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Bessa Axelrod, Art Teacher, was born and raised in Southern California. Freely admitting to a severe case of “wander-lust,” she has traveled widely throughout the U.S. “My mother once complained that my frequent changes of address took up most of her address book, ranging far outside the pages allowed for A and B!” Her wanderings always brought her back to New England where she finally settled down in 1990.
Mindy Barth, SAT Test Preparation Teacher and Webmaster, is a former Kaplan teacher and administrator. In her role as Center Director of the Burlington, VT Kaplan Center, Mindy oversaw the activities of all SAT, PSAT, LSAT, GRE, GMAT, NCLEX, and MCAT Kaplan classes in Vermont, Northern New Hampshire, and Northeastern New York, promoting test-taking success to several hundreds students a year. She personally taught SAT, PSAT, LSAT, GRE and GMAT classes in Hanover, NH, Middlebury, VT, Burlington, VT, and in Putney, VT at the Putney School. Her success in the classroom earned her Kaplan’s ‘Teacher of the Year’ award for the New England region out of 400 teacher candidates.
Adam Bartkoski, Weekend Chef, has worked in alternative, experiential and at-risk programs for over 15 years. At Oliverian, Adam's talents as an educator merge with his expertise in fine dinning and passion for working with organic and locally grown ingredients. Adam's previous culinary experiences include sous-chef positions at Coyote Rose in North Conway, NH. and most recently at the Inn at Thorn Hill in Jackson, NH. Adams love of cooking and his focus on nutrition and sustainability are an invaluable part of our community. Jonna Book, Spanish Teacher and Dorm Parent, Jonna Book has grown up all over the world, traveling at a very young age and calling home the place she was living at the time. Her semi-nomadic lifestyle took her to numerous places in the US, the UK, Zimbabwe, Nicaragua and Colombia before finishing high school. She went on to study for a year in Brazil and then during college studied abroad in both Japan and Thailand. Jonna is passionate about international travel and the experience one gains once outside their comfort zone and are in a new place. She enjoys spending her free time playing outside, whether it be running or hiking, climbing, going down rivers, snowboarding or attempting to cross country ski. Among her other interests are reading, traveling, food preservation and gardening.
Jill Brewer, Intern, is excited to be a part of the Oliverian community this winter. Jill is in her final year of a graduate program in Psychology and Counseling at Goddard College and will be joining the Oliverian School as an intern. Jill will be on campus Tuesdays and Fridays and looks forward to working with Oliverian students as a counselor and tutor. Previously, Jill has worked with adolescents as an educator, teaching for two years at a therapeutic boarding school in Montana, before settling in Franconia New Hampshire. During her free time, Jill enjoys knitting, building, reading, and walking her dog Norma Jean. Ben Churchill, Director of Stewardship and Farm Manager, was born in Ithaca, NY and lived there for three months while his father finished veterinary school. The family moved to a farm in Northern Vermont where Ben grew up. Ben attended Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Dairy Science.
Carrie Curtis, Dorm Parent and Teacher, was born in raised in Hebron Maine. Teaching and living in an academic setting is almost in her blood, as both of her parents are teachers and she was raised on a boarding school campus, Hebron Academy. Growing up she spent her summers with her family and dog camping and canoeing. In high school Carrie was a member of the soccer, swimming, and lacrosse teams. Carrie just graduated from Colby College in Waterville Maine, where she majored in Sociology, with a double minor in Women’s Gender, Sexuality Studies and Human Development. She was a member of the crew team for three years at Colby, even making it to the National Championship one year. During her free time Carrie enjoys reading, running, cooking, and the outdoors.
Jay Destroismaison, Executive Chef, has over thirty years of hospitality experience in all phases of the industry. Mr. Destroismaisons also has over 25 years of youth & family mediation experience, has ten years working with at risk adolescents, Jay is also a nationally certified hypnotherapist and is currently the executive director of the Center For Positive Change, a hypnotherapy practice specializing in lifestyle modification for smoking cessation, weight control, and academic performance.
John Doyle, Dean of Students, grew up just north of Hanover, New Hampshire on his family's farm. Using only horse drawn power, John made maple syrup, cut wood for heating the family home, hayed, raised livestock, hunted and trapped, and grew and sold vegetables. After graduating from Hanover High School, John attended Bridgeton Academy and later Hawthorn College where he received his B.A. in History. After college, John spent 13 years working in hotel and restaurant management at the Hanover Inn; 6 years building custom houses; and the past 12 years teaching building trades, agriculture, and forestry and wildlife science to 7th-12th graders. John has been a Coverts Cooperator for the state of New Hampshire since 1996, and is passionate about teaching students about wildlife conservation, forestry management, and beef cattle. Lauren Estebanell, Director of Counseling, Head of Advising, and Spanish Teacher, was born in Barcelona, Spain. She received undergraduate degrees in both Marketing and Tourism Management from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Originally her interest was in business and the corporate world, but once she had opportunities to work in different school environments, her delight became students. She has been teaching for the past six years, and came to The Oliverian School three years ago after working at an international school in Barcelona, Spain. Lauren is very passionate about traveling, and is a strong advocate in experiencing different cultures and languages that the world has to offer. Lauren originally thought she would be at The Oliverian School for one year, but now that she is going into her fourth year at Oliverian she has realized she is in the right environment to fulfill her passion in life. Lauren feels blessed to work with the amazing and unique student of Oliverian, and loves the opportunity of being the students’ advisor, counselor, parent, teacher, and friend. Rick Gaukel, Dorm Parent and Adventure Teacher, was born in the beautiful beach town of Santa Cruz, California. His childhood was filled with exploring the surrounding redwood groves and playing in the cold Pacific Ocean. At the young age of eight Rick received his first skateboard. The challenging nature of skateboarding and the personal rewards helped his passion and devotion to skateboarding continue to grow throughout the years. During High School he worked at a well-respected skateboard manufacturer in the research and development department and devoted most of his time and energy to improving the shapes and designs of skateboards. Surfing, snowboarding, mountain boarding and wake boarding have also impacted his life greatly.
