MEET OUR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHERS
Teacher Dorothy Habecker (grade K/1)
Teacher Dorothy is in her 26th year of teaching young children. She has taught in Friends education for 13 years, public education for 10 years, and has also worked in day care and as an educational consultant for an early intervention research project. When she's not at school, she loves to be outside - hiking, backpacking, camping, canoeing, and gardening. When she can't be outside, she loves to sew, quilt, knit, read and hang out with friends and family. She also plays a mean game of Scrabble! Dorothy has a B.A. in sociology, teaching certification in early childhood, and an M.S. in curriculum and instruction. She has been a member of State College Friends Meeting for over twenty years. Dorothy has years of experience as a trainer and facilitator in conflict management, and she treasures the time she has spent doing the Alternatives to Violence Project trainings in Huntingdon State Correctional Institution. Dorothy loves teaching young children because she gets lots of hugs and gets to laugh every day.
Assistant Teacher Abby Browne (in Teacher Dorothy's K/1 class)
Teacher Abby grew up in Peacham, Vermont, where her extended family shares 200 acres of land. Raised a Quaker, she has been attending Meeting since birth. Abby moved to State College the summer after college graduation and worked for Zerby Gap Familyworks in Spring Mills. Presently, she is also a member of the after school staff at CLC Charter School, and this past summer was the head counselor of the Friends School Summer Camp. Abby graduated from Wheaton College in Norton, M.A. in 2006 with a double major in studio art and religion. Teacher Abby is looking to continue her education in either Art Education or Art Therapy in the near future. Abby loves Friends School and is eternally grateful for the opportunity to be a part of it!
Teacher Lisa Gamble (grade K/1)
Teacher Lisa's passions have always been studying and spending time in the natural world and working with children. She loves to learn about the many fascinating plants and animals with which we share this earth and discover the interrelationships of all living things. Spending time outside hiking, canoeing, backpacking, or just observing helps her maintain (or regain) an inner strength and serenity. Lisa finds sharing her love of nature with children exciting because they have such a natural sense of wonder and children also make each day more fun and exciting. Before becoming a classroom teacher, Lisa worked as an environmental educator and was later a full time mom, home schooling her children for their first few years of elementary school. Lisa has a B.A. in Biology and an M.S. in Experiential Education.
Assistant Teacher Marilyn Mishock (in Teacher Lisa's K/1 class)
Teacher Marilyn truly believes that the Friends School Quaker environment allows for Divine expression of the highest good in each of us for the benefit of all and that children are among those who light the way to a more peaceful world. Marilyn began volunteering at Friends School in 1987 when her son enrolled in kindergarten. Marilyn is an avid, curious reader/student and always has a new learning project emerging, usually based upon an aspect of children's education or the emotional and spiritual well-being of children. With a background in Montessori education, she has worked part time at two local Montessori schools and the Easter Seals program over the years. Teacher Marilyn has been an Assistant Teacher at Friends School since 1993. Marilyn has been involved with the Quakers Alternatives to Violence Program as a trained facilitator and shares nonviolent conflict resolution strategies with the broader community. With a deep commitment to learning and teaching peacemaking, Teacher Marilyn shares her love of learning with our youngest students. Marilyn still loves her job after all these years, and embraces what Friends School children share with her: to remain hopeful and enthusiastic about our world and to never waste a chance to play!
Teacher Sarah Cooper (grade 2/3)
Having just recently relocated with her husband from California, Teacher Sarah brings to Friends School nine years of teaching experience from two independent elementary schools, The Prairie School, Racine, Wisconsin and St. Matthew's Parish School, Pacific Palisades, California. Sarah has taught second grade for the past eight years and her areas of expertise include designing and implementing thematic units, creating school museums, and organizing and facilitating grade level and school wide community service projects. One of Sarah's many teaching strengths is in the orchestration of differentiated classroom instruction providing for flexible groupings to accommodate for learning needs. Additionally, Sarah is the co-founder of St. Matthew's Student Environmental Organization and has written and directed elementary school musical productions. Sarah holds a B.S. in Elementary Education from The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa.
