Allyson Ponn
Faculty Advisor
Allyson is the Education and Program Support Specialist with one of Virginia’s Soil and Water Conservation Districts. There, she leads all education and outreach programming on behalf of the district and works with agricultural landowners and homeowners to install best management practices for local soil and water quality. While studying at James Madison University, she got involved in local food production and conservation. This led to a career focused on environmental education where she has worked in school and community gardens, food access, agriculture, and K-12 science curriculum development. Outside of her work, she manages her local farmers market and community garden. Allyson is also an avid gardener, loves to cook and spend time outside with her husband and son.
Allyson Ponn
Faculty Advisor
Allyson is the Education and Program Support Specialist with one of Virginia’s Soil and Water Conservation Districts. There, she leads all education and outreach programming on behalf of the district and works with agricultural landowners and homeowners to install best management practices for local soil and water quality. While studying at James Madison University, she got involved in local food production and conservation. This led to a career focused on environmental education where she has worked in school and community gardens, food access, agriculture, and K-12 science curriculum development. Outside of her work, she manages her local farmers market and community garden. Allyson is also an avid gardener, loves to cook and spend time outside with her husband and son.
Lukas is a sophomore at Austin Peay State University working towards a bachelors in Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology. He is working towards becoming a wildlife biologist, hopefully focusing on conservation. Outside of school, Lukas volunteers at a wildlife rehabilitation center and takes care of his ferrets. He attended WYSE during the summer of 2023 and is very excited to return!
Julius R. Rodriguez is a clinical psychology senior at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, with a background in positive psychology and comparative animal behavior. His passion lies in finding physiological, observable data to support primarily mentalistic clinical and cognitive theories. He currently leads research on how optimism can moderate body image issues and how self-
Madeline is an Environmental Science undergraduate at Georgia Tech, pursuing a minor in Energy Systems and a Sustainable Business Certificate. She works with the Tang Research Group, exploring rare earth element transformations for clean energy applications. Madeline also contributes to methane emissions research through Georgia Tech’s Methane Project team and was part of the first-place Plastathon team developing a plastic-reduction app. She enjoys reading, hiking, and photography. She uses visual storytelling to advocate for environmental 
Gabby is from Oshkosh, Wisconsin and is a sophomore at UW-Madison majoring in Political Science and Environmental Studies with a minor in Public Policy. When she attended WYSE, she found a passion for environmental sustainability though the lense of government with policy regulations. She has experience in both sustainability and government. A fun fact about Gabby is that she is horrified of 
Abby is a dedicated student who has always been interested in the environment. She fell in love with birds after watching wildlife cameras online during the pandemic. A high achiever in school, she wishes to continue her studies to become an avian veterinarian focused on wildlife rehabilitation. After she attended WYSE in 2023, Abigail went on to lead volunteers at a local program that brought speakers from around the country to educate people in her community about problems facing the environment and their solutions.
As a teacher for 19 years, Chrissy enjoys working with students in English and Journalism at Yorktown High School in Arlington, VA. Chrissy received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from George Mason University. A proud Patriot, she connected to an international community there and developed her love of writing. As part of Patriot Nation, she traveled to Indianapolis in 2006 to watch the Cinderella basketball team head to the Final Four. (Florida continues to be her least favorite team.) No English teacher has loads of free time during the school year, but when she can, Chrissy loves to see live music in DC. Summers on the beach and traveling to other countries are also favorites of hers. Chrissy is excited to return to WYSE and can’t wait to meet new friends this summer!