage the establishment and development of Outdoor Education Programs. We support teachers, with professional teacher development workshops, programs, and materials designed to help young persons learn to love and be responsible for the world they live in.
Nature Preserved
Special Places to Share and Enjoy
At Jeffers Foundation, we reverence places such as Jeffers Pond for their healing, restorative, and educational value. We therefore, reached out to several such natural "islands" in the world around us and secured them for future generations with conservation easements to be maintained by a suitable nonprofit entity which will make available forever and for everyone their special qualities and attributes.
Productive Partnerships
The Synergy of Like-Minded Individuals and Diverse Perspectives
Jeffers Foundation is only one resource. There are many others who have similar goals. We wish to establish productive partnerships with as many of these as possible to accomplish our mission. We seek to foster and support networks of like-minded organizations and individuals. We will partner with all who have as their goal the outdoor education of children and the preservation of natural settings. We desire to be a catalyst in creating synergistic relationships which involve partners at the local, state, and national level.
How Jeffers Foundation came to be
Jeffers Foundation was made possible through a bequest from the estate of Robert (Bob) W. Jeffers, a long-time resident of Prior Lake, MN. Invested proceeds from the development of Prior Lake property owned by Bob, together with ownership of some unimproved land, constituted the foundation’s initial financial resources. With income derived from judicious investment efforts, Jeffers is able to offer its products and professional development programs largely free of charge to teachers.
Jeffers Foundation’s Purpose
Jeffers’ primary purpose is to help children learn sound principles of Environmental Stewardship and to love and understand the natural world. Jeffers Foundation was established in 2005 for the following purpose: “…to provide for direct primary education and the development of primary education principles, models, and curricula aimed at teaching young persons the value of wise stewardship of natural resources… and insuring the conservation and preservation of natural resources for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.” Jeffers’ teacher professional development workshops exist for that sole purpose.
Jeffers Foundation is an Operating Foundation
An operating foundation with an IRS 501c3 designation, Jeffers Foundation engages in a variety of activities aimed at fulfilling its primary objective. Jeffers seeks out opportunities to work primarily with individuals, educators, and others who share our passion for Outdoor Education. Jeffers works with schools at all levels to promote programs that help students learn sound principles of environmental stewardship through the lens of outdoor experiential learning. Jeffers endeavours to make the generalist teacher more comfortable teaching in the Outdoor Classroom. Jeffers also seeks productive partnerships with others who share common interests and the synergy that comes with like-minded individuals and diverse perspectives.
