Eric Ahner graduated from The University of Arizona with a degree in Astronomy/Physics.  He has served two different schools that teach students with learning differences.  He began his teaching and administrative career at Brush Ranch School, a small school in New Mexico.  For the past eight years, he has worked at The Forman School in Litchfield, Connecticut teaching physics and serving as Assistant Head of School.  While he will be returning to The Forman School, he aspires to be head of his own school some day.

Paul Andrichuk has been a global studies teacher, Dean of Students, and Middle School Head at Catlin Gabel in Portland, Oregon, for the past seven years.  After attending Oberlin College, Paul spent five years teaching middle school geography and US History at Flint Hill School in Oakton, Virginia. He also earned a Masters in Counseling from Johns Hopkins University.  Paul and his wife Stacey have a six-month-old son named Jake. Paul will be examining how middle schools differentiate curriculum in each subject area to allow the classroom setting to best serve the way an individual student learns.  He will focus on schools that meet the needs of middle schoolers in their communities without tracking.

Todd Austin-Wimpey’s experience in independent school education has included posts at San Juan Diego High School in Austin, TX, Nativity Preparatory School in Boston, MA, and at his alma mater Jesuit College Preparatory School in Dallas, TX.  He comes most recently from Austin where he served as the feasibility study director and founding president of San Juan Diego, a Cristo Rey model school designed to make private college preparatory education affordable to students from Austin’s immigrant and urban neighborhoods. His teaching interests have followed his own studies which include a B.A. in History/Pre-Medicine from The University of Texas at Austin and a Masters in Theological Studies from Spring Hill College.  He considers coaching the previously winless Nativity Prep baseball team to five victories in 1996 his fondest independent school memory.

After graduating from Mount Holyoke College with a degree in Biological Science, Karolyn Belcher joined the charter corps of Teach For America. Through that program, she taught middle school life science in New Orleans, Louisiana. After completing her two year commitment, Karolyn joined the staff of Teach For America. She served in a variety of program roles - most notably, she led the pre-service training institute for new teachers in Houston, TX for four years. In 1998, Karolyn left Teach For America to help launch The New Teacher Project, a consulting organization that works with districts and states to recruit, select, and train alternative teaching candidates. In that role, she led the contract with the School District of Philadelphia, City University of New York, and the training portion of the contract with the State Department of Education in Massachusetts. For the last five years, Karolyn served as the School Director of the John A. Reisenbach Charter School in Harlem, one of the first three charter schools to open in New York State.

Marisa Felt Bellingrath graduated from Trinity College in Hartford, CT.  She worked as an actress, and then as a third grade assistant teacher at the Buckley School in New York City. The following year she became a head teacher in the second grade and later the fourth grade.  In addition to her classroom duties she worked with grades 1-6 on theatrical productions and mentored new teachers.  Simultaneously she earned an M.S in elementary education from Hunter College. In her last year at Buckley she was elected President of the faculty organization, FABS.  She looks forward to assuming an administrative role at an independent school.

Sheryl Chard is the middle school head and an English teacher at Bosque School in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  For the last six years, Sheryl has had the opportunity to help grow a young school from fewer than 200 students to its current enrollment of 450.  Prior to joining the community of Bosque School, Sheryl taught for five years at The Barrie School outside of Washington, D.C.  When not at school, Sheryl spends as much time as possible hiking in the mountains and deserts of the beautiful southwest.  She is thrilled to be spending this year in New York and to be a part of the Klingenstein Center.

Born and raised in Mexico, Jenny Clark comes to us from the Fessenden School; an all-boys school outside of Boston, MA, where she taught Spanish in the middle school. While at Fessenden she was also director of the after-school lower school program, tennis coach, and choreographer for school plays. Prior to beginning her career in education, Jenny was an analyst at an Investment Consulting firm for 3 years after completing her economics degree at Bates College in 1998. Jenny comes to Klingenstein to prepare herself to take an administrative position in a Private School as well as begin her own summer adventure and community service education programs.

