By Doug Norry
May 20, 2021
The second half of May finds us attempting to maintain the day-to-day momentum and focus in our classrooms, preparing to celebrate our 8th graders upon their graduation, and planning in earnest for next year. This last task is always bittersweet, as it combines the anticipation of new arrivals with the reality that some of our teachers will be concluding their chapters at TDS. I write today with a detailed update on this front. First, departures:
- Bethany Bassler (Music) is returning to her Midwestern roots, moving to Manhattan, Kansas to be closer to her extended family. We will miss Bethany’s devotion to all things musical, including her classes, our choruses, and many performances, as well as her leading Middle Schoolers in producing the TDS Yearbook.
- Steven Mercado (2nd grade) has accepted a position as Assistant Head of Lower School at Ravenscroft in Raleigh. We appreciate Steven’s significant impact as a Lower School teacher, Middle School coach, and Director/leader of DEI efforts, and we wish him well in this new chapter.
- Jodi Mills (4th grade) and her (now larger) family are moving to Redmond, WA this summer. Even as we delighted in having one more year with Jodi this year, we sensed that this day would come. We will miss her presence in upper elementary, her involvement in DEI efforts, and her commitment to her students.
- Kiera Olson (3rd grade) has been accepted into the Ph.D. program in School Psychology at UNC-Chapel Hill. You’ll have to ask her what shade of blue she’ll be wearing in the future. We are similarly sad and excited for Kiera, and we take comfort in knowing that she’ll be back part-time next year (see below).
- Colin Wolgemuth (Lower School Assistant) is set to continue his education at Duke University, where he will pursue a Master of Arts in Teaching. Colin worked with every Lower School student before settling into the fourth grade for the final weeks of the year.
All of these teachers have impacted the TDS community in countless ways. We’ll look to celebrate them and say goodbye in the next few weeks.
Several members of our current teaching team will assume new roles and/or take on new responsibilities next year:
- Heysha Carrillo has been appointed Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Heysha has been an active participant on both the DEI Committee and Community Council since joining TDS this past year. This position also aligns with her continuing education; she is in the Ph.D. program in Teacher Education and Learning Sciences at NC State, studying educational equity. Assuming more administrative responsibilities and leadership, Heysha will teach Spanish exclusively in the Middle School.
- Kirsten Hill will follow her students from TK to kindergarten, serving as an Assistant for this grade next year. Kirsten has been a dynamic presence in TK this year, and we’re excited to have her join the Kindergarten team.
- Abbie Lowe will move from kindergarten to second grade. Abbie’s significant Lower School teaching experience includes seven years in the second grade classroom, most recently at Lerner School. She is thrilled to “return home” and work with Bianca Murphy next year.
- Kiera Olson will carve out time in her graduate student schedule to assist in first grade. We’re delighted to have Kiera partnering with Karen Fisher and Julie Beyer to teach math and reading several mornings per week. She will also continue in her role as Director of Operations for our Summer Programs.
- Ansis Perez-Lajara will serve as a General Assistant in Lower School, helping in several different grades. This semester, Ansis expanded their role at TDS to include assisting in TK and working with students of different ages. They will also work in the After-School Program.
- Having taught Social Studies in multiple grades this year, Josh Hyden will transition to teach 6th grade Language Arts and Social Studies. Josh has been collaborating with Emily McAllister this semester in anticipation of this transition.
- In addition to continuing as a counselor in the TDS After-School Program, Kolby Hunter will teach classes during the Electives period in Middle School.
- Additionally, Samantha Lazar (5th grade) will assume leadership of our Community Service & Service Learning program, Ashley Lauber (3rd grade) will look to formalize her work in the TDS garden and provide leadership opportunities for some upper elementary students, and Jaime Morin (6th grade Math & Science) will take over as Faculty Advisor to the TDS Yearbook.
Finally, our community will grow stronger through key several additions:
Hilary Virdin will serve as an Assistant in Transitional Kindergarten (TK). After teaching elementary school for several years in the Washington DC area, Hilary earned her Masters in Clinical Counseling from Johns Hopkins University. Since moving to North Carolina, she has assisted in pre-school at Duke Memorial Weekday School for the past three years.
Also joining TK as an Assistant is Jennifer Palmer. After earning a Masters in Rehabilitation Psychology from the University of Wisconsin, Jennifer has worked with children in a variety of settings. Most recently, she has taught preschool and first grade at Lerner School.
Katherine Ciccarelli will join our upper elementary team as a third-grade teacher. After earning degrees locally (UNC and UNC Greensboro), Katherine taught in Illinois and Hawaii. She comes to TDS from McDougle Elementary in Chapel Hill, where she has spent the past four years as a second-grade teacher and intervention specialist.
Demetrice Via will split time between our divisions, serving as a math specialist in Lower School and also teaching electives and advising in Middle School. Finishing her Master of Arts in Teaching at North Carolina A&T, Demetrice comes to TDS from Henderson Collegiate, where she has taught fourth grade and co-chaired the school’s DEI committee.
Caro Arce will teach Lower School Spanish. After earning a Master of Education from CETYS Universidad in Mexico, Caro taught a variety of subjects. Most recently, she taught for four years at Frank Porter Graham, a dual-language elementary school in Chapel Hill. Caro is excited to bring her passion for the Spanish language and culture to our Lower School community.
Miles Jenkins will teach Music in Lower School and [eventually] lead our choral program. With a Master of Music from the University of Tennessee, Miles has focused on vocal performance and private instruction, along with teaching at Paine Elementary in Alabama.
While we prepare to welcome these newest members of our faculty/staff team, we also have not closed the books on hiring. In particular, we plan to add an additional assistant in Kindergarten. I look forward to sharing more news in the weeks ahead.
The 2015 Strategic Plan called for the Lower School to double its capacity by adding a class at each grade level, and for this to propel incremental growth toward a fully enrolled school (TK-8) with two sections per grade. Over the past six years, the addition of key positions (Reading Specialist and Learning Specialist are just two examples) has accompanied this growth. This continues next year, as we add assistants in our youngest grades, incorporate a Lower School Math Specialist into our Student Success Team, and transition the DEI Director position into a more administrative role to continue our important work in this area. All of this growth and change continues to be guided by one goal – we aim to fully deliver the mission and core values of Triangle Day School each day, and in doing so provide the best possible educational experience for your children.
