Jess Blount

Position at NOLS: NOLS Bus Marketing Representative
NOLS Course: Pacific Northwest Outdoor Educator, 2005

It takes a special breed of person to crew the NOLS Bus. Jess Blount is now a part of that team of dedicated NOLSies who have such a passion for both our curriculum and sustainable energy that they are willing to spend months at a time traveling the country in our 38-foot vegetable-oil-powered motorcoach to spread the word.

New to the bus crew as of January 2008, Jess most recently hails from Boone, North Carolina where she graduated in December 2007 from Appalachian State University with her Masters in Industrial Technology. Her degree has provided her with a background on the climate of renewable energy resources. Peruse her resume a little further and you’ll see she has worked for Greenpeace, spent quite a bit of time with the Appalachian State University’s Outdoor Programs, worked on a farm and volunteered in Venezuela.

For Jess, it’s all about the environment and teaching others not only to appreciate it, but to protect it. “I believe that alternative energy is important and that if you begin talking to and teaching people at a younger age, then when they grow up, the concepts aren’t foreign or scary for them,” Jess says. “I have been working in the outdoor field for only five years and I already feel that getting people into the environment will help them appreciate and experience new things. I believe people learn something every time they go outside.”

Jess first came to NOLS in the summer of 2005 to attend a NOLS Pacific Northwest Outdoor Educator course. “My NOLS course was amazing,” she says. “The scenery of the mountains of the North Cascades was so beautiful. I was able to grow and learn and teach about the outdoors while actually being there and working with people who care. I would do it all over again.”

When this adventurous spirit is not hard at work, she likes to head into the great outdoors to do a little hiking, climbing, backpacking, snowboarding and snowshoeing. She also enjoys building sand castles and learning about coffee. What is she really looking forward to doing on the bus?  “I can’t wait to get greasy!” says Jess. Glad to hear it. Welcome aboard, Jess!