About MOS:
Maine Outdoor School (MOS), founded in 2016 by Hazel Stark and Joseph Horn, is not a traditional school but a mission-driven L3C business. Based in Eastern Maine, we bring outdoor learning directly to schools, community groups, and families. Whether on local trails, in schoolyards, or virtually, we help people of all ages build skills, knowledge, and confidence to connect with the natural world in their everyday lives.
MOS is what happened when two twenty-somethings with a passion for nature and a drive for change set out to start something new! Our founding story is proof that vision and resilience can grow into lasting impact. Learn more below:
The Founders’ Story
From an early age, Hazel Stark and Joseph Horn found joy and purpose in outdoor pursuits across the Northeast and beyond—be it canoeing, camping, backpacking, or observing nature. Their explorations nurtured a shared passion for nature, adventure, and leadership.
After Joe graduated from Unity College in 2010 with a degree in Environmental Biology and Hazel graduated from College of the Atlantic in 2011 with a degree in Human Ecology, they both became Naturalist Educators at Foothill Horizons Outdoor School in Sonora, California. During this one-year position, they taught 6th graders geology, ecology, conservation, and cultural history entirely outdoors. Beyond honing their teaching skills, they were deeply influenced by the school’s workplace culture: staff were supported with professional development, fair wages, and humane schedules. This model of care and creativity would shape their future work.
Forging Core Beliefs: 2012-2014
Returning to the environmental education field in the northeast US after their year in California, Hazel and Joe experienced low pay, exhausting hours, and unsustainable seasonal jobs. These challenges clarified their vision: outdoor education needed to be not just about science, but about resilience—personal, organizational, and community. They saw the importance of modeling that resilience by ensuring fair working conditions from the ground up.
Honing a Vision: 2014-2016
Driven to learn more about organizational sustainability and resilience, Hazel and Joe both enrolled as graduate students at Antioch University New England after spending a year improving their place-based education skills at Teton Science Schools through the University of Wyoming. At Antioch, Hazel took on a Professional Science Master’s in Resource Management and Conservation, and Joe took on both a Master’s of Business Administration in Sustainability and a Master’s of Science in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Environmental Education.
Every class project became a stepping stone for what would become Maine Outdoor School (MOS). While Hazel mapped social and ecological data for Downeast Maine in her Geographic Information Systems (GIS) class, Joe was creating financial projections for MOS. When Hazel was building partnerships with mission-aligned nonprofits in Downeast Maine, Joe was developing the business plan for MOS. This led to MOS officially being launched and beginning programming in the spring and summer of 2016.
Today, MOS continues to carry forward their shared vision: fostering resilience, stewardship, and joy in the natural world through education that sustains both people and planet. For more information about the journey since 2016 please check out our quarterly e-newsletters!
Founders’ Story written and edited by Joe Horn, Rain Perez, and Hazel Stark, October 2025.