By: Molly Zaninovich

Grace Miller cried tears of joy when she was offered her job at Whole Earth Nature School. After her first day, while driving home, she couldn’t stop smiling—she knew she was finally where she belonged. For Miller, being an instructor at the Eugene based outdoor school is more than a job—“They are my family,” she said.

During the school year, she balances life at the University of Oregon with leading Whole Earth Nature School’s “Coyote Kids” nature immersion program.

Making a difference with kids fulfills Miller. Her career path, however, was not always gratifying. Throughout her freshman year of college Miller felt dissatisfied with life. She thought back to when she was happiest and realized it was when she was working as an outdoor school counselor.

To combat this dissatisfaction, she took fall term of sophomore year off to work full-time at an outdoor school. She then discovered she always wants outdoor education to be part of her life.

Miller had this “epiphany” while doing a plant study with a group of kids. The sun was shining through the trees making the group pause, enamored by the breathtaking beauty. They unanimously agreed it was the “most beautiful classroom” they had ever learned in.

“It had just rained too, and everything was glistening, it was magical. That moment stuck with me and was the reason I told my mom I wanted to take more than one term off,” said Miller. She realized, “I don’t want to go back, I don’t think I can leave this.”

Miller decided to return to the University of Oregon the following year to pursue a degree in family and human services with an environmental studies minor. She found Whole Earth Nature School through her boyfriend, a fellow outdoor educator, and regards working with the school as the best thing that has happened in her life.

Due to this positive impact, Miller knows Whole Earth Nature School will be in her future. “When people ask me what I want to do after college all I can say is ‘I’m already doing exactly what I want.’”