Program Assistant

Katie Pollok, MLA, is a Landscape Designer at the Natural Learning Initiative (NLI), where she supports the design and development of nature-based environments for children, families, and communities. Her work focuses on creating landscapes that support play, learning, ecological connection, and community well-being, with experience in site analysis, planting design, landscape planning, community engagement, and visual communication.

Katie holds a Master of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Planning from NC State University, where she also earned a Public Interest Design Certificate. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, with a minor in Environmental Studies. She has also worked as a research assistant at NC State, supporting research on NC State Parks and community engagement for the City of Durham’s Paper Streets initiative.

Her interdisciplinary background informs an approach to landscape architecture that considers the relationships between people, culture, ecology, and place. Katie’s work with children and communities extends beyond landscape architecture. Before pursuing her graduate degree, she worked as a teacher at a Reggio-Emilia Community School in Durham, where she developed curriculum around children’s interests, encouraged exploratory learning through indoor and outdoor play, engaged families through child portfolios, and supported children’s social and emotional development. She also interned with the Edible Schoolyard in Greensboro, connecting her interests in children, community health, and ecology.

Katie has been recognized with the 2026 SERC Recognition Award for Urban Design and was a 2025 Southeast Regional Garden Club Scholarship Recipient. She has also served in leadership roles with SASLA, including Professional Development Coordinator and Secretary, and brings experience in participatory design, community engagement, project management, public speaking, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Her design interests include nature-based play, native and resilient planting, ecological systems, accessible landscapes, and revealing histories of place that foster connection between people and the living landscape.