About Us

Our Instructors

Broadreach instructors at staff training

Broadreach instructors are a crucial part of every adventure. They are incredible, knowledgeable and encouraging people who love working with students to create lifelong memories.

 

Our instructors are…

Passionate, dynamic and fun: We look for instructors who want summer jobs abroad and believe in the Broadreach mission, have a contagious enthusiasm for life and the world around them and who are able to create fun, amazing moments regardless of the situation. Our instructors have limitless energy and work long hours with a smile, providing our students with experiences of a lifetime.

Committed to the Broadreach student: Our instructors connect individually with every student while creating rapport with the group as a whole. They drive Broadreach’s mission and make every trip unique and tailored to the group they are leading.

Medically trained and risk managers: Dedicated to upholding the highest level of safety on our programs, Broadreach instructors evaluate and manage risks effectively. We highly encourage all of our instructors to obtain their Wilderness First Responder certification and require it for many of our positions.

Experienced travelers and culturally aware: Our instructors have extensive travel experience, whether they have traveled for work, research or personal enjoyment. Broadreach seeks instructors who speak multiple languages and have in-depth knowledge of our regional destinations, knowing how to engage with local cultures and make meaningful connections with the people and places they go. They are naturally curious and have the ability to share a sense of discovery with students.

Flexible, responsible and resourceful: We hire leaders who can adapt quickly to fast-paced environments and scenarios, find solutions quickly, make the best decisions for their group’s current circumstances and can remain flexible when something is outside of their control. Our trips are carefully programmed, but there are some things that cannot be predicted or planned for and oftentimes, when framed properly, spontaneous moments can be the most memorable part of a trip.

Professional and thoughtful: Measured achievement is a central part of every Broadreach program. With recognized certifications, hands-on activities, college credit and community service offered, our instructors master the ability to teach, lead and relate to students, while also maintaining control in various situations. Broadreach instructors become part of a close-knit community of PADI professional scuba instructors, licensed sailing captains, marine biologists, Ph.Ds, graduate students and experiential education professionals.

 

Highlighted Instructors

Instructor Jen Naranjo

Jen Naranjo

PADI Scuba Instructor

After moving away from her hometown in South Florida, Jen headed to Little Corn Island, a remote island in Nicaragua where she’s lived for the past eight years. There, she teaches scuba diving to visitors and basic computer skills to local children. Some of her favorite students have been teens on gap year trips, which inspired her to become a Broadreach instructor in 2011. Jen studied international business and marketing at George Washington University and plans to focus her conservation efforts by adding to and maintaining the artificial reef system built at the dive shop where she works. Her favorite part of traveling is taking in the night sky and noticing how different each place is from where she grew up. She also enjoys making jewelry, a craft that she learned from artisans in Central America.

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Simon McVeagh

Skipper

Simon is from the wonderful, windy lands of New Zealand. When not instructing for Broadreach, Simon works in Wellington teaching sailing lessons and delivering boats in New Zealand. He recently completed a two-week long, 900-mile race. Simon has extensive sailing experience in everything from delivering brand new yachts for clients, to skippering yachts in 10+ day ocean races with both a full crew and one other person on board. He loves to travel and work with kids, and one of his favorite memories was taking a group of disadvantaged 14-16-year-olds from Wellington out sailing for the day. He has also coached canoe polo for both a local high school and the Regional Canoe Polo association for the past five years.

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Kiwi Cyr

Marine Biologist

Kiwi has been fascinated by the ocean and marine life for as long as she can remember, and cannot think of a time when she didn’t want to be a marine biologist. She graduated from the University of Hawaii, Manoa with a BS in Marine Biology, later becoming an AAUS-certified scientific diver and NAUI divemaster. She has worked aboard the SSV Tole Mour for the Catalina Island Marine Institute’s (CIMI) Tall Ship Expeditions Program teaching students sailing, marine biology, island ecology and leadership skills. Currently, Kiwi works on Catalina Island, C.A. as a marine science instructor at CIMI, where she spends her days teaching students all about marine science and island ecology in an experiential education setting. When she isn’t teaching, Kiwi spends her time hiking, painting, surfing and going on outdoor adventures.

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Rob Ellis

Marine Biologist

Rob has been teaching marine, earth and environmental science for more than 16 years in both classrooms and outdoor environments. He is an assistant professor in the Marine Science Department at Orange Coast College in Southern California and the Director of the OCC Public Aquarium. He has co-authored two widely-used textbooks on oceanography and is currently working on a third. In addition to Broadreach, Rob has worked for a variety of field education programs including the Ocean Institute, Catalina Island Marine Institute, Longacre Expeditions and Astrocamp. He loves being an instructor because it allows him to do more in-depth field work on specific topics than the classroom normally allows. Rob loves helping students get a chance to explore the real-world applications of the classroom.

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Lindsay Graff

Shark Biologist

Although hailing from landlocked Vermont, Lindsay has had a lifelong passion for the ocean and  more specifically, sharks! She received her MSc in Marine Biology from Northeastern University while specializing in shark biology and has a BA in Biology and Zoology. Her shark studies and research have taken her all over the world, from South Africa to The Bahamas to, most recently, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, allowing her the opportunity to work alongside world-renowned shark scientists. Lindsay loves helping her students to develop the same love and appreciation for these special marine animals and she hopes to instill within them an enduring fascination with the ocean. She is also a PADI Divemaster, AAUS-certified scientific diver and a Wilderness First Responder.

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