Jessica Outcalt
Jessica joined Cass County Extension as the Agriculture and Natural Resources / Community Development Educator in September 2023. Previously, she worked as the ANR Extension Educator for Grant County, and prior to that she worked with The Nature Conservancy on the project Forestry for the Birds, a project designed to equip landowners to manage their forests sustainable for twelve target bird species. Jessica is passionate about sustainability, wildlife, reaching underserved audiences, and helping people connect with the land they work or reside on. She’s eager to develop her program in Cass County to meet needs and reach clientele, bridging gaps between the University and the general public.
Before earning her PhD from Purdue University in wildlife ecology through the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, Jessica earned her Bachelor’s degree from Taylor University in biology. If it’s an area of biology, Jessica has probably dabbled in it a bit. She’s done research with weather radar and migratory songbirds, aquatic invertebrate surveys, surveys of nesting Kirtland Warblers in northern Michigan, lots of cellular biology work, and recently some environmental consulting in renewable energy fields. And if she hasn’t worked in that subject area professionally yet, odds are she’s got some project going on at home – just ask her about her new home aquaponics set up with her goldfish Grogu!
Outside of work, Jessica is an avid gardener and wanna-be homesteader. She and her husband have almost a dozen fruit trees, 4 acres of forest that they’re working on restoring to its native habitat, and lots of garden beds. They have an 18 month old toddler Ellie who keeps them busy and is constantly making new friends, as well as an 80 pound Rottweiler/Husky mix named Obi and a fluffy black cat named Vader.
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