Participants

 

Rose Andersen
St. Francis, S.D.

Rose Andersen has been teaching for 10 years, the last two at St. Francis Indian School on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in south central South Dakota. She earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Black Hills State University. She also earned a master’s degree in classroom education from Dakota State University. Andersen teaches three classes of intro-PC, two classes of multimedia and one class of yearbook, for which she is the adviser. Her interests are crocheting, gardening and spending time with her six grandchildren whenever she can.

Stephanie Axelrod
Fairfax, Va.

Stephanie Axelrod teaches journalism and pre-IB English 9 at Robinson High School in Fairfax, Va. For the past two years she has served as the adviser for Valor Dictus, the student newspaper. She earned a master’s degree in teaching secondary education and a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Virginia. She loves reading, photography, traveling, watching movies and taking care of her lovable pup, Maxwell.

Lisa Bowen
Norton, Ohio

Lisa Bowen is in her second year of teaching at Norton (Ohio) High School. Bowen teaches 10th- and 12th-grade language arts classes and journalism. She is the adviser of the school’s newspaper, The Torch. Bowen earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism at Indiana University. She was a reporter for The Saddleback Valley News and Leisure World News in Laguna Hills, Calif., and was a reporter and editor for the Regal Courier in King City, Ore. Bowen earned her license in integrated language arts from the University of Akron. She is married with two children. Bowen admits she is addicted to playing Guitar Hero and Rock Band in her spare time, and even competed in a Rock Band competition at her school.

Brooke Brown
Tacoma, Wash.

Brooke Brown is a second-year English and reading teacher at Washington High School in Tacoma, Wash. She is also the journalism teacher and adviser of the Washington Times. She earned two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Washington in sociology, history, and American ethnic studies. She earned her master’s degree in education from Pacific Lutheran University. She is married and has two daughters. Her interests include reading, watching movies, and spending time with her family. She enjoys learning and the challenge of preparing today’s youth to be tomorrow’s leaders.

Lacey Buidosik
Los Angeles, Calif.

Lacey Buidosik teaches journalism and not only advises the school newspaper, The Bulldog Times, but launched the newspaper as well. She is considering advising the school yearbook. Buidosik also teaches social science. The Illinois native attended Eastern Illinois University where she majored in history and worked on the student publications as a photography editor, starting her freshman year. She earned her teaching credential in social science from California State University and just finished her third year of teaching. In her spare time she helps her students with college applications and travels.

Carol Carrico
Ona, W. Va.

Carol Carrico teaches Journalism I, school newspaper and yearbook at Cabell Midland High School in Ona, W.Va.  She will teach a mass communications (broadcasting) class next fall. She advises the Excalibur yearbookand The Medieval Times, a student-run, tabloid newspaper published eight times per year and funded solely through advertising.  KNYT News will produce weekly newscasts with student reporters and anchors and morning announcements. She earned a bachelor’s degree of business administration from Marshall University. She also earned a master’s degree in teaching from Marshall as well as an additional teaching certification in journalism. Her interests include reading historical fiction, attending Marshall University sporting events, traveling, genealogy, shopping, gardening, volunteering, and hiking.

Mary Connaghan
Philadelphia, Penn.

Mary Connaghan earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s in education in secondary social studies at the University of Pennsylvania. For the past four years she has been teaching American history at Germantown High School in Philadelphia. Last year, she worked with students and the Prime Movers program to start an afterschool journalism club and student newspaper, The Clipper. She loves to run, and she and her students are training for their first marathon in November.

Susan Crane-Sundell
Buffalo, N.Y.

Susan Crane-Sundell teaches at Grover Cleveland High School in Buffalo, N.Y.  Among the courses she teaches is an intensive English program for struggling readers. The student publication to which she is faculty adviser is the G.C. Times. She earned a master’s degree in educational computer technology, a certification in conflict resolution studies, and undergraduate degrees in English and anthropology. Her major areas of interest are teaching creative writing (especially poetry) and current events, along with journalism. She is passionate about horses, dogs and art.

Rebecca Doroshenk
Cumberland, Va.

