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​​​Meet Our Staff

​General contact: 715-346-2116 or uwexlakes@uwsp.edu

We are Extension Lakes, a team of education professionals dedicated to preserving our Wisconsin legacy of lakes through education, communication, and collaboration. We work closely with the 766 lake organizations in Wisconsin and coordinate a number of programs and projects to assist those concerned with the future of our lakes. We are one part of the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership, a collection of both private and public citizens and experts who speak for our beloved Wisconsin Lakes. (read more...)





Eric Olson, past-Director and Lake Specialist

Eric was recently elected as the County Executive of Portage County (here in Stevens Point). April 20, 2026 was his last day as Director and Lake Specialist with Extension Lakes. You can learn about his new role on the Portage County, Wisconsin website. Please contact any of our great staff (below) to help answer your questions or connect you with the right lake folks.

If you are interested in working with this amazing team, look for the Extension Lakes Director job posting at the end of May/beginning of June. 

​

Sara Windjue, Leadership and Capacity Development Specialist
(715) 346-3212
Sara.Windjue@uwsp.edu

Sara joined the Extension Lakes team in March 2020 after working for over 15 years in the Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education for the Wisconsin K-12 Energy Education Program (KEEP) at UW-Stevens Point.​

Sara’s main duties with Lakes are to:
• Plan and implement statewide leadership and capacity development programs that advance lake protection and restoration
• Coordinate the biennial Lake Leaders Institute and Advanced Lake Leaders Institute
• Coordinate the Annual Lakes and Rivers Convention

Sara has a B.A. in Environmental Science and Biology from Adrian College, MI and an M.S. in Environmental Studies from the College of Charleston, SC. She received the Educator of the Year award from Slipstream in 2017 and helped her children's elementary school earn the Green Ribbon from the U.S. Department of Education in 2020. Sara, her husband, and two daughters have lake property on Lower Clear Lake in Langlade County and installed their first Healthy Lakes project there.
 



Erin McFarlane, Clean Boats, Clean Waters Educator
(715) 346-4978
erin.mcfarlane@uwsp.edu
 
Erin coordinates the Clean Boats, Clean Waters watercraft inspection program that assists Wisconsin residents in stopping the spread of aquatic invasive species. Click here for more information or contact Erin if you are interested in becoming involved with aquatic invasive species prevention.

Erin McFarlane has been the statewide CBCW Educator with Extension Lakes since May 2007. She grew up in East Tennessee, where her adventures in the Smoky Mountains led to a Master’s degree in Natural Resources from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point and a passion for environmental protection. Erin supports the Clean Boats, Clean Waters Watercraft Inspection program and helps coordinate watercraft inspectors across the state. By working with lake groups and the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership on watercraft inspection efforts, Erin hopes to engage Wisconsin's citizens in aquatic invasive species prevention and help preserve Wisconsin's waterbodies for future generations. 
 


Paul Skawinski, Citizen Lake Monitoring Network Educator
(715) 346-4853 
Paul.Skawinski@uwsp.edu

Paul is the Statewide Citizen Lake Monitoring Network Educator. He helps develop protocols and resources used by volunteers when assessing a variety of lake water quality parameters, and conducts trainings for volunteers and water resource professionals. Volunteers with the Citizen Lake Monitoring Network monitor some or all of the following on their lakes:

  • ​​Water clarity
  • Phosphorus concentrations
  • Chlorophyll concentrations (a measure of algae concentrations)
  • Dissolved oxygen
  • Aquatic invasive species
  • Native aquatic plant communities
  • Ice on/ice off dates
  • Lake level fluctuation
  • Other special projects

Contact Paul for information about the volunteer programs available through the Citizen Lake Monitoring Network.

Paul holds a B.S. in Soil Science and Waste Management, and an M.S. in Watershed Management. He is the author and photographer of the popular field guide Aquatic Plants of the Upper Midwest, now in its fourth edition. In addition to his position at Extension Lakes, Paul also teaches Aquatic Plant Taxonomy at UW-Stevens Point, and has been working with aquatic ecosystem management for nearly 20 years. He is an Honorary Board Member and past-President of the Central Wisconsin chapter of Wild Ones. In his free time, Paul enjoys kayak fishing, snorkeling, photography, gardening with native plants, and spending time on lakes and streams with his family.

Read about and purchase Paul’s field guide to aquatic plants here.

