Glen Helen Association

Glen Helen was established in 1929, through a gift from Hugh Taylor Birch, who sought to memorialize his late daughter, Helen Birch Bartlett, by donating a wooded valley along the Yellow Springs Creek to Antioch College. It is home to the first residential environmental learning facility in the Midwest, the first educational forest in Ohio, and Ohio’s original facility for education and rehabilitation of birds of prey. Within the borders of this 1,125-acre preserve, we shelter over two miles of the State and National Scenic Little Miami River, and a National Natural Landmark designated by the U.S. National Park Service. 

Glen Helen is a singular resource for Yellow Springs, the Dayton Metro Area, and the broader region. The preserve welcomes 125,000 visitors a year who walk, take classes, or enjoy quiet inspiration on its 15-mile trail system. We serve up to 3,000 children a year through our residential environmental learning programs and summer Ecocamps. The Glen’s naturalist training program is one of the oldest of its kind. Over 1,000 alumni of the program work in parks, preserves, nature centers, universities, and other settings around the world. Our Raptor Center inspires hope as it saves injured and orphaned birds of prey.

In September 2020, the Glen Helen Association, which had for sixty years served as a supporting organization to the preserve, became its owner and operator, with intention to continue its mission of land stewardship and life-shaping environmental learning.