MaryEllen K. Schoeman

MaryEllen K. Schoeman is a wildlife educator and the founder of the Raccoon Alliance, a nonprofit that advocates for peaceful co-existence with urban wildlife. She has a graduate degree in Conservation Biology from Miami University’s Advanced Inquiry Program, in partnership with San Diego Zoo Global, and is also a wildlife rehabilitator with 20+ years’ experience in caring for native wildlife. She has worked with wildlife all over the world, including raising orphaned cheetahs in Africa and working in South America to return monkeys seized from the illegal pet trade back to the wild. Prior to devoting herself full-time to animals, she worked in the entertainment industry for studios including Paramount, HBO, and Spelling Television as a script analyst and Creative Executive.  She lives in Angeles Crest National Forest, in California, with her husband, three cats, one dog, two tortoises, four goats, an ancient and demented peacock, and an assortment of chickens and turkeys.