Rebecca Doroshenk is an English teacher at Cumberland (Va.) High School. She has just completed her first year of teaching. Before earning her bachelor’s degree in English at Longwood University, she studied comparative religious philosophy. Doroshenk loves language and travel. She has backpacked across Europe, bicycled in the Swiss Alps and explored the Belizean rainforest. She spent a month in Russia several years ago and is planning a school trip to England next year with her students. Doroshenk is very excited about the idea of starting a student newspaper at Cumberland, a small rural school which does not now have a paper. She is married with two sons.

Reggie Flesvig
Valparaiso, Ind.

Reggie Flesvig is a freshman English and journalism teacher at Boone Grove High School in Valparaiso, Ind. His journalism staff of 16 students publishes a twice-monthly newspaper,  WolfPrints, a monthly parent newsletter, a literary magazine, and a yearbook,  Procyon. Flesvig has been a teacher at the middle school and high school levels for 17 years. He earned bachelor degrees from DePauw University and Indiana University. He also has a master’s degree in secondary education from the University of Southern Indiana. Flesvig coaches varsity track and field, varsity cross country, and junior varsity basketball. In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his family, hiking, reading, and kayaking.

Lisa Forsythe
Selmer, Tenn.

Lisa Forsythe has just finished her 15th year at her alma mater, McNairy Central High School, in Selmer, Tenn. She teaches courses in business technology where her students learn to use computers and software in real-world applications. She created the official school Web site (www.mchscats.org) more than 10 years ago, and continues in the role of webmaster. Five years ago, Forsythe agreed to take on the journalism program. Her students create The Bobcat yearbook, the Selmer Elementary School yearbook, the annual football and basketball programs, and a variety of other publications for local businesses, schools and civic groups. They serve as the public relations venue for all school activities, as well as providing professional-quality photography for the student body. She has been the basketball cheer coach for 10 years and a church pianist most of her life. Forsythe earned an accounting degree from Union University in Jackson, Tenn., and recently earned a MBA from Tennessee Tech University. In her spare time, she enjoys playing with Photoshop and spending time with her son and his wife, who are expecting Forsythe’s first grandchild.

Lorraine Garcia (Lori)
Northlake, Ill.

Lori Garcia earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She teaches at West Leyden High School in a small suburb of Chicago. Her courses include four sections of English III American literature, English II honors journalism, and an after-school freshman mentoring program called ACCESS. Garcia also serves as the adviser to the Lancer, an afterschool club. On weekends, she loves to play with her three- year-old daughter, Elena, and enjoys dining out or just watching a movie with friends.

Laura Granger
Audubon, Iowa

Laura Granger is a second-year teacher in her first year at Audubon (Iowa) High School. She teaches English II, introduction to newspapers, and exploration of writing. She earned her bachelor’s degree in secondary education with endorsements in English, speech, and theatre from Drake University. Granger is also adviser of the Red and White and helps produce a bimonthly page in the Audubon County Advocate Journal. She is a new homeowner and enjoys fixing up her home and landscaping. She also enjoys walking her dog, being with friends, reading, listening to music and watching movies.

Gregory Hammond
Jackson, Tenn.

Greg Hammond teaches media concepts at South Side High School in Jackson, Tenn., his alma mater. Hammond spent nine years in television before returning this year. Hammond started his on-the-air career as a sports reporter/anchor for WBBJ in Jackson six years ago. After graduating from the University of Tennessee, Hammond spent two years in Lexington, Ky., as a weekend sports anchor and two more years as a sports director. Hammond is a volunteer football coach in his time away from the classroom.

Scott Heinecke
Vallejo, Calif.

Scott Heinecke is an eighth-year teacher from Vallejo , Calif. He has spent the last seven years teaching at Jesse Bethel High School. He is in his second year of advising the school yearbook and he recently restarted the school newspaper, The Paw Print. Heinecke is a social studies teacher specializing in American government and economics. In his spare time, he coaches the school water polo and swim teams and is an avid fan of the Stanford University football and basketball teams.

Lindsay Hentschel
Carbondale, Colo.

