Meet Our NEW Sustainability Coordinator

Samantha Theisen is the Sustainability Coordinator for the Environmental Resources Center at Purdue University Fort Wayne. She came to Purdue Fort Wayne after obtaining her Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point (UWSP) with a focus in Natural Resources Planning and Sustainable Energy. Her degree concentrated largely in Land Use Planning and Social and Policy Sciences.

Samantha Theisen

“My heart is in higher education and I’m excited to be in a position that combines both my education and what I do in my free time. When I’m not in the office you can find me cooking, hiking, basking in the sun, binging reality TV shows, hammocking, or tending to my houseplants.”

Samantha has held several university setting positions during her time at UWSP and also has a wide array of experience in local government settings working on projects surrounding aquatic invasive species, brownfield redevelopment, bicycle and pedestrian route planning, agrotourism, nature-based recreation, and water quality monitoring, just to name a few. She is passionate about all things outdoors and preserving public open space so much that she lived a leave-no-trace lifestyle solely in U.S. National Parks for the first 5 months following graduation. She used this experience as a time to visit the backcountry of 22 national parks all while being an advocate of public lands and natural resource conservation. When you see her on campus or around the community, give her a warm welcome!