Jared Weybright, Executive Director
Jared has worked collaboratively with private and public landowners on a variety of restoration, monitoring, and education projects for over ten years with the Council. He has been working with local students since 2004 on a variety of field-based learning projects including water quality monitoring, aquatic habitat inventories, macroinvertebrate sampling and analysis, and riparian restoration and monitoring efforts. During that time, he worked closely with partners to develop an education program which was directly integrated with the Council’s restoration program. In addition, Jared worked with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife for 7 years on a wide range of projects including snorkel and spawning surveys, aquatic habitat inventories, and coordinating STEP volunteer and education initiatives in the Upper Willamette Region.
Amanda Gilbert, Finance Director
Amanda has worked with a variety of local watershed councils for over fifteen years in multiple aspects and capacities. Throughout her time, she has provided superior grant and organizational accounting, administrative support and managed the Council’s outreach, operational, and fundraising efforts. Amanda is a native Oregonian and received her bachelors of science degree in Environmental Science with a specialization in Natural Resource Policy and Planning from Oregon State University.
Haley Case-Scott, Upper Willamette Tribal Liasion
Haley is a member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians, and a descendant of the Klamath Tribes, Yurok Tribe, and the Sakaogan Band of Chippewa Indians. Haley graduated from the University of Oregon in 2018, and is an experienced climate change and environmental justice leader. Prior to her position with the Upper Willamette Stewardship Network and partners, she served as a Policy Assistant with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in their Climate and Environment division. Haley also served as a Climate Justice Grassroots Organizer with Beyond Toxics and the NAACP and as an intern with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service and Pacific Northwest Tribal Climate Change Project. Haley enjoys spending time outdoors and with her family whenever possible.
Chase Antonovich, Operations Manager
Chase has a bachelor of science in environmental studies from the University of Oregon. He interned with the Council as a Salmon Watch assistant during 2016 and volunteered on field trips during the 2017 season, before joining the Council in 2018. When he isn’t helping with Council Operations, he enjoys boating and angling on the McKenzie River.
Lara Colley, Watershed Restoration Specialist
Lara has a B.S. in Horticulture and a minor in Natural Resource Sciences from Washington State University, a graduate certificate in Sustainable Natural Resources, and Master of Natural Resources from Oregon State University. She has worked for the North Olympic Land Trust and the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe in Washington State and is enthusiastic about ecological restoration of rivers and their surrounding landscapes. Lara served as a resident partner with the Council representing the Vida area of the McKenzie River from 2017 to 2021 when she began working as a watershed restoration specialist. In her free time, she enjoys gardening, hiking, camping, foraging, and raising a flock of chickens.
Andy Petersen, Community Engagement Coordinator
Andy is a 5th generation resident of the McKenzie River Valley. He has a BS in Financial Mgmt from Oregon State and Masters in Public Administration from Troy State. After serving as an Air Force Finance Officer, he returned to his family’s ranch in the Upper Camp Creek Valley. Andy has partnered extensively with the USDA’s Farm Service Agency and Natural Resource Conservation Service as well as the McKenzie Watershed Council, EWEB, the Oregon Dept’s of Forestry and Fish and Wildlife on a host of projects to protect and enhance the function of the watershed and riparian areas they steward. Andy’s love of people and history of community involvement enable him to relate to a broad range of our watershed’s residents. Andy enjoys growing hazelnuts, cattle, and trees with his wife and family.
Joseph Ycaza, Watershed Restoration Specialist
Joseph is a born-and-raised Oregonian and is originally from Grants Pass, Oregon. He has a B.S. degree from the University of Oregon in Environmental Science and Philosophy, with minors in Biology and Sustainable Business Management. Joseph was a part of the 2021 UO Environmental Leadership Program that provided data-driven recommendations to the City of Eugene regarding forest management in Hendricks Park in Eugene. Joseph has had diverse professional experience in customer service, horticulture, land and education stewardship, and landscaping. Prior to joining the Council, Joseph worked for the Institute of Applied Ecology in Corvallis as a Conservation Research Technician to monitor recovery efforts for threatened Nelson’s checkermallow and endangered Kincaid’s lupine throughout the mid-Willamette Valley area. He is passionate about climate change, natural climate mitigation, and resiliency strategies. In his free time, he enjoys running, hiking, gardening, playing music, and going on adventures with his family.