Rachel Taras

Senior Educator
610-756-6000 x210 or [email protected]

B.S. Education, M.S. Ecology. Joined Hawk Mountain in 2008.

Rachel first joined Hawk Mountain in 2008 as a seasonal educator and began educating fulltime in 2013. She is a professional teacher, raptor educator, wildlife handler and trainer who for 15 years has connected people of all ages with raptors and their amazing migrations.

Rachel currently serves as Senior Educator at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary where she leads a variety of public programs and outdoor learning experiences, provides wildlife and flight interpretation, and creates science-based curricula, activities and resources for other educators including parents and teachers. She manages program scheduling, coordination and invoicing for schools and corporate groups for the education department. Rachel is responsible for the captive collection of avian educators at Hawk Mountain, for training international conservation science trainees, education interns and volunteers, and serves as a liaison between the education team and the conservation science department.

Rachel earned her M.S. in Ecological Teaching and Learning from Lesley University, including 2 summers of field work in the Pacific Northwest at the University of Washington and Olympic Park Institute in cooperation with the Audubon Expedition Institute. She received her B.S. in Elementary Education with a minor in Special Education from Cedar Crest College and maintains her licensed Pennsylvania Teacher Certification. Rachel most recently completed Contemporary Animal Training and Management with Natural Encounters Inc. in Florida and the Captive Raptor Management Workshop at Univeristy of Minnesota's The Raptor Center.