4 minute read
Faculty Spotlights
Tom Verchot, Trumpet Teacher
“All disciplines, including music, work together to teach children the importance of practice, perseverance, and budgeting time… Playing an instrument teaches patience and determination— and that tenacity really pays off.”
Lorenzo Bellard, Fourth Grade Teacher
"At this age, students are a little more mature. The conversations you can have are more in-depth, and you can challenge a child’s thinking to become more abstract. They can infer things. You can see that development with them, and that’s exciting. And they want to learn— learning is fun for them, and it is a genuine interest."
Jon Burgos, Physical Education and Athletics Instructor
“The Athletics Department thinks it’s important to impart a love of exercise to our boys. We want them to see how fun it can be and how it can bring people together… we place a huge emphasis on developing mindset and attitude.” Ashley Coiffard, School
Nurse
“I am looking forward to building positive relationships with everyone and getting acquainted with the students and their families better. Watching the students grow up, seeing them excel, and getting to know their personalities is going to be such a rewarding experience.” The Communications team has been interviewing faculty over the past couple of years. Here are quotes from the most recent interviews. Hold your phone camera over the QR Code to access the full spotlights.
“Our entire faculty and staff make a conscious effort to know each individual boy as a unique person. It’s part of what makes us such a special community. It’s also what makes us so successful at identifying their needs and creating a learning plan.”
Ian Taggart, Lower School Music Teacher
“If we strive to teach and nurture this sense of self in all these young scholars, then giving them as many different lenses as possible to view their sense of self as well as the world around them is incredibly important. Music is one of those lenses, making it a necessity for any holistic program.”
Jennifer Vermont-Davis, Lower School Science Teacher and Chair of Community Life + Diversity
“It has been my goal to bring that “aha!” moment to each of my students. These moments aren’t something you can read in a book, and they aren’t anything that I told them. The students make their own discoveries... I think that leading my students to these moments empowers them and leaves them with life-long confidence.”
Ashley Train, Third Grade Teacher
“It has been incredible to watch the boys blossom into true gentlemen and scholars. In a way, we have grown up together. We have shared many milestones, and I have witnessed a tremendous amount of growth in them and myself.”
Aidan Fennelly, English Teacher and Seventh Grade Advisor
"English is unique in the degree to which instruction is spiraled. We keep coming back to the same ideas—clear writing, careful reading, and thoughtful analysis – again and again throughout the year. We also strive to make connections across the disciplines in order to deepen students’ understandings of the themes in the literature we read."
Keisha Lavia, Associate Kindergarten Teacher
“Kindergarten is the threshold into formal education… The children are building skills that they will carry with them throughout their educational journey… Watching them grow is incredible— it is just an amazing time developmentally.” “Empathizing and practicing compassion for people is an incredible skill to acquire and is key to being a good caregiver in high-pressure environments.”
Rebecca Lopez, Kindergarten Teacher
"I love watching my students find joy in learning. It’s the most rewarding thing when you see that lightbulb go off when they understand a new concept. Kindergarten is really where we create life-long passionate learners by fostering a love of knowledge and making school a fun place where they look forward to being."
“In the Learning Resource Center, we strengthen executive functioning skills to the point that boys feel confident and comfortable executing them independently… if we can engrain these skills early on, they will be set up for success later in life.” Gjilberta Lucaj, Cello Teacher
“I want my students to love to play the cello, without the need for perfection… I want to give them the chance to explore instrumental music and find out how it can benefit their unique selves.”
Rob McCallum, Art, Woodshop and STEAM Teacher
“At this age, students have a thirst for knowledge and learning. They are creative, and the acquisition of knowledge is exciting for them. They are so open to deeper learning and it’s rewarding to watch them discover their skills. It’s incredible what they can do, what their potential is, and their passion to do it.”
Julie Robles, Theatre and Technical Theatre Director
“This independent school environment fosters a culture where students are able to feel uncomfortable in a comfortable space… They know they have the AllenStevenson community as a support net to catch them if they fall.”
