About the Project Team
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Danielle giving painting instructions.
Danielle giving painting instructions.

Danielle Bacque

(Lafayette, Louisiana) - Artist, Educator, Developer of Experiential Spaces
Danielle Bacque's first visual arts exhibition of lights was designing and creating the Safari of Lights holiday event for the Zoo of Acadiana. After completing her certification in Neuro Art Therapy with Del Giacco’s Creative Art Therapy in 2013, she began exploring the benefits of light and other sensory implementations in her business The Sensory Art Center. In 2014, she acquired a contract to design and build a Mayan sci-fi jungle themed multi sensory environment for the boy’s dormitory at the Special Education Center in Alexandria with the carpentry and design help of artist Carey Hamburg. Danielle Danielle is currently teaching at Ascension Episcopal School as the middle school visual arts teacher.

Phyllis Baudoin Grifford, PhD

Phyllis Grifford
Phyllis Grifford
(Lafayette, Louisiana) - Biologist, UL Lafayette Faculty (Retired), Board Member Acadiana Master Naturalist Program
Phyllis Baudoin Griffard is an award-winning biology educator based in Acadiana. She earned an Honors BS in Zoology from University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1983, a MS in Medicinal Chemistry from Purdue University in 1987 and a PhD in Science Education from LSU in 1999. After teaching university biology around the world and at UL Lafayette, Phyllis retired in 2020 and has continued to promote understanding of local biology via her work with the Acadiana Native Plant Project and Acadiana Master Naturalists.
Phyllis currently is an adjunct instructor with LSU's College of Education graduate program. With the Louisiana Native Plant Society she launched the Louisiana Certified Habitat Program that recognizes private and public properties whose landscapes are managed ecologically. She lives on 7 acres of gold-level Louisiana Certified Habitat with Pete Griffard and many birds, insects and plants.

Carey Hamburg

(Lafayette, Louisiana) - Visual Artist, Instructional Designer, Maker.
Carey with giant Venus Flytrap
Carey with giant Venus Flytrap
Carey Hamburg attended the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now UL Lafayette) and began the study of Architecture in 1983. There he was introduced to structural design thinking, model building techniques, and a wide array of art production materials. While he left the program after three years to graduate in General Studies, Carey has continued to apply the skills and techniques he learned there through an ongoing production of art and design projects. He completed a certification in Commercial Art and Graphic Design from the Louisiana Art Institute (Baton Rouge, LA) in 1991 and in 1996 graduated from the University of South Alabama with a Masters Degree in Communication. He has had a 30 year career of working in the fields of education technology, multimedia training development, and digital arts. He has taught in settings of K-12 education as a technology instructor and Arts integration specialist. Carey has also created and presented workshops in a variety of topics such as creativity, Tape Art, technology integration, and online accessibility issues. Throughout his Technology and Educational career, Carey has maintained an interest and participation in the Visual Arts. He has produced paintings, sculptures, theater scenery, costumes, and a variety of digital media works. Carey often uses materials such as cardboard, found objects, recycled plastics, and building materials. His current focus is in the design and development of large scale sensory experiential environments for exhibits and events. You can view more of Carey's art on his Instagram site at https://www.instagram.com/careyhamburg/
Kyle Patton
Kyle holding a fish.
Kyle holding a fish.
(Lafayette, Louisiana) - Biologist, Biodiversity Specialist, Naturalist, Curator of Natural Sciences for Lafayette Consolidated Government.
Kyle Patton is a native of Lafayette, LA.  Upon completion of high school at Saint Thomas More, he went on to complete two degrees from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.  His Bachelor’s degree was from the Department of Renewable Resources with a focus in Animal Science.  His Master’s of Science degree was from the Department of Biology where he wrote his thesis on bats of central Louisiana. From 2009 – 2018, Kyle was an Instructor of Biology at ULL teaching a large diversity of biology related courses and labs.  Additional roles at ULL including Freshman Lab Coordinator, Teaching Assistant Coordinator, and Information Technology Coordinator for the Biology Department.  In 2018, Kyle left ULL and started work as the full-time Naturalist at the Acadiana Park Nature Station within Lafayette Consolidated Government.  In 2019, Kyle was appointed the Curator of Natural Sciences for LCG.   

Tara Landry

(Lafayette, Louisiana) - Engineer, Dome Construction Specialist, Maker.
Tara bending pipe for dome.
Tara bending pipe for dome.
Tara Landry built the first geodesic dome calculator on the internet in 1996. She designed and constructed a 50' wooden geodesic dome in 2004 to be used as the center structure for Burning Man. Her Desert Domes Website is focused on teaching people to build their own geodesic domes of many frequencies and sizes. Over the years, she has built countless geodesic domes, some of the smallest were made from bamboo skewers, and the biggest were made from metal, lumber and composites. Tara graduated from UL Lafayette in 2003 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering, focused on Computer Aided Design and Manufacturing. An all-around maker and tinkerer of machines and tools, she now has a CNC router, two 3D printers, and a laser cutter, along with many other tools for making. Tara is currently working as a design engineer for a local engineering firm that mainly builds tools for the oil and gas industry.