Faculty Biographies
LISA ADLER ladler@montedelsol.org joined Monte del Sol in 2008 as Assistant Mentorship Director. Lisa graduated with honors from UC Santa Cruz with a BA in Russian Studies. She received an MA from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University and a PhD in Political Science from Rutgers University. Dr. Adler has taught at the College of Santa Fe since 2002 and initiated a number of student internships and experiential learning opportunities in the field of local economic development and community organizing. In 2005 and 2006, her students played key roles in producing a local street fair, the Second Street Experience. Lisa also sits on the Community Development Commission for the City of Santa Fe, an advisory board that promotes affordable housing and other community development goals. She lives in Santa Fe with her husband, sculptor Don Kennell, and their two children.
ALAIN ANTOINE aantoine@montedelsol.org Alain originally came to Monte del Sol in 2003, however, he spent the 2008 to 2009 school year teaching film at the American University in Kurdistan, Iraq and travelling in the Middle East and Asia. He returns to Monte del Sol this year to resume his position as technology director and high school moving images teacher. He taught technology, French, and film at the Renaissance School and the Peabody School for gifted students in Charlottesville, Virginia. Alain, who hails from France, lived in southern India for twenty-two years and is also fluent in Tamil. He developed our technology program, serves as the network administrator, and is the principal architect of our moving images program. Alain holds a Masters Degree in Liberal Arts from St. John's College and is pursuing a second degree.
EMILY CARLSON ecarlson@montedelsol.org Emily joined us in 2008 and works in our Special Services dept. She has taught throughout this department in other Santa Fe schools. Emily received her BFA from Michigan State University and has spent much time studying art and culture in Europe and a short stint in West Africa.
ANDREA CERMANSKI acermanski@gmail.com Andrea spent the first semester of 2008 on a Fulbright educational exchange in Kolkata, India which vastly expanded her educational horizons. She joined Monte in 2006 and teaches middle school visual arts, 10th Grade World Literature, and the Literature of Freedom Fighters elective. She has a BA in Art History from the University of Pittsburgh with minors in Communications and Italian, and a MA in Art Education from UNM. Andrea taught English as a Second Language for two years through the Peace Corps in Cameroon, Africa and Language Arts for three years at Santa Fe High School. She has traveled extensively through Africa and Europe, and speaks fluent French and proficient Italian. Andrea is also a gifted painter and photographer.
CARA ESQUIBEL cesquibel@montedelsol.org Cara has been with Monte del Sol since 2003 and teaches Spanish Language Arts and English in both the middle school and high school. She has a Master's Degree from the University of New Mexico and a B.A. in Journalism from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. She also is in the Middlebury College Breadloaf summer writing program. Cara was a Peace Corps volunteer in Costa Rica from 1992-1994 and most recently taught Bilingual Education and English at Bernalillo High School. She leads our student trips to Oaxaca, Mexico and developed a summer program in Oaxaca. Cara is the mother of four young children.
TED FISH tfish@montedelsol.org joined Monte del Sol this year as Assistant Mentorship Director. A Santa Fe based educator for 17 years, Ted has served as a private school founder and director, a classroom teacher, and a consultant to school districts and non-profits nationally. His passion for education has led him to develop a unique method for the teaching of writing and to special research projects in the areas of youth leadership and entrepreneurship. Ted holds a Doctorate in educational leadership from Columbia University and a MBA from the University of New Mexico.
DAVID GLUCK dgluck@montedelsol.org hails from Portland, Oregon and moved to Santa Fe six years ago to attend St. John's College. After graduating, he began tutoring at two middle schools, as well as Capital High, Santa Fe High and Monte del Sol. David teaches geometry, pre-calculus and PE. In addition to teaching, David is a musician, a martial artist and a reader.
JOAN HENDERSON jhenderson@montedelsol.org Joan teaches 8th and 9th grade science. Before joining Monte del Sol in 2002, she was the science coordinator for Salazar Elementary and science teacher at Gonzales Elementary in Santa Fe and prior to that taught art to middle school students in Portales, NM. She has a BFA from the School of Visual Art in New York City. Joan is the student council moderator and an accomplished artist.
LINDA HUFFORD lhufford@montedelsol.org Linda came to Monte del Sol in 2006 with eleven years of diverse teaching experience in the area of Special Education including with severe and profoundly disabled students at St. Michael's Association for Special Education in Arizona. She also spent seven years working at Brush Ranch School in Pecos, NM with students diagnosed with learning disabilities, Asperger's Syndrome and ADHD. Linda brings a sense of calm and fun to her students.
