A change of plans
Zimmerman came to Amherst intending to double-major in biology and English while fulfilling medical school requirements, but a semester abroad in Kenya changed her entire outlook. "That experience led to new friendships, new self-confidence, new academic interests-including post-colonial world literature-and the interests that have shaped my career," she said. At the end of her four years, Zimmerman earned a major in English and received the Five College certificate in African Studies.
International interests
After a taste of life overseas, Zimmerman became interested in the field of education and life abroad. "I was struck by the fact that my Kenyan sisters' schoolwork was so little about their own society and literature. I felt so privileged being able to study their literature and history, while they-in secondary school-never got the chance," said Zimmerman. "I had decided while in Kenya that the best way for me to get back overseas was through teaching."
However, Zimmerman wanted to develop experience teaching in the United States before she returned abroad. "I got a job teaching middle school English and French and coaching at Friends' Central, a Quaker school outside Philadelphia," said Zimmerman. "It was actually my alma mater, but I chose it because it was the best school that offered me a job."
Four years later, Zimmerman married her husband, Kevin McCollister, and decided to join the Peace Corps as a teacher and a teacher rainer. "We couldn't find an African country that could take both of us, so we went to Kazakhstan in the early post-Soviet days," said Zimmerman. After Kazakhstan, they settled in Vermont where Zimmerman studied sustainable development and applied economics at the University of Vermont while her husband did community development work in Russia through a Vermont-based organization.
Shelburne Farms
Zimmerman soon landed a job coordinating a new project doing professional development and policy work for school systems on education for sustainability, through Shelburne Farms and a number of state agencies. "Shelburne Farms is a gorgeous working farm and education center that demonstrates and promotes sustainability-the integrated stewardship of social, natural and economic resources," she said.
Zimmerman's experiences working with Vermont teachers led to the creation of the Sustainable Schools Project. Zimmerman worked with schools to "pursue sustainability through curriculum integration, community partnerships, school-wide collaboration, and campus ecology," she explained. "Our big goal is to promote civic engagement for students, so we focus on helping teachers develop service-learning opportunities and community connections throughout the school."
In addition, Zimmerman has worked to promote sustainable education on both national and international levels. "It's now the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, and I'm involved in the U.S. Partnership for the decade, so we're often asked to share our work," said Zimmerman.
A growing family
Zimmerman still lives in Vermont with her husband, her seven-year-old son Ethan and her 19-month-old daughter, Nadia. "In addition to our 'desk jobs,' we raise and sell organic chicken and lamb and keep a variety of pets on an old farm we're renovating just outside Montpelier," said Zimmerman.
Zimmerman and her husband adopted Nadia from Russia in Feb. 2005. "I had never planned to adopt, but life took its odd turns, and we ended up finding Nadia," said Zimmerman. "We chose to find her in the region of Russia where Kevin had worked for many years and where we have many dear friends-it was already a part of our family life."
After a long and difficult process, Nadia came to Vermont. Since her arrival she has become an integral part of the family. "It's not easy-neither the paperwork nor the decision-making nor fostering the attachment-but we are so grateful that she has completed our family," said Zimmerman. "Nadia already has her own unique personality that has enriched [all of our lives]. She is so different than Ethan, and she adds so much to our family and our community. She is incredibly feisty, active and funny. Everyone loves her!"
The perfect balance
With a family and career that she is happy about, Zimmerman seems to have perfected the balance between her moral principles and the practical realities of everyday life. "I am really glad that I have followed my values and interests to this work and this life in Vermont," said Zimmerman. She admits, however, that there are challenges to face when following an untraditional career path. "This path doesn't always get the typical societal acknowledgment or financial reward as you do from a more 'mainstream' Amherst career," she said. "I do think I will find more opportunities, but I'll have to be pretty creative!"