2019-20 New Faculty

List of 7 items.

• Upper School

  Brian Carter will be joining the Upper School science department as a physics teacher. He graduated with honors from the University of Georgia with bachelor’s degrees in chemistry and mathematics and earned his Ph.D. in chemistry with distinction from Columbia University. For the past four years, Brian has been a Program Officer at Overdeck Family Foundation in New York City, where he developed and led the Inspired Minds portfolio, which works to increase the quantity and quality of out-of-school STEM learning experiences for all students across the country.Brian is on the advisory board for Bard High School Early College, and enjoys cooking, traveling, and lazy Sundays with his dog Leon. He can’t wait to be back in Georgia, where he was born and raised.

  
  

  Danielle Whichard will be joining our Upper School math department this fall. Danielle has her bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Mary Washington and her master’s degree in secondary math education from Kennesaw State. A former senior risk analyst for JP Morgan Chase, Danielle has taught high school for nearly a decade and has also coached swimming, soccer, and cross country. In her spare time, Danielle enjoys running with her dog Pascal and personal training.

  
  

  Michele Davis will be joining the Upper School as our Director of College Counseling. She has a bachelor’s in journalism from the University of Maryland, College Park and a master’s in educational leadership and administration from The George Washington University. Ms. Davis has most recently been a college counselor at Hutchison School in Memphis, Tennessee, following time as a college counselor at Woodward Academy and Charles E. Smith Jewish Day School. Prior to her work in independent school college counseling, she was Assistant Director of Undergraduate Admissions at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Assistant Director of Admissions at the Goizueta School of Business at Emory University.

  
  

  Elece Turnipseed is excited to join Walker as a math teacher. She has a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Clayton State University and is currently completing her master’s degree in mathematics education at Georgia State University. Elece has spent the last three years teaching math in her hometown of Jonesboro. In her spare time, she enjoys competitive cheerleading, singing, and baking (she also has a degree from the Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts).

  
  

  Sam Brannon will be joining both the Middle School and the Upper School as a computer science teacher. He holds a bachelor’s in music composition from Johns Hopkins University, a master’s in music history from the University of North Carolina, and a doctorate in music history from UNC. He has nearly a decade of experience in education, spending his last two years as Upper School Technology Facilitator at The Steward School in Virginia.

  
  

  Ryan Stadler will be joining the World Languages department as a Spanish teacher. He holds his bachelor’s in vocal performance from the Peabody Conservatory of Music and his teaching certification in Spanish from Georgia State University and is currently working on his master’s in Spanish from New Mexico State University. Ryan has two decades of experience on the stage as a professional actor and musician and has spent the last five years as a Spanish teacher in Atlanta.

  
  

  Emily Meadows is excited to join the Upper School as our new guidance counselor. She has a bachelor’s in psychology from Christian Brothers University, a master’s in education from Louisiana State University, and a doctorate in counseling from the University of Memphis. She has a multitude of experience in high schools, including Memphis Catholic Middle and High School and most recently, Christ the King in Atlanta.

  
  

  Karen Witkin joins the Upper School as the new Learning Support Specialist. A New Orleans native, Karen comes to Walker with vast experience in independent schools in New Orleans and Chicago. She is an Orton-Gillingham and IMSLEC certified tutor and has served as a lecturer for the Yale Center for Dyslexia and Creativity and a presenter at the International Dyslexia Conference. In her spare time, Karen enjoys spending time with her daughter, cooking, reading, and running.

   

• Middle School

  Matt Anderson will be joining Walker as a social studies teacher. He has his bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Valdosta State University and over 14 years of high school teaching experience. Matt comes to Walker from St. Pius X Catholic High School.  He has taught social studies with a primary focus on U.S. History and Economics and has coached football, golf, baseball, track and field, girls lacrosse, and boys lacrosse.  Matt lives in Marietta with his wife, Jamie, and two sons, Jack and Will.

  
  

  Tom Evangelista will be joining both our Middle School and Upper School science departments. An Atlanta native, Tom received his bachelor’s in computer science and mathematics from Vanderbilt University. He brings with him nearly two decades of experience at Clemson University, Sewanee: The University of the South, South Carolina State University, and Presbyterian College, and he comes to Walker from Holy Spirit Preparatory School where he taught science and coached football and golf. Tom has 11-year-old twins, Ty and Nick, who will be joining the Walker Middle School family as well. Tom enjoys trying new things with his sons, traveling, and taking on home improvement projects!

  
  

  Jorden Williams will be joining our Middle School social studies department and also coaching Middle School basketball and football. He has a bachelor’s in American Studies from the University of the South, where he was a four-year letterman on the basketball team and finished his career as their fourth leading scorer of all time.
   He has several years of teaching and coaching experience, most recently at Providence Day School in Charlotte.