ROBERT JESSEN rjessen@montedelsol.org comes to Monte del Sol this year to teach Spanish following ten years teaching Latin American politics at the College of Santa Fe. Robert earned his PhD from Northwestern University studying relations between Tarahumara Indians in Mexico and their Mestizo neighbors. He infuses his Spanish classes with the Rassias Method he taught as an undergraduate at Dartmouth College and honed as a Spanish/French teacher at a Maine boarding school. Robert lives in Santa Fe with his Chihuahuenese wife, Mirna, and their two sons, Cesar and Turis.
ELLEN KLEIN eklein@montedelsol.org This is Ellen's sixth year at Monte del Sol where she is a seemingly tireless case manager in the Special Services Department. Ellen spent a number of years as a special education teacher at DeVargas Middle School and Gonzales Elementary School in Santa Fe, as well as in Montessori Schools. Ellen has a BFA from UNM and is licensed from New Mexico Highlands University.
JEANNIE LEESMAN jleesman@montedelsol.org is a founding faculty member and was our first math teacher. Jeannie left teaching for several years to spend time with her young sons and returns this year to once again teach math. She has a BS in mathematics from the University of Wisconsin and a BA in secondary education from the College of Santa Fe. She spent three years with the Peace Corps in Guinea teaching math in French!
WENDY LEIGHTON wleighton@montedelsol.org Wendy Leighton is a founding faculty member of Monte del Sol and served on the Board of Directors for one year as a faculty representative. She has been teaching Junior High and High School for sixteen years. She earned a BA from Skidmore College with honors in anthropology and wrote her senior thesis on the Navajo-Hopi Land Dispute. Ms. Leighton holds an MA from Temple University in anthropology and film. She attended the Anthropology Film Center in Santa fe as part of her graduate school studies where she wrote, directed and produced the short documentary The Cleaning of the Acequia Madre. Her most recent film documents the struggle of the nomadic San peoples to legally regain title to their ancestral lands in Botswana. Botswana Bushmen was filmed by Monte del Sol students who interviewed two Bushmen who traveled to America to raise awareness about the genocide they faced. Ms. Leighton currently teaches 7th grade and 9th grade history, 7th and 8th grade Moving Image or film and co-sponsors the student Gay-Straight-Alliance (GSA) club.
FRANK LUCERO flucero@montedelsol.org A founding faculty member, Frankie is an award-winning, internationally renowned Santero in Santa Fe--he is a member of the famous Lucero family of Santeros. He presents his work at the annual Spanish Market, shows at the Palace of the Governors and in other galleries around town. Frankie is our Atheletic Director, coaches baseball and teaches Traditional New Mexico Arts and PE.
ALFREDO LUJAN alujan@montedelsol.org A thirty-year veteran of the classroom, Alfredo teaches English to our 7th graders and the rich literature of the Latino culture as a high school elective course. He received his Master's Degree in English from the Breadloaf School of English at Middlebury College, Vermont and his undergraduate degree from New Mexico State University in Physical Education. Prior to joining Monte del Sol in 2001, Alfredo taught at The Native American Prep School, Pojoaque Valley Schools and coached basketball and volleyball at Santa Fe Prep for many years. Alfredo is an accomplished and published writer and brings a wealth of teaching experience to the school.
NANCY LEE MARQUIS nmarquis@montedelsol.org Nancy Lee joined our Special Services Department in 2004 from Cesar Chavez Elementary and Velarde Elementary in Northern New Mexico and worked as a math and reading tutor before that time. She has taught special children around the country for many years. Nancy Lee has a BA from Radcliffe College and an MEd from Antioch University West.
RHONDA MARTINEZ rmartinez@montedelsol.org joined our faculty in 2008 as High School Biology and Chemistry teacher. Rhonda was raised on a farm in Kentucky before moving to New Mexico ten years ago. She received her Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education with a minor in Environmental Geology from NM Highlands and her MSc teaching degree from NM Tech. Her areas of special research include earth's resources and geologic history. Rhonda taught for SFPS and Santa Fe Indian School before coming to Monte del Sol. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, reading and being with her family.
RANDY MERKER rmerker@montedelsol.org A founding faculty member, Randy teaches middle school science. He came to Monte del Sol from the New Mexico Department of Health, where he worked for a number of years. Randy has a BS in Geology from the College of Idaho and an MS from the University of New Mexico. He has worked extensively in the science field in both the public and private sectors and has accumulated over twenty years of work in science education-related fields, given numerous workshops on the teaching of science and brings to the school a very broad range of science knowledge and skill. Randy also led our Destination Imagination team, which placed second in the state competition in past years.
NANCY SUE MICHELS nmichels@montedelsol.org A founding faculty member, Nancy Sue teaches high school visual arts and Advanced Placement 2D Art. She also facilitates the weekly tile making club where she and her students design, craft, glaze and fire 60 beautiful