Our Team
Perry “happy” balian, Executive Director
Perry, known as "Happy" in the garden, has been working in Los Angeles Unified School District's Learning Gardens since 2015. In the gardens, Happy has served as an instructor, a Sustainability Director, an avid weeder, and composter as well as an on-campus garden and plant science curriculum designer. Happy brought his years of creative talents as a production coordinator for The Walt Disney Company to the garden and classroom by creating the naturalist podcast “Glory of Green”, a weekly podcast for K-8th grade currently streaming on all major platforms. Happy has a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Auburn University, a graduate Specialization In Social Emotional Learning from the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a Virtual Teacher Specialization Certification from UC Irvine. perrybalian@gmail.com
Paula sirola, emeritus executive director
Former STP Executive Director Paula, whose garden name is Ms. Peppermint, is experienced in organizing communities, developing programs, and building grassroots organizations in Los Angeles and Latin America. Her work revolves around helping people build community and access healthy foods, be it through street vendors, community and school gardens, or community-based agricultural projects. Paula is a UC Cooperative Extension Master Gardener and has a M.A. in Urban Planning from UCLA, where she also did her doctoral research. Contact: pmsirola@gmail.com
Renee Meshul, Founding member
Renee Meshul, also known as Ms. Raspberry, has been a garden educator at Mark Twain Middle School since 2010. Before coming to Mark Twain, she spent 25 years as a child development specialist working with high risk populations and 25 years running her own successful land use consulting business. She has a MEd in Counseling Psychology and became a Master Gardner in the UC Cooperative Extension Program in 2013. Contact: rmeshul@gmail.com.