Faculty and Staff
A high quality education for your child starts with highly qualified teachers in the classroom. At Mountaineer Montessori, you’ll find experienced and dedicated faculty and staff who are passionate about education and committed to nurturing your child’s unique potential. MMS faculty train at AMS or AMI affiliated programs (see below) and bring more than 250 combined years of professional education experience — 200+ in authentic Montessori classrooms — to MMS. Our teachers have received specialized training in Positive Discipline and our faculty includes certified Positive Discipline Parent Educators.
You can learn more about their specialized training and credentials here.
Mountaineer Montessori is an American Montessori Society (AMS) Pathways to Continuous School Improvement program school. Pathways, a mission-driven, standards-based process that helps schools achieve and maintain Montessori excellence, is administered by AMS, the nation’s foremost Montessori organization. MMS is the only full member AMS school in West Virginia.
Meet our faculty (please see the biography section for each department for complete descriptions of each faculty member’s experience and education.)
Jennifer Carriger
Director
Beth George
Assistant Director
Julie Margolis
Financial Aid Administrator
Shannon Reeves
Volunteer Coordinator
Brianne Parsons Administrative Assistant/Development Coordinator
TIffany Reynolds Administrative Assistant
John Elswick Facilities
Samantha Van Den Berghe-Lynch Toddler Lead Guide
Amanda Walker Toddler Assistant
Isabelle Bournigault
Primary II Lead Guide
Kathryn Rhoads
Primary I Lead Guide
Stephanie Spradling
Primary II Assistant
Angela Walker
Primary I Teaching Intern
Maria Kershner-Leon
All Day Montessori Primary Assistant
Margaret Lawrence All Day Montessori Primary Assistant
Susie Newhouse
Plus Guide
Primary Specialist
Alasha Al-Qudwah
Upper Elementary II Lead Guide
Tara Fought
Lower Elementary I
Lead Guide
Becca Moore
Lower Elementary II
Lead Guide
Emily Christian Upper Elementary I Lead Guide
Sonji Byers-Baldwin
Lower Elementary I Assistant
Sarah Galaska Art Specialist/Elementary Assisant
Mike Parsons Upper Elementary II Assistant
Shannon Reeves
Lower Elementary II Assistant
Sara Lloyd
Upper Elementary I Assistant
Karen Kelly
Upper Elementary II Assistant/
Elementary Specialist
Dr. Ray Singleton Upper Elementary Specialist
Sarah Halstead
Middle School Guide
Dr. Emily Beal
Middle School Guide/ Math and Science Teacher
Creative Expression Specialist
Bernard di Gregorio
Strings Teacher
Sarah Galaska Art Teacher
Beth George
Computer Teacher
Assistant Director
Karen Kelly Elementary Science Specialist
Maria Leon Kersher
Foreign Language Specialist/Plus Program Assistant
Margaret Lawrence Reading Specialist
Julie Margolis
PE Consultant
Karen Morris
Music Teacher
Darlene Spangler
Reading Specialist
Physical Expression and After School Enrichment Specialist
After School Plus Program Faculty
Karen Kelly
Plus Program Director
Susie Newhouse
Plus Program Guide
Janett West Plus Assistant