Teacher Chandra Weigle (grade 2/3)
Teacher Chandra has a B.S. in Elementary and Kindergarten Education from Penn State and an M.Ed. from Lesley University in Curriculum and Instruction with a Conflict Resolution and Peaceable Schools emphasis. Her interest in developing peace education curricula and integrating peace and justice themes fit perfectly with the Friends School philosophy.
Assistant Teacher Kelly Garthwaite (in the 2/3 classrooms)
Hometown: raised in State College
Family: Molly - 3 years old, Charlie - owner and brewer, Otto's Pub & Brewery
Hobbies: Knitting, thrift stores/garage sales, gardening & berry picking
Music on my iPod: Jason Mraz, Natalie Merchant, Dire Straits, ColdPlay
Books on my night table: Eat/Pray/Love, The Kite Runner, various parenting books
Favorite Movies: too many to name. Little Miss Sunshine, O' Brother Where Art Thou
Education Background: BS in Elementary Education with emphasis in Environmental
Education, Certified in Project Wet & Project Wild, working on ESL certificate
Accomplishments: Taught myself to knit, & I have lived in 6 states and visited 41.
Favorite states (I've been to): Oregon & Vermont
Favorite Foods: Thai & Sushi
Some things I believe:
I believe that children should be active participants in their education, not just passive recipients. I believe in the theory of Multiple Intelligence - the idea that each person has cognitive strengths and learns in different ways. I believe that it is an educator's responsibility to teach according to those needs. I believe environmental education should pervade all grades levels & subject areas and become a life-long process for every citizen. The environment is our responsibility and it's our duty to teach children about keeping it healthy. I believe that education is empowerment and learning is fun!
Teacher Sunna deForest (grade 3/4)
Relocating from Alaska and having an extensive background in teaching, conflict resolution, yoga, and Quakerism,Teacher Sunna deForest will join us as a lead teacher in grade 3/4. Teacher Sunna comes to us from Fairbanks, Alaska, where she taught at Chinook Montessori Charter School, Elicarvicuar School, Pine Creek Elementary School, and the Alaska Boreal Forest Council. Sunna’s areas of expertise include service learning, environmental education, adventure learning, behavior intervention, and integrated curriculum development. Additionally, Sunna minored in Russian and Russian literature and is proficient in French, Peace Games, and computer applications. Sunna and her husband Russell are attenders of State College Friends Meeting.
Assistant Teacher Kelly Corradini - (in the 3/4 and 5th grade classrooms)
Kelly earned an elementary education degree from Penn State and worked the past year as a substitute in the State College Area School District. In October of 2006, she took reins of a 3rd grade class and did an outstanding job guiding the class for the rest of the year. Kelly also has experience as library skills instructor and developing summer day camp programs. In addition to her teaching experience, Kelly is familiar with the Friends School through her duties as a Jazzercise class monitor.
Teacher Tim Austin (grade 5)
Teacher Tim grew up in State College, Pennsylvania and graduated from State College High School; however he has called many other places home during his life. Tim has lived and worked in England, South Africa, New York, North Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Kansas, Oklahoma, Wyoming, and Texas. Teacher Tim currently lives on Centre Hall mountain in Centre Hall. During his travels he has come to understand that although each person is a unique individual, all have the same basic needs in life. As a teacher, Tim’s goal is to prepare his students to meet their own needs, whatever those needs may be, and get them ready to lead a happy life. Tim believes that a teacher’s most important job is to create an environment that stimulates and encourages children to want to learn. He feels that because successful learning is rewarding, the desire to learn grows with each year a child spends in a setting that values their efforts. As a teacher at Friends School he has had the opportunity to help his students learn how to learn, how to solve problems, how to adapt to changing situations, and how to have positive relationships with other people. In his spare time Tim enjoys spending time outdoors, especially hiking with his wife and five dogs. When the weather forces him indoors he likes to use his extra time to restore old Yamaha motorcycles and spend time with his wife and eight cats.