   

• Lower School

  Lauren Miller will be joining Walker as the Primary and Lower School music teacher. Lauren holds a Bachelor of Music in Music Education from Valdosta State University and a Master of Music in Music Education from Belmont University. Lauren has over a decade of experience teaching music to elementary school-aged students, instilling a love of music while providing her students with a variety of musical opportunities. She comes to us most recently from Rocky Creek Elementary School in Hampton, Georgia where in addition to her regular classroom responsibilities, she organized an upper elementary chorus and prepared students for Broadway-themed productions.

  
  

  Josh Lammert will be joining the Lower School as a teaching assistant, splitting his time between the Lower School art room and the fourth grade. Although he will be new in these roles, he is not new to The Walker School, as Josh is an alumnus of Walker’s class of 2012. He holds his bachelor’s degree in history from Kennesaw State University.  For the last four years, Josh has also been coaching baseball and football at Walker. We are so excited that he will continue in those roles, in addition to coaching a winter sport.

   

• New Avenues Dyslexia Program

  Sandra Montana will be joining the New Avenues as a third grade teacher. She received her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education from Miami University and her master’s degree in special education from the University of Georgia. Most recently, she has taught at the Atlanta Speech School where she worked with many speech pathologists, occupational therapists, and reading specialists.  

  
  

  Kelley Paulsen will be joining New Avenues as an associate teacher.  She is excited about the opportunity to expand her Orton-Gillingham training as a literacy teacher.  Kelley earned her degree in elementary education at Kennesaw State University. She is intrigued by the nuances of the English language as well as the many different ways students learn.  Kelley is familiar with all divisions of Walker as she is coming to us from the Lower School and is also a Walker parent.

  
  

  Casey Schreiner will be joining New Avenues as a fifth grade teacher. A native of Marietta and a Walker graduate (Class of 2012), she studied special education at College of Charleston.  Casey has worked at the Atlanta Speech School over multiple summers in many capacities including lead teacher for reading and writing programs. Most recently, she taught at Sand Hill School in Summerville, South Carolina.  She is excited to join the New Avenues team and focus her talents on literacy instruction with our dyslexic population. Casey also enjoys art, theater, and athletics.

  
  

  Virginia McDonough will be joining New Avenues as an associate teacher. She has her bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia and her master's degree from Loyola University and previously worked with students with language-based learning differences at the Swift School and The Lovett School. She enjoys working with students and their families to assist and support their academic progress.

   

• Primary School

  Pam Shah will be joining the Primary School as their Administrative Assistant. She has her bachelor's in family studies from the University of Maryland and spent many years as a human resource manager to the Atlanta Hawks, Atlanta Thrashers, and former Philips Arena before taking time to raise her family. A familiar face to many, Pam has two children at Walker, Neil and Maya in the Lower School, and has served as both a dedicated parent volunteer and a substitute teacher at Walker for the past several years.

  
  

  A parent of three Walker alumni, Sally Wright will join the Primary School as the Art Assistant. She previously taught in both the Primary School art room and Early Learner classroom as well as serving as a Primary and Lower School substitute since 2013.  She has been a dedicated parent volunteer in the Middle and Upper School since 2006. Sally holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Richmond and spent her early career working as a Development Assistant for Westminster Schools. She is looking forward to returning to the Primary School.
  
  

  Kaitlin Yeilding will be joining Walker as the Primary School Counselor. Kaitlin is an Associate Licensed Professional Counselor and a Nationally Certified Counselor. She holds a Master of Education in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Auburn University and has continued her clinical training with a specialized focus in play therapy and other evidence-based approaches. She has a broad range of experience as a clinician working in schools, community mental health facilities, and private practice. Kaitlin is a conscientious and personable counselor dedicated to creating a warm, supportive environment for children and families and is committed to instilling a love of learning in children while assisting them to develop exceptional interpersonal skills.

• Athletics

  Be on the lookout for an announcement from Walker Athletics regarding lots of exciting changes for the 2019-20 school year!

• Administration

  As Rebecca Avery moves into her new role as Director of Alumni Relations, Beth Elliott will join Walker as Head of School Jack Hall’s Administrative Assistant. After serving in Walker’s Advancement Office from 1994 - 2001, Beth resigned due to the impending arrival of her twin boys, Denver and Elliott. Following time at home and the birth of her third son Paul, Jr, Beth returned to the workforce as the Director of Communications and Assistant to the Senior Pastor at The First Presbyterian Church of Marietta and most recently, as the Executive Assistant to the Rector of Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church in Atlanta. Beth is excited to return to Walker!

  
  

  Kristy Helms will return to the Communications Office this summer as Interim Director of Communications & Marketing, as our administrative team conducts a search for a new Director. In addition, Cris Thornton will be joining the Communications Office in a temporary capacity to lead social media, graphic design, and implementation.
  
  

  Jose Bermudez will join Walker as our Director of Safety and Security. He comes to Walker from Gulliver Schools in Miami where he has been the Director of Security since 2012. Prior to his time at Gulliver, Jose spent over a decade as the Director of Security for Starwood Hotels across the country. Jose has over 20 years of experience in the school, hospitality, and risk management industries, and we look forward to welcoming him to Walker!