Lindsay Hentschel has taught for five years in the small mountain town of Carbondale, Colo. Her first four years were spent as a seventh-grade language arts instructor but she now teaches senior English, American literature, creative writing, and journalism. The journalism course at Roaring Fork High School was brought back this year after two years without an instructor and thus The Rampage resumed monthly publication. Next year, she is hoping to start a literary magazine at the school as well. In addition to teaching, Hentschel sponsors the world activist club and will be the student council adviser next year. Lindsay earned a bachelor’s degree in English education from Colorado State University and hopes to pursue a master’s of fine arts in creative nonfiction. An avid reader and writer, Hentschel particularly looks forward to summer for hiking, biking, and camping, which she practices for by cross-country skiing and snow-shoeing in the winter. Additionally, she enjoys cooking and entertaining at home with her husband.

Jessica Johnson
Mount Airy, N.C.

Jessica Leigh Johnson is an English and journalism teacher at Mount Airy High School in Mount Airy, N.C. The MAHS journalism class produces The Bear Growl six times a year. She earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary English education from Appalachian State University, and returned to her hometown after graduating. Her free time is spent hanging out with her family, reading, listening to music, attending local farmers’ markets, writing, and pondering the beauty of the world around her. Johnson loves to travel and prefers a tent to a hotel.

Susan Legler
San Diego, Calif.

Although Susan Legler has been a teacher with San Diego Unified for seven years, this past school year was her first at a traditional school site and as a journalism adviser. She earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from San Diego State University. With the intention of going to law school, she worked as a paralegal for about four years. During that time, however, she decided to go into teaching, and graduated with a multiple subject credential and a master’s in education from National University. Putting her criminal justice knowledge to work, she taught at an alternative school for students under suspended expulsion for violations of the district’s zero tolerance policy. She eventually went back to National for a single subject credential in English, and is now teaching ninth grade English and journalism at Hoover High School, the fifth oldest school in San Diego County. The school’s monthly newspaper, The Cardinal, is designed to be student-driven, and keeps its primary focus on school events, students and teachers. Legler enjoys dancing, the beach, and movies.

Mark Lemasters
New Martinsville, W. Va.

Mark Lemasters is a science teacher/yearbook adviser at Magnolia High School in New Martinsville, W.Va. He earned a bachelor’s degree in secondary education (chemistry and mathematics certification) while pursuing physics and general science certifications at West Liberty State College. He also holds certification in school library media, which qualifies him in West Virginia to serve as a yearbook adviser. For two years, Lemasters has also advised The Magnolian newspaper. This allowed him to express creativity that had previously been expressed in his involvement with the school theater and community theater programs. When not active in a yearbook activity or some science program, Lemasters enjoys reading and various forms of theater and music.

Mandy Manning
Bronx, N.Y.

Mandy Manning earned her bachelor's degree in electronic media and film arts from Eastern Washington University. After college, she joined the Peace Corps, volunteering to teach English as a foreign language in Armenia. Seven years ago she began to teach high school communication applications, oral interpretation and debate at Amarillo (Texas) High School. While in Texas, Manning completed a post-baccalaureate teaching program at Texas A&M University while earning a master’s degree in communications. She moved to Sapporo, Japan, to teach English at a local high school. Manning currently teaches journalism and English at Jonathan Levin High School for Media and Communications in Bronx, N.Y. She enjoys creative writing, reading, singing karaoke, watching movies, and playing tennis and basketball.

Neil Monaco
Los Angeles, Calif.

Neil Monaco has been teaching ninth-grade English for the past eight years and journalism for one year at King Drew Magnet High School in Watts, Calif. His student journalists produce eight to 10 issues of the Golden Gazette per year. Monaco earned an undergraduate B.F.A. degree in theatre arts from Hofstra University. In addition to advising the newspaper, he supervises the school’s fledgling TV news show with his journalism class producing up to 30 video packages a year. Outside the classroom, Monaco enjoys going to the movies, fine dining, and constantly worrying whether his editors remembered to CMYK all the photos on the front page of the latest issue.

Jacob Montgomery (Jake)
Cody, Wyo.