Tim received a BS in Elementary Education with a minor in Psychology from Pennsylvania State University, May 2004. Tim is currently working toward his Certificate in Reading Instruction for Special Education at Penn State University.
MEET OUR MIDDLE SCHOOL TEACHERS
Teacher Bailey Klinestiver (middle school)
Teacher Bailey grew up in the small town of Tidioute, Pennsylvania located on the edge of the Allegheny National Forest, canoeing, exploring, and collecting insects. Bailey still loves insects, animals, and the outdoors. Much of her free time goes toward caring for her ever-growing menagerie, which currently includes two Great Pyrenees dogs, three cats, a hamster, and fish (at home) and a turtle, fish, two hamsters, cockroaches, and a chinchilla (at school). More recently, Bailey has taken an interest in astrophysics and is reading her way through the Richard Feynman canon. Bailey is thankful every day that she works at Friends School, a place where she can share her love of science with others and where animals, experiments, and adventures of all kinds are encouraged. Teacher Bailey's undergraduate degree is from the Forest Sciences program at Penn State, and she also earned an M.S. in Entomology from Penn State.
Teacher Christy LaForce (middle school)
Teacher Christy has taught for fourteen memorable years at Friends School. When she was interviewed at the school, her immediate reaction was, "What a wonderful school!" She was impressed that the students were being taught how to learn, not what to learn and that they were doing instead of passively listening. Teacher Christy embraces the Quaker testimonies that guide the school and values the teaching practices where students are given opportunities to perform community service, and are taught how to use words rather than fists to settle conflicts.
Christy's love of gardening, sculpting, Asian cultures, martial arts and music have found a home in the themes she has taught over the years.
Having always loved language arts, Teacher Christy earned a degree in secondary English education from Lock Haven University. She lives in Bellefonte with her husband, John, her daughter Kathleen, and her cat, Blue.
MEET OUR SPECIALIST TEACHERS
Teacher Laura Adams (art)
Having an extensive art background and bringing with her methods of infusing fine art and art history into the Friends School art curriculum, Teacher Laura Adams will join us as the k-8 art teacher. Teacher Laura is currently the art teacher at Centre Learning Community Charter School and also a paraprofessional at Park Forest Elementary School. Laura has worked in the Bellefonte Area Elementary Schools, the Cooperative Playschool, and Penns Valley Junior/Senior High School. Laura holds a B.S. in Art Education from PSU and is eager to share her fine art, designer, and graphic art background, non-violent physical intervention training and creativity with Friends School.
Teacher Beth Gibbs (music)
Teacher Beth is currently in her third year at State College Friends School as the K-5 music teacher. Primarily a clarinetist, Beth also enjoys singing and playing the piano. Prior to working at Friends School, she taught general and choral music at the Red Lion Area Junior High School in York County, PA. Beth enjoys discovering the inner musician in each child and aims to create a classroom atmosphere that encourages many ways of "musicing" to cultivate the plentiful and diversified musical talents of the students at SCFS. Beth has a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Penn State and a Master of Music Education from the Hartt School, University of Hartford in Connecticut. She is currently a PhD candidate in Music Education at the Pennsylvania State University with a cognate of courses in Educational Psychology. As Beth is nearing the end of her degree (ABD!) she can often be found working on her dissertation. Her research interests include teacher preparation and the social aspects of classroom interactions.
Teacher Dan Hendey (interim head of school, physical education, basketball coach)
Dan has been at Friends School for over 9 years, and has loved every day! He began as a middle school teacher and is now the Interrim Head of School. Previous to his appointment this summer, Dan was the business and facilities manager for the school. Before switching to education, Dan worked as a director for several environmental organizations and a town recreation department. When not in school, he likes to bike, exercise, travel, cook, camp and work on the house and yard. His irreplaceable joy is playing with his family. Dan is a big sports fan and loves to play while he still can. He currently coaches the Wolves basketball team. Dan has a B.S. in Recreation and Parks Management and Master's degrees in Business Administration and Education. Dan thinks middle school kids are the best because of their honesty and exuberance; also, he has never completely grown up and can identify with them!