Abby Hood, Assistant Dean of Academics and Science Teacher, came to Oliverian in the fall of 2006 as our Science Teacher. This year, while continuing to teach science, she has taken on the role of Associate Dean of Academics. Graduating from Mount Holyoke College with Biology major in 1999, Abby spent the subsequent years as College Laboratory Instructor, Sea Turtle Research Technician, Wildlife Rehabilitator, and Advisor and Work Crew Leader at a therapeutic work community set on an organic farm. Lastly, Abby returned to school and received her M.S. from the University of Vermont in Ecological Planning. From geology to botany, soil science to ecology, and eventually honing in on the ecological effects of agriculture, Abby’s graduate work consisted of a broad, multi-disciplinary study of the natural systems of New England.
Abby Jacobson, Counselor, joins the Oliverian team from Putney, Vermont where she has lived for the past 20 years. She has two teenage sons and one well-loved dog, Cady who lives with her in Bixby House on campus. Prior to coming to Oliverian, Abby has worked respectively as a school based counselor at a public high school, been in private practice as a substance abuse counselor & consultant, worked as an outpatient drug and alcohol counselor at the Brattleboro Retreat and as a home based family therapist. She received her Masters in Counseling Psychology from Antioch New England Graduate School in 1989 and received her Licensure as a Vermont Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor in 2001. She has recently received reciprocity as a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor in the State of New Hampshire. When not in the counseling office, Abby can often be found hiking in the White Mountains with her loyal trail dog, Cady. Barclay Mackinnon, Jr., Head
of School. The 2008-09 academic year will be Barclay’s 28th year as a teacher and his 8th year as the Founding Head of School at Oliverian. In that time he has been a teacher, advisor, counselor, coach, and administrator. He describes the feeling he had when he began his first teaching job at Brunswick School in Greenwich, Connecticut, as a strong sense that he was going home. "It may be hard to believe, but it's as though I've never had a bad day."
Mike Sallade, Dorm Parent and Adventure Teacher,
has traveled all over the U.S. teaching environmental and adventure education to students of all ages. He has instructed courses for Prescott College, guided rock climbing, and directed summer camp programs on his journey. He has an associate’s degree in wildlife sciences from Penn State, and a Bachelor’s degree from Prescott College where he studied experiential education, wilderness leadership, and environmental sciences.
Carl Stagg, Math Teacher, graduated from Hamilton College in Clinton, NY, with a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and a minor in Physics. He continued his education at Lyndon State College in Lyndonville, VT, where he began concentrating on mathematics and computer science. Finally, Carl enjoyed the left coast for a spell, both as a graduate student in the math department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and as a high school math teacher at Scotts Valley High School, an International Baccalaureate school. Most recently, Carl was teaching math at Rivendell Academy in Orford, New Hampshire. Peter Stevens, Dean of Academics, is a veteran teacher, counselor and for 24 years a headmaster in independent schools in the United States and in Europe. Specializing now in college counseling, Peter works as an independent educational consultant and a school-based counselor, providing college guidance and boarding school placement for students. Most recently, Peter ran the academic programs at the Academy at Swift River, a therapeutic school in western Massachusetts, where he also provided college and school counseling. Peter is a member of the National Association for College Admission Counseling, the New England Association for College Admission Counseling and is an associate member of the Independent Educational Consultants Association. He is a graduate of Williams College and the University of Chicago, and currently lives in rural Massachusetts, from where he travels to Oliverian School. One can learn more about Peter from his website www.peterwstevens.com. Brian Sullivan, Director of Programs, comes to Oliverian from the University of Rhode Island where he held the roles of Leadership Consultant and Lecturer. While working for the University, Brian also led and coordinated the adventure program. Brian joined Oliverian as Dorm Parent and Math Teacher where he has found a new challenge and loves working with our population of students. Now, as Director of Programming, Brian has the opportunity to blend his previous experiences and provide Oliverian with enriching programming opportunities.
Gregory Vogel, Assistant Head of School
, joined the Oliverian community in 2004 after spending 5 years as Assistant Coach with Dartmouth Men’s Soccer as well as Research Analyst in the Development Office at Dartmouth College. Greg earned his bachelors degree at Alfred University and his Masters Degree in Administration at Western Maryland College. As Assistant Head of School, Greg’s priorities include faculty development, residential life, student discipline, and managing daily operations.
Jonathan Wall, English Teacher and Dorm Parent was born in Boston, Massachusetts. After attending Boston College High School, Jonathan graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in English Literature. He comes to the Oliverian Team after working as a paralegal at one of the top white collar criminal defense firms on the east coast. Jonathan also has extensive outdoor experience, including work with the Appalachian Mountain Club and the National Park Service. He possesses an almost fanatical love of snow that is expressed through a healthy obsession with skiing. While not on the mountain, Jonathan enjoys mountain biking, kayaking, and a variety of other wilderness related activities. Music, a good book, and a love of travel are other passions of his. Brett Wanner, is the Oliverian music teacher and soccer coach. He has had extensive experience as a performer, producer, and recording artist and is still engaged in those last two roles. When not immersed in the musical world, Brett enjoys an occasional soccer match. While he played soccer at a very competitive level in his youth, Brett now coaches others to their fullest potential. Brett lives on campus with his wife Marilyn and two children Addison and Lena
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