Amy Kowalski, Communication Specialist

(715) 346-4744 
Amy.Kowalski@uwsp.edu

Amy joined the Extension Lakes team in 2003 and is the production manager for many Extension Lakes publications (printed and digital). She edits and designs the long-running newsletter (Lake Tides​) and online E-newsletter (Lake Ripples), fact sheets, posters, brochures, and multi-media presentations, as well as helping to maintain the Extension Lakes website, Wisconsin Lakes and Rivers Partnership Facebook page Extension Lakes' Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube Channel. She assists with the Wisconsin Lakes and Rivers Convention, Lake Leaders Institute, Citizen Lake Monitoring Network, Clean Boats, Clean Waters Watercraft Inspection Program, and the Healthy Lakes & Rivers Initiative through editing, design, marketing, photography, and videography.
Contact Amy with Lake Tides or Lake Ripples​​ ideas!

Amy holds a B.S. in Psychology with an emphasis in Human Services from UW-Stevens Point. Even though her degree did not bring her into the position of natural resources, she is very connected with nature. She grew up in rural central Wisconsin on a family farm and was involved in 4-H. Her 20+ years of design experience have been mostly self-taught. She enjoys telling and listening to stories, biking, kayaking, hiking, skiing, volleyball, softball, golf, board/card games and playing/singing music with her family.​


EvanPaulZdroik.jpg(Evan) Paul Zdroik, Database User Support Specialist

(715) 346-2247
ezdroik@uwsp.edu​

​Paul joined us in September 2024 as the Database User Support Specialist and oversees our internal database and also supports CLMN and CBCW data reporters. From central Wisconsin, Paul graduated UW-La Crosse with BS in Geography and was a member of UW-La Crosse's Cross Country and Track and Field Program where he was a 5X All American. Prior to joining the team Paul worked as a software developer where his main tasks were SQL Database management, API development, Windows form building, web building and maintenance. In his free time, Paul enjoys being active outdoors, tinkering in his garage, coaching youth sports, or just hanging outside with his family. 

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]]> Holcomb-LaMarche, Jesha A Tue, 16 Jul 2013 15:40:17 GMT https://www3.uwsp.edu/cnr-ap/UWEXLakes/Pages/Forms/DispForm.aspx?ID=126 default https://www3.uwsp.edu/cnr-ap/UWEXLakes/Pages/Forms/DispForm.aspx?ID=832 Contact: Kowalski, Amy
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​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Lake Tides 

​The FREE newsletter for people interested in Wisconsin's lakes 

 
​​WANT TO KEEP RECEIVING LAKE TIDES?
CONTACT US!

WANT A PHYSICAL PAPER COPY​?
Email or call us with your mailing address:
lakes@uwsp.edu
715-346-2116
(if we are unable to answer the phone, please leave us a message)

​​​​Current Issue: Vol​ume 51 No. 1 Spring/Summer 2026​​​

Submit an article:

Do you have an idea for an article you think our reader​s would be interested in? Submit an article/idea to be considered for a future issue of Lake Tides! Read our guidelines​ and contact the editor at amy.kowalski@uwsp.edu or 715-346-4744.

Use our articles in YOUR newsletter:

​We encourage you to use any past Lake Tides articles for educational purposes (commercial use prohibited). Please credit the source by inserting the line "reprinted from Lake Tides" and include the volume and number as well as any listed authors. Peruse our searchable directory of articles below (please be patient as it may take some​​​ time to load).​​​​

Two Ways You Can Help Keep Lake Tides Afloat:

1) Endowment Fund - For lasting imp​act
Our endowment fund was created to provide long-term support for Lake Tides, including undergraduate fellowships, graduate assistantships, newsletter production, and other essential needs. ​
If you would like to make a lasting contribution, please go to https://give.uwsp.edu/g/wisconsin-lakes​

To read more about this endowment, read our article, Can We Fly this Balloon...Forever?​

 

2) Gift Account - For immediate support
The Lake Tides gift account helps cover current expenses, such as rising postage and printing costs, so we can continue to publish and distribute the newsletter without interruption. If you'd like to help with immediate newsletter expenses, there are two ways you can give:
Extension Lakes
College of Natural Resources, UWSP
800 Reserve Street
Stevens Point, WI 54481

Your support helps ensure your Lake Tides newsletter remains a trusted source for lake and watershed news. Thank you for helping to ​keep this resource strong!


​

​​​Lake Ripples

​Timely updates about Wisconsin's lakes​ (bi-monthly)


Due to the cost of printing and mailing our long-running, free Lake Tides newsletter (50 years this year!), we will have to decrease publishing to only three issues annually. We still want to connect you with important resources and stories related to our state's precious lakes. Enter, Lake Ripples, your eNews source for timely updates about Wisconsin's lakes! If you know of others who would like this publication, please have them subscribe now - it's FREE! 

​Check out past issues of Lake Ripples

2026


2025


​

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