Amy Rathke

Position at NOLS: Social Network Engineer
NOLS Instructor Since: 2006

Amy Rathke doesn't seem to want to rest. During her time with NOLS, she not only picked up new hobbies like rock climbing, but has also written and edited articles for The Leader as the Editorial Intern, traveled the country spreading the school's message on the NOLS Bus, took her Instructor Course, and has become the first-ever NOLS Social Network Engineer.

“I’ve been pretty enthusiastic about the idea of NOLS ever since I heard about it,” says the Pacific Northwest native. “I’ve been hiking, kayaking and sailing since I was little. I grew up on a lake and spent every summer at summer camp, so taking a semester with NOLS was the ideal way for me to study abroad during college.”

A graduate of Willamette University in Salem, Oregon, Rathke wanted to combine her degree in Rhetoric and Media Studies with an organization she was excited about, so after her semester, the Editorial Internship was a no-brainer. So was packing up her car with her belongings and driving East—only she arrived in the wide expanses and rugged ranges of the American West.

“Lander is pretty much the furthest East I’ve ever lived,” says Rathke, who has traveled up and down the West Coast, from commercial fishing in Kodiak, Alaska, to her Semester in Baja.

It's been two years since she first arrived in Lander as an intern, and her momentum still gains. Amy's newest role as Social Network Engineer has her deep in cyberspace facilitating connections between NOLS students and alumni. She educates and enlightens others on the finer points of MySpace, Facebook, YahooGroups, and Flickr, all in the name of keeping NOLSies in touch with one another. Keep an eye out, Amy just may be on your next NOLS course!