Theo Witsell is co-founder and Chief Conservation Officer for the Southeastern Grasslands Institute (SGI), where he oversees science and conservation programs. Prior to his role at SGI, he worked for more than 25 years for the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission (ANHC), the agency that houses that state’s Natural Heritage Program and System of Natural Areas. He had several roles in his time there, serving as a land manager before becoming the agency's botanist, ecologist, and Chief of Research before leaving for SGI in early 2024. He has also worked as a consultant for a wide variety of federal and state conservation agencies and NGOs across eastern North America. A botanist at heart, Theo was co-editor of the Atlas of the Vascular Plants of Arkansas (2013), co-author of Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of Arkansas (2021), and recently completed a book about his field work following the route of naturalist Thomas Nuttall’s 1819-1820 trip through what is now Arkansas and Oklahoma. He has authored or co-authored more than 40 scientific papers and book chapters and is a regional reviewer for the Flora of North America Project.   

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Email: theo.witsell@segrasslands.org

Allison serves as SGI’s Biologist for the Little Rock, AR Grasslandia Team. She grew up in Mobile, AL and received her undergraduate degree in Biological Sciences from the University of South Alabama in 2019. She is currently finishing her Masters degree from the University of Southern Mississippi where her thesis project is conducting a floristic inventory of Lamar County, Mississippi. Her love for grasslands and native plants was sparked after observing the diversity that longleaf pine savannas have to offer along the Gulf Coast.

Email: allison.wilson@segrasslands.org

Chuck Hunter serves as the Senior Advisory Ecologist for the Southeastern Grasslands Institute, focusing on Conservation Planning and Strategic Conservation Design, while emphasizing Implementation of priority conservation actions for the fauna and flora dependent upon Southeastern Grasslands through diverse private and public Partnerships. He grew up in Jacksonville, Florida, where he learned about nature and enjoyed the outdoors from an early age.  He received a B.S. in Zoology (and a minor in Botany) from Northern Arizona University in 1980 and M.S. in Ecology from Arizona State University in 1988.  During the intervening years, Chuck worked on a number of wildlife inventory and conservation projects along southwestern river systems.  During 1988, Chuck joined the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Phoenix, Arizona, and in 1989 joined the Service’s Southeast Regional Office in Atlanta, Georgia.  Chuck's duties in Atlanta have included (in various positions) conservation of endangered and threatened, at-risk, and other species of conservation concern throughout the Southeast Region.  Specifically, with respect to migratory bird management, he has been instrumental in developing and implementing conservation planning efforts for landbirds, shorebirds, and waterbirds.  Since September 2003 until he retired on May 31, 2025, Chuck specifically served as the Chief, Division of Strategic Resource Management, National Wildlife Refuge System in the Southeast Region. 

Coming soon!

chuck.hunter@segrasslands.org

Jared is a Biologist at SGI. He grew up in the former prairies of central Illinois, became enthralled by grasslands in the remnant sand prairies of the Illinois River Valley, and decided to become a botanist as a result. In 2019 Jared completed his undergraduate degree in botany at Southern Illinois University Carbondale in 2019 and he is currently working to finish his Master’s degree in Biology under Dr. Estes at Austin Peay State University. In addition to plants, Jared loves looking for birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and insects and spends most of his free time tracking down species new to him. He recently observed his 100,000th observation on iNaturalist where he goes by the handle of “wildlander.”

Email: jared.gorrell@segrasslands.org