Theresa Coble is an Assistant Professor of forest recreation and interpretation in the Arthur Temple College of Forestry at Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA). A native Minnesotan, she spent her summers during college working as a canoe guide in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. After college, she taught English at the Liaocheng Teachers College in Shandong Province, People's Republic of China, for four years. Dr. Coble received her Ph.D. in Forest Resources from the University of Minnesota in 1999. She spent five years on the faculty at West Virginia University before coming to SFA in January 2003. At West Virginia, she participated in eight Community Design Team visits to rural West Virginian communities, co-taught a graduate course entitled "Meanings of Place," and was inducted into the Landscape Architecture honor society. Her community outreach efforts culminated in her role as lead writer for a 1/2 million dollar grant from the USDA Fund for Rural America to develop an Appalachian Forest Heritage Area in 15 counties in West Virginia and two counties in western Maryland. She is a former certifier for the National Park Service's Interpretive Development Program, a current member of the National Association of Interpretation (NAI), vice-chair for the NAI College and University Academics section, and an Associate Editor for the Journal of Interpretive Research. Her interests include community development and capacity building, the interpretation of controversial natural resource issues, and the interpretive process.

Dr. Coble lives in Nacogdoches, Texas, with her husband Dean, and her son Ivan. Whenever possible the whole family heads to Oklahoma, Colorado, or other rock-climbing destinations to enjoy the outdoors and a chance to try new routes. They predict it won't be long before Ivan ropes up for a climb or two.

Research

1. Framing, developing & delivering coastal management training modules
2. Maintaining standards of quality at National Estuarine Research Reserves
3. Visitor voices: Testing interpretive theory, assessing interpretive outcomes, and improving interpretive practice in the Intermountain Region of the National Park Service
4. A recreation marketing plan for the National Forest in Texas

Teaching

FOR 503 - Oral Interpretive Programs
FOR 530 - Interpretive Writing
FOR 510- Field-based and Multimedia Interpretive Programs
FOR 620 - Interpretive Research and Evaluation

Selected Publications

Coble, T. G., Selin, S. W., & Erickson, B. B. (2003). Hiking alone: Understanding fear, negotiation strategies, and leisure experience. Journal of Leisure Research, 35(1), 1-22. Part I (PDF, 2513KB), Part II (PDF, 2402KB).

Goldman, T. L., Chen, W. J., & Larsen, D. L. (2001). Clicking the icon: Exploring the meanings visitors attached to three National Capital Memorials. Journal of Interpretation Research, 6(1) 3-30.
Part I (PDF, 1295KB), Part II (998KB).