About

Marnie Olcott 

marnie.olcott@akchallenger.org

Marnie Olcott was born in a small town in central Oregon, moving with her family to Anchorage Alaska when she was 12 years old. During High School, Olcott moved out of Alaska and lived in California, Oregon and Colorado before returning back to Alaska full time with her two (2) children in 2000 upon the completion of a full service lodge built and operated by Olcott, mother, and sister. Olcott joined the team at the Challenger Learning Center of Alaska (CLCA) in 2006 as a part time Flight Director/Educator.  From 2007-2010, Marnie served as the Chief Operating Officer for CLCA and in July of 2010 accepted the position of Chief Executive Officer. As CEO, Olcott manages budgets, oversees operations, training, facility and management staff of the Center.  Under Olcott’s management, CLCA has implemented and expanded outreach, on-site and distance based educational programs, curriculum development, community programs and partnerships in the ongoing mission to inspire and engage Alaska’s youth in the STEM fields.  Over the last ten (10) years, Olcott has built and integrated a successful Industry based training operation creating a lasting revenue stream to fund statewide educational efforts.  CLCA is recognized as a leading resource for STEM Education across Alaska. Olcott has a proven track record in both creating and managing overall operating budgets, project budgets and reporting.  Under Olcott’s leadership, CLCA has been the recipient of many state and federal grants.  CLCA is an affiliate member of the Alaska Space Grant Consortium, receiving, successfully implementing and reporting on annual grants.  Over the course of 20 years, Challenge has been the recipient of multiple NASA grants.  All grants have been successfully implemented and in complete compliance.

Colette Gilmour

Colette.gilmour@akchallenger.org

Colette moved from upstate New York to start her new adventures in Alaska in 2013. Since then she has taken on many administrative roles, starting with serving as an AmeriCorps VISTA, developing the sustainability of homeless teen shelters in Fairbanks. With a natural curiosity in STEM, a bachelor’s degree in Advertising Photography from the Rochester Institute of Technology, experience in program development and marketing, and her love for kids, Colette became the Computer Tech Lab Lead for two years, teaching k-5^th graders at Fort Wainwright, and Fort Drum School Age Services, in 2014. In her program, Colette created and administered STEM activities, multiple 4-H clubs, and taught computer skills. Along with other positions she’s held, and her own commercial photography business, Colette has done marketing for multiple local businesses over the years; directing and filming marketing videos, creating imagery and promos, events and fundraising, and writing social media and website content. Colette is excited to be a part of the CLCA team. “You know it is something special when you see excitement in students and adults alike when they step into our center. Not to mention, I get to occasionally play with them!”  When time allows, Colette loves enjoying the coastal beaches the peninsula has to offer, going hiking, fishing, and working in her ever-expanding vegetable garden. Among photography, baking is also something Colette greatly enjoys; making scratch pies and bread. Secretly, Colette dreams of opening her own bakery one day…along with a ferret rescue.

Rebecca Absher

rebecca.absher@akchallenger.org

Becky has a unique background, with 27 years experience teaching sixth through twelfth grade in the state of Virginia. For nineteen of those years, Becky was the sole science teacher at Mount Rogers Combined School, located at the highest point in the Mountains of Virginia! Astronomy is her favorite subject to teach because she gets to share the wonders of some of the grandest and most beautiful phenomena in the Universe. Becky moved to Alaska in July of 2019, where she has been able to enjoy some of her favorite hobbies, hiking and canoeing with her family, and taking pictures of wildlife and flowers on her adventures. When Becky has downtime, her family can attest that her secret talent is knitting hats with a loom. Everyone in her family has a hat she made specifically for each of them! Becky is excited to be a part of a team of educators that carry on the legacy of Challenger’s mission; teaching and inspiring students of all ages. She is especially looking forward to learning how to lead mission simulations. Becky says, “This is my dream job, teaching informal science activities to students who are as enthusiastic about learning science as I am about teaching it.”

Kyanna Germann

Kyanna.germann@akchallenger.org

For the past 9 years, Kyanna has been a stay-at-home Mom and in the last 2 ½ years has been a small business owner of two businesses. She did contract work as a birth assistant/midwife assistant and makes amazing balloon décor and inflatable rentals along with one of her sisters. Kyanna has also been a foster Mom and an ISP in our local community in the past. For 19 years, Kyanna has lived in Alaska, migrating from her hometown in Monroe, WA. Kyanna enjoys spending time with her husband, 2 kids, 3 dogs, 2 cats, and her endlessly large extended family when she is not working. Some of her hobbies include interior design, home DIY projects, carpentry, camping, reading, arts & crafts, painting, and sewing. She is incredibly creative! One of Kyanna’s hidden talents is singing, which she’s done her entire life, along with creating and trying new things. Among her many talents, Kyanna loves researching things, one being ancestry. She was even able to help a cousin she met on a DNA site find out who her biological father was. Kyanna is a great fit for the Challenger Learning Center with her passion for science and sci-fi, but she thinks seeing the kids’ joy and awe when they come in for a class/simulation is what she likes the most. That joy is contagious.

Jodie Titus

jodie.titus@akchallenger.org

Living in Alaska the past thirty years, Jodie, her husband and three daughters keep very busy. Taking care of her family is what Jodie values the most. Jodie is a natural nurturer at heart, starting her career working in a nursing home and then as a camp counselor. Her career as a caregiver expanded when she moved to alaska, working for over thirty years with Hearts and Hands of Care; servicing children, senior citizens and special needs of all ages. Growing up in Minnesota, Jodie still loves camping in her free time with family and friends, and getting into a good book. Challenger has been blessed having JT as a Flight Director for over a decade. Her dedication and knowledge of science and space is greatly reflected in the classes she teaches. Her special talent is always being able to get kids to willingly participate in activities because she creates such a fun environment.

Sara Koenig

Sara has been an Alaska resident since 2004, was born in Florida, and also lived in Arizona. She has worked with children for twenty-four years, starting as an elementary school teacher. Sara also spent some time as a substitute teacher and a Unit Director at the Boys and Girls Club. While at home, Sara loves crocheting and designing tapestry crochet patterns. The best projects involve the greatest number of colors! Sara enjoys working at the Challenger Learning Center because she gets to be a part of special programs that bring a kind of excitement and determination to the students you don’t often see.

Greg Olcott

greg.olcott@akchallenger.org

Greg Olcott was born in a small town in northern Vermont, before moving to Alaska in 1998, Olcott grew up on a dairy farm and eventually worked summers installing in-ground swimming pools. After high school Olcott attended Vermont Technical College for pre-tech courses and a year of electrical engineering. Deciding to change course Olcott then attended Southern Maine Technical College and received a degree in the HVACR trade. Olcott worked in a machine shop running and programming machines before finding his desired HVACR job. Seven years later in 1998, Olcott purchased land and relocated to Alaska where he resides to this date. Shortly after arriving in Alaska, Olcott acquired his construction/contracting license and had since been involved in the trade. Olcott has extensive knowledge in all aspects of construction, including estimating, designing and building. As an extreme outdoorsman and hunter, Olcott took his existing knowledge of safety and survival and expanded in 2010, acquiring necessary training and certifications to perform industry accepted Marine and Aviation safety training to cover a wide spectrum of oilfield and commercial fisherman and emergency services operations. Olcott has been involved in every aspect of building CSET operations at the Challenger Center, from instruction to administration to building clients relations and maintaining US and International relationships and certifications.  

John Espy

john.espy@akchallenger.org