Jacob Montgomery, or Jake as he likes to be called, teaches at Cody (Wyo.) High School. He is an English teacher but in the upcoming year he will be taking over a yearbook, and in the following year he will be taking over the newspaper, The Equus. His journalism endorsement is pending. Montgomery is just now completing his second year of teaching after graduating from Jamestown College in North Dakota. He has a wide range of hobbies and pastimes including reading, writing, playing tennis, watching movies, walking, hiking, playing video games and listening to music.

Michael Moon
Kinston, N.C.

Michael Moon is an English teacher and baseball coach at Kinston High School in Kinston, N.C. He graduated from North Carolina State University with a B.A. in English and a concentration in journalism. Moon advises the school’s journalism club, which publishes a monthly faculty newsletter. He teaches English to students in grades nine to 12 and will teach the school’s first journalism class in several years beginning this fall, bringing back the school’s paper, The Viking Press. Moon splits his free time between working as a free-lance sports writer for The Free Press of Kinston, playing on community softball teams, playing sports-related video games and hanging out with his fiancée, who is quite frankly tiring of the whole sports mania.

Joel Neden
New Paltz, N.Y.

Joel Neden grew up in a small canal town north of Buffalo. He earned an undergraduate degree in English with his secondary school endorsement at State University of New York. Neden was active on his campus radio station, where he won two national reporting awards. He has been teaching English at New Paltz (N.Y.) High School for two years and has served as the journalism teacher and adviser to the school newspaper, The Maroon. He is pursuing a master’s degree at SUNY New Paltz with an English literature concentration. Aside from school, he loves to read and travel, and is an avid fan of the Buffalo Bills.

Louisa Ogle
Tampa. Fla.

Louisa Ogle just completed her third year of teaching in the journalism program at Tampa Bay (Fla.) Technical High School. She went into teaching after earning her B.A. in English at the University of South Florida, and she decided to return to her alma mater. She teaches Journalism I and photojournalism, advises the Titan Thunder newspaper, and runs a portfolio-building course for seniors. She served as a member of the executive board for the Florida Scholastic Press Association during her first two years teaching. In her spare time she likes to read, plan parties, and take photos.

Jennifer Partridge
Lanham, Md.

Jennifer Partridge has been teaching English for five years. She currently teaches A.P. language and composition, newspaper, and junior and senior English at DuVal High School in Lanham, Md. She also advises the school newspaper, The DuValian. Previous to that, she edited President Bush’s speeches for the National Archives and Records Administration. Partridge earned her bachelor’s degree at the College of Saint Rose, and her master’s of teaching at the University of New Hampshire. When not working, she enjoys reading, camping, knitting, playing with her cats, and hanging out with friends.

Denise Rich
Fresno, Calif.

Denise Rich earned her bachelor’s degree in geography at California State University, Fresno. She has taught at Washington Union High School in Fresno for seven years. Rich is adviser to the the yearbook, The Progress,  and newspaper, The Hatchet. She also teaches a  college prep elective class, AVID, and is the varsity softball coach. Rich has two children who attend Washington Union and spends her free time traveling to baseball and softball tournaments with them.

Francine Richardson (Fran)
Detroit, Mich.

For a decade, Francine Richardson has been teaching English and social studies in the Detroit area. She is now an English teacher at Davis Aerospace Technical High School where she works with ninth- and 12th-grade students. In her spare time she sponsors the newspaper, The D.A. Exclusive, and the Davis chess team. She also tutors students after school and trains in martial arts. Richardson earned a bachelor’s degree in English at Spelman College, and has a master’s degree plus 30 hours in language arts from Wayne State University. She is a teacher consultant in geography and holds a first degree black belt in Isshinryu karate. As a single parent, her most successful achievement has been raising her son.

Amy Satterwhite
McMinnville, Tenn.

Amy Satterwhite is an English teacher and the new journalism adviser at Warren County High School in McMinnville, Tenn. She has taught ninth through 11th-grade English for three years. She is a founding fellow of Gov. Phil Bredesen’s Teach Tennessee program, which trains working professionals to become teachers. Satterwhite worked as a reporter at the Southern Standard newspaper for about six years after earning her bachelor's degree in journalism from Southern Illinois University. She is a veteran of the United States Army Reserves, is married, and has two children. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, knitting, and hiking.

