Tom Hissong
Tom has followed an exciting career path working as an Interpretive Naturalist /Environmental Educator in the Dayton, Ohio area for nearly 41 years. He retired from his position as the Education Manager at the Aullwood Audubon Center and Farm north of Dayton in March of 2017.
Prior to his position at Aullwood, Tom served as a naturalist for two years with the Five Rivers MetroParks in Montgomery County, Ohio which followed 16 years in the position of Curator of Education with the Dayton Museum of Natural History. Tom graduated from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio with a B.S. degree in Environmental Education/Field Biology in 1976. He is well-known throughout the Dayton area for his expertise as an avid ornithology instructor/bird watcher and for his enthusiasm in teaching many children and adult classes on natural history topics each year. Tom has been the planner, organizer and leader of eight different nine-day expeditions to south Florida and the Everglades for bird study and has led many three-day weekend trips to Pt. Pelee, Canada to watch birds and to northern Michigan to observe the endangered Kirtland’s Warbler over the past forty years. Listed among his international expeditions are Australia, Peruvian Amazon and Andes, Kenya, Panama, High Arctic Norway, Costa Rica, Galapagos Islands, and Canadian Rockies.
Awards received include Dayton Tripod Camera Club’s 1984 Nature Photographer of the Year, EarthWatch/Timken Foundation Research for Renewal -Teacher Fellowship, National Audubon Society ACE Group Award - Flamingo Watch, 1999 Garden Club of Ohio, Inc. - Citation, inducted into Northmont Schools Roll of Honor 2006, 2007 Tamar Chotzen - National Audubon Society Educator of the Year, and 2008 TogetherGreen Leadership Fellow.