Teacher Laura Kemper (librarian) - on sabbatical for 2008/2009
Teacher Laura stepped into her first classroom over 35 years ago at The Foote School in New Haven, Ct. Over these years she has met many wonderful children and talented, committed colleagues! Laura has taught most subjects in grades 3-6; directed an elementary Gifted and Talented program in a small district in rural Wisconsin; taught and developed curriculum for the Hands on Science program; and taught in two elementary school computer labs. When asked to be the librarian at Friends School, Teacher Laura found that the job opened a whole new field to her. Kids and books-what's not to like?
In Laura's relaxing time, she enjoys being outside digging in the dirt! Growing flowers and vegetables has become a favorite thing to do. Teacher Laura has always loved camping, canoeing and hiking. Of course, Teacher Laura reads a lot and loves to find and share interesting facts and stories about most anything. Laura has a B.A. in Sociology from Oberlin College, an M.S. in Education from Southern Connecticut State College, and an M.S. in Educational Psychology from the University of Wisconsin.
Teacher Rebecca Lerner (yoga)
Namaste and Om are two of Teacher Rebecca's favorite words! She has been practicing yoga for over 30 years and teaching yoga to all ages from senior citizens, pre/post natal, to children. Rebecca has introduced yoga to many local groups including the American Lung Association, the Centre County Prison Society, HRB, SCASD Wellness Days, Delta Program, and the MS Society. Prior to entering the yoga world Rebecca was a jeweler, hand engraver and goldsmith. Rebecca has been an attender of State College Friends Meeting since 1988 and has sent three children through Friends School. Rebecca holds near and dear to her heart her 1001 fond memories of Friends School, gathered while being an active participating parent from 1988-2006. Teacher Rebecca began as a volunteer in 1988, teaching yoga to the k/1 students. Since that time, due to its success, yoga has become a weekly class for all students, grades k - 8. Yoga philosophy of non-violence, contentment, truthfulness and self-control are innately held within the Quaker testimonies of peace, simplicity and integrity. These parallels are shared within the yoga curriculum and stimulate amazing responses from the children. It is an honor and joy to teach with these children! Rebecca and her husband co-own and direct the yoga program at the Center for Well-Being (est. 1976) in Lemont, PA. She is a JR. Int. III certified Iyengar yoga teacher, as well as a Bradley childbirth instructor. Teacher Rebecca has traveled to India four times to study with her teachers. Rebecca continues her lifelong pursuit of yogic knowledge, natural healing with herbs, foraging for wild edible plants, good books, and cozy family times.
Teacher Ireida Santiago (spanish)
Ireida (pronounced Eraida) joins our staff as the k-8 Spanish Instructor. Ireida is a native speaker and has worked as a teacher’s assistant in Queens, New York and a drama and dance instructor in Puerto Rico. She also has experience leading and supervising youth volunteers. Ireida will work closely in her first month with Teacher Hope and our lead teachers to become thoroughly acquainted with our school and the Spanish program. Ireida is excited to be working at Friends School and her enthusiasm comes through during her classes.
Teacher Cindy Hanczar (physical education)
Cindy is an expereinced athlete who has played on High school and college volleyball, softball and track teams. She will be working with our teachers to learn about the school, PE routines, class management, and activities that work well for different grade levels. In addition to substituting with the SCASD, Cindy has had previous experience with youth at summer playground and art camps, as a lifeguard and swim instructor, and as a volunteer work for her son's school and religious education classes. She and her family, husband Gordon, and son Jake live in State College . In addition to Physical Fitness and sports, she enjoys art of all mediums.