Elizabeth Fricke

Elizabeth is the director of the Campus Recreation Outdoor Program.  She received a B.S. in Recreation Management from Appalachian State University and M.S. in Educational Leadership from the University of Montana. She coordinates, staffs, leads and oversees Outdoor Program classes and trips and manages the climbing wall.  This includes risk management protocols, strategies, gear inspections and staff trainings. In addition, she collaborates with other departments on campus by facilitating outdoor education classes for credit, offering trips and classes for credit, co-teaching a Living Learning Community course and creating custom team-building trips.  Elizabeth co-directs the Freshman Wilderness Experience orientation program on campus with the Wilderness Institute.

Jefferson Heath

Jeff is responsible for running the Outdoor Program equipment rentals, gear sale, and special events.  Jeff enjoys the University Golf Course, Snowbowl, and anywhere on the river.

Andrea Stephens

Andrea Stephens is the Director of Undergraduate and Field Education for the Wilderness Institute in the Franke College of Forestry and Conservation at the University of Montana. Andrea believes that transformative education happens most profoundly in small groups emphasizing experiential learning and community engagement. She created, directed and taught undergraduate field programs in western Montana for nearly 20 years while also leading seasonal field biology crews. Her field teams worked for a decade in the Swan Valley to map boreal toad breeding habitat and collect genetic samples and snorkel survey data on westslope cutthroat trout. Andrea earned a Wilderness Education Association teaching fellowship and her volunteer field biology program, the Wildlands Volunteer Corps, was honored with the US Forest Service Chief’s Youth Volunteer Award.

Grace Erba

Grace is a PhD student in the Wildlife Biology Program. Originally from Indiana, she moved to Montana in 2018 for her undergrad and decided to stay for a few more years. When not immersed in scientific literature, she enjoys trail running, rock climbing, yoga, gravel biking, and solo (usually crazy) mountain adventures. She’s learning how to alpine ski but currently tends to wipeout more than anything else. Regardless of how she’s exploring the outdoors, she’s always compelled by how the experience leaves her grounded and fulfilled.