Kevin Schneider
Suwanee, Ga.

Kevin Schneider will start his second year teaching language arts and advising the journalism/literary magazine class at Collins Hill High School, in Suwanee, Ga. The school offered the journalism course last year for the first time. Schneider earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Ohio University and a master’s degree in teaching from Miami University. Before teaching, Schneider reported for TheNews-Herald, a daily newspaper serving four counties in northeastern Ohio. Schneider enjoys jogging, cooking, tennis and reading -- especially online newspapers and, recently, historical fiction -- as well as exploring the music, art, food and park scenes around Atlanta. He also loves dogs and hopes to adopt one soon.

Shawnalee Schwanz
Charlotte, N.C.

A Buffalo, N.Y. native, Shawnalee Anibaldi Schwanz moved to Charlotte, N.C., after graduating from the State University of New York College with a bachelor’s degree in communications. While watching the news not long after the move, she saw the city had a great need for teachers and decided to return to school for a teaching degree from the University of North Carolina. Schwanz is now an English and journalism teacher at West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte. She also advises the Tomahawk yearbook, the West Wing online newspaper, and the morning news show. In her free time, Schwanz enjoys gardening, dancing and traveling with her husband.

Jennifer Smith (Jen)
New Orleans, La.

Jennifer Reid Smith has recently completed her third year of teaching English I and IV at Mount Carmel Academy, an all-girls Catholic school in New Orleans. During that time she has also been moderating the school newspaper, Echoes of Carmel. She is excited to be resurrecting journalism as part of the curriculum next year; the class has not recently been offered because of a lack of resources following Hurricane Katrina. She earned her bachelor’s degree in English literature at Loyola University in New Orleans, and she deeply regrets never having taken a single journalism or mass communications class there. Her hobbies include spending too much time at school, reading instead of cleaning her house, and mentally correcting grammar on billboards and gas station signs.

Douglas Urner
Des Moines, Wash.

Doug Urner is in his second year of teaching at Mount Rainier High School in Des Moines, Wash., a small town just south of Seattle. Urner earned his undergraduate degree at Antioch College where he majored in political science and worked on the college paper, The Record. After graduation, Urner moved to New York City, where he began a career that meandered from photojournalism to industrial controls to software product management. In 2002, he returned to photography and now teaches journalism, photography, and freshman computer and career skills. In addition to advising the staff of the school’s paper, The Ram’s Horn, and the yearbook, TOR, he is active in his local union and co-advises the multicultural club and gay-straight alliance. In his time off, Urner enjoys cooking, photography, and spending time with his partner and son in Port Orchard, a small community across Puget Sound from Seattle. An avid sailor, Urner dreams of a quiet summer when he can build a small rowing boat and get back on the water.

Aaron Willoughby
Farmville, Va.

Aaron Willoughby is a teacher at Prince Edward County High School in Farmville, Va., where he teaches drama, speech/debate, and journalism. Willoughby also advises the drama club, the debate club, the quiz bowl team, and the school newspaper: In-Flight. This is his first year of teaching in America; last year, he taught in Japan. Willoughby graduated from Point Park University in Pittsburgh with a double major in secondary English education and theater. Some of his hobbies include acting, singing, and directing theater, watching movies, playing video games, and enjoying yoga and Pilates.

Antoinette Wise
Cordova, Tenn.

Antoinette Shay Wise is a fifth year teacher who currently teaches sophomore English and newspaper journalism at Cordova (Tenn.) High School. The newspaper staff she advises produces The Wolf’s Tale four times each year. Wise is also the sponsor of the competitive dance team and an assistant coach for the track team. She earned her master's in secondary education with an emphasis in reading, and bachelor's degrees in English and English education from Southern Arkansas University. She is working on her doctorate in curriculum and instruction with a concentration in reading at the University of Memphis. Upon completion of her doctorate, Wise would like to work as a curriculum specialist or a professor in teacher education. Her hobbies include writing, reading, and working with students.