J.P. Culley comes to Teachers College from St. George’s Independent School near Memphis, Tennessee.  For the past three years he has been working to help begin a new high school that has grown from 150 students to nearly 400.  During his six years in formal education, J.P. has taught math, science, and a bit of history to students in grades one through ten, in addition to coaching baseball, football, and robotics.  When he returns to St. George’s after the Klingenstein experience, he looks forward to assuming the role of Director of Academic Studies, where he will work to support the dedicated teachers and students of St. George’s.  He also eagerly anticipates resuming his role as faculty advisor to The Polar Bear Club and spending time in the backcountry with his wife, Mary.

Amishi Desai was educated in independent schools in Mumbai, India and in western Pennsylvania before receiving her B.A. in English and Creative Writing. After college, she returned to live in India where she studied farming and terra cotta sculpting in Kutch, Gujarat, and Iyengar Yoga in Mumbai. After returning to the states, she pursued a brief career as an editor first with NPR in Washington, D.C. and later with the India Heritage Research Foundation in Columbia, S.C. She then did her Masters work in the History of Religions before beginning her teaching career at the Blake School in Minneapolis, MN where she taught upper school English and creative writing, coached lacrosse, and served on the pk-12 curriculum committee for 4 years. She attended the Klingenstein Summer Institute in 2001 and found this to be a professionally and personally transformative experience. When she moved to New York City with her husband Chris, also a teacher, and her daughter Ela in August 2003, she immediately began pursuing a path back to the Klingenstein Center for further study. After mothering full time for a year, she is excited to be part of such a diverse and talented cohort with whom she can reflect on her experiences in the school setting and learn to become an effective educational leader.

Tucker Hastings graduated from Bowdoin College, double majoring in Government and Legal Studies and French. He was awarded a graduate fellowship to teach English for a year at the Universite Blaise Pascal in Clermont-Ferrand, France. Upon his return he taught French and coached soccer, hockey, squash and tennis at Tabor Academy in Marion, MA. He looks forward to continuing to teach French, hopes to be the head of a modern language department and to incorporate further administrative duties at an independent school.

Maiya Jackson graduated from Brown University with a degree in English Literature.  Drawn by her past experience as a Summerbridge teacher in her hometown of Portland, Oregon, she then became the co-Director at Summerbridge/ Breakthrough Long Island.  Breakthrough is a national, tuition-free enrichment program where talented high school and college students teach motivated middle school students from under-resourced schools.  During the school year she also taught high school English at the program's host school, Friends Academy.  Maiya is interested in the charter school movement and would like to head a charter school in the future.

Paul Keller graduated from New York University with a dual degree in Economics and Marketing.  He began his teaching career at The Marvelwood School in Kent, Connecticut teaching several sections of high school math.  Eventually he changed gears into administration and spent four years as the Assistant Dean of Students and then the Dean of Students at Marvelwood.  In the summers he is a Camp Director at Camp Kieve in Nobleboro, Maine.  He hopes to become a Head of School..

After graduating from Colgate University, Andy King joined the Upper School History Department at Hackley School in Tarrytown, New York as a first-year teacher.  In his six years at Hackley, Andy has worked in the school’s Admissions Office, served as a Boarding Associate, coached basketball and tennis, and advised student delegations to Princeton and Harvard Model Congresses.  Andy will study the causes and scope of academic dishonesty by polling upper school students from a diverse sample of independent schools.  In conducting this survey, Andy hopes to find ways that independent schools can better foster and sustain a culture of academic honesty.

Alison Koss graduated from Miss Porter's School and holds a B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania.  Recently, she taught Middle School Social Studies and English at Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York City.  At Sacred Heart, she  was a founding member of the Diversity Committee and coached the 5/6 softball team.  In the past, Ali has been an apprentice teacher at New Canaan Country School and has taught summer school at Rumsey Hall School.  While Ali loves to teach, she would like to be head of a Middle School or K-9 someday.

Dakai Li was born in a teacher family and his parents both are teachers. So he really dreams to devote his life to work more for the transformation and development of Chinese Education as his father wants to do. He started his teaching career in a training school attached with Chinese Education Services for one year. Then in last four years he had been a teacher of computer technology in New Oriental School, which is a big private school with twelve branches all over China and two branches in Canada.  Due to his excellent performance, he was honored Excellent Teacher and appointed as a chief of Department of Computer Technology in the school.  Mr. Li wants to back his school after graduation and join the work to set up another four branches in China.  These four branch schools will include the education from low to high school stage. Then Mr. Li wishes to promote the development of private education in China, especially the reform of teaching, finance, and governmental policies for private education..

Judy Lin graduated from New York University, where she double majored in History and Medieval and Renaissance Studies.  After a stint as a non-profit development officer, she ventured off to pursue her MLitt in Medieval History at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.  After returning stateside, she was a Lower School Teaching Assistant at the United Nations International School, then a High School History Teacher at the Berkshire Country Day School in Lenox, MA, and most recently, a Middle School History/Social Studies Teacher at the Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, CA.  She hopes to develop curriculum and return to teaching in the near future.

Kate Lussen grew up as a faculty child at various New England schools, and graduated from Yale with a B.A. in American Studies.  After a brief attempt to be different from the many educators in her family, she gave into her desire to teach and moved to San Francisco where she coached rowing and began her career teaching and being an administrator at The International School of the Peninsula in Palo Alto.  After four years in California, Kate took an opportunity to teach for two years at the Lycee International de Saint Germain en Laye, just outside of Paris, before coming to the Private School Leadership Program.  Kate is looking forward to a future in administration and teaching at schools or organizations that promote global studies and internationalism.

T.J. Mackey graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Political Science and English.  He started his career coaching on the collegiate level and eventually began doing admissions work too.  Then he moved to Maine and began teaching at Bridgton Academy.  After taking a small break from teaching to work as an outdoor educator and guide, T.J. returned to the classroom at Carrabassett Valley Academy.  Here he also worked as the Director of Student Services.  T.J. looks forward to gaining new experiences and skills as a school administrator.

Colm MacMahon graduated from The College of the Holy Cross with a degree in English and his teacher certification.  A lifelong resident of New York City, Colm returned home upon graduation and began his teaching career at Marymount School.  He spent seven years at Marymount, teaching and coaching in the Upper, Middle and Lower divisions.  A student of New York's independent schools his whole life, Colm is pursuing a position of leadership within that community.

Peter Newcomb graduated from Williams College and started his career as an educator as an intern at the Landon School for Boys in Bethesda, MD. After acquiring a valuable year of experience, he began teaching, coaching and dorm responsibilities at the Indian Mountain School in Lakeville, CT.  Upon completion of this program, he hopes to find a position as a Dean in either a traditional independent school or an international school.

Jennifer Ogilby graduated from Vassar College with a major in International Studies and a minor in French Literature.  After graduating, she taught French at Brent International School in the Philippines.  She then made her way to Colorado where she began working at Colorado Rocky Mountain School as Assistant Director of Admission and Marketing.  Two years later she became a full time faculty member, teaching both French and Spanish.  Most recently, she was Dean of Residential Life.  Currently on sabbatical, Jennifer hopes to return to CRMS well equipped to continue in a leadership role..

Bob Ogle received an MA in English Education from Teachers College in 1995 and a BA in English and Economics from the University of California, Davis in 1993. He began teaching at Syosset High School on Long Island, then moved on to Park City High School in Utah. He then followed his heart (and his love) and moved to San Francisco where he taught at Redwood High School in Marin County. He, his wife Chaela, and their 8 month old daughter, Mia, have spent the past four years in San Diego, where he primarily taught and coached at Francis Parker School. He is pursuing his doctorate at Teachers College, and afterwards hopes to take on leadership positions in both international and domestic schools.

Lauren Radcliffe graduated from Duquesne University in 1999 with a dual degree in Mathematics and Secondary Mathematics Education.  After graduation she began teaching Middle School Math at The Ellis School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Her desire to take on more of a leadership role in her school led her to the Klingenstein Summer Institute in 2003.  Upon completion of the Summer Institute, Lauren was enthusiastic to continue her studies in Private School Leadership.  Lauren hopes to become a Dean of Students and possibly a Division Director in the future.

Mark Rosenblum graduated from Bates College with a degree in History and a minor in French.  He started his teaching and coaching career at the Berkeley Carroll School in Park Slope, Brooklyn.  After earning his Master's Degree in French from Middlebury College and teaching History abroad at an international high school in France, he returned to Brooklyn to teach French and Spanish in Middle and Upper School at the Packer Collegiate Institute.  At Packer, Mark also served as 7th Grade Head Teacher, and as a facilitator for teacher inquiry groups as part of the school's professional growth and development program.  Mark hopes one day to lead a school that centers its program around foreign languages acquisition and cross-cultural learning.

Russell Shaw began his career as a foreign affairs legislative assistant on Capitol Hill.  More recently, he has taught at Outward Bound, Thornton Friends School, and Woodside Priory School.  For the past three years he has served as the Middle School Director at Abington Friends School.  He and his wife Shira have two young children.  Russell’s project is to design a middle school parent education program. He will review current research, consult with colleagues nationwide, and draw on his own experience.  He plans to develop written materials as well as interactive programming for use by independent schools.

Jessica Spielberger graduated from SUNY at Buffalo with an honors degree in Spanish and sociology.  To escape the harsh winters, she spent a year and a half of her undergraduate career in Sevilla, Spain, studying literature, linguistics, and dance. She started her career at Nichols School in Buffalo, New York as a middle school Spanish teacher and a soccer and lacrosse coach.  During her four-year tenure at the school, she also served as dean of students, department chair, and director of the middle school summer enrichment program. After finishing her graduate studies, she plans to continue to serve as a school leader and hopes to be Head of School some day.

Heather Taylor graduated from the University of Virginia in 1997 with a B.A. in Math and an M.T. in Secondary Education.  She has taught high school math at Punahou School in Honolulu, Hawaii (her alma mater) for the past seven years.  She coaches swimming, tutors, takes dance classes, and has been in several community theater shows as part of the ensemble.  She is excited to be living in New York City, and looks forward to making the most of the educational and cultural opportunities available.  She hopes to be a dean at Punahou someday.

Rabbi Eliyahu Teitz has served 14 years as the associate dean of the Jewish Educational Center school system (Yeshiva of Elizabeth elementary school, Rav Teitz Mesivta Academy and Bruriah High School) in Elizabeth, NJ.  The 22nd consecutive generation of pulpit rabbi in his family, having just retired after 15 years in that position, Rabbi Teitz received rabbinic ordination from Yeshiva University's Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, as well as his BA (in Computer Science) from Yeshiva College.  In addition to Rabbi Teitz’s current work with youths at the elementary and secondary levels, he has also taught computer science at Yeshiva University and Stern college, and was one of the original hosts of live Torah discussion groups on America Online.  Rabbi Teitz is the proud father of four beautiful children..

Flo Turkenkopf is a graduate of Wesleyan University with a BA in physics.  She started her teaching career at The Taft School as a physics teacher, coach and dorm parent.  She then moved to Brooklyn, NY and has worked at the Packer Collegiate Institute for the past six years as a physics teacher.  She has dreams of opening a school on the southern Caribbean coast of Costa Rica someday, but for the more immediate future, she is interested in becoming a Dean of Students.

Courtney Willett graduated from Williams College with a B.A. in History and Environmental Studies.  She began teaching at her alma mater, Buckingham Browne & Nichols in Cambridge, MA.  While at BB&N Upper School Courtney taught various social studies courses and, at the girls’ varsity level, was an assistant and a head coach.  Other roles included acting as a Senior Project advisor and assisting in the College Counseling Office.  After getting married, she and her husband moved to New York so she could attend Teachers College.  She completed her M.A. in Social Studies Education, with certification, this past summer.  Courtney looks forward to pursuing an administrative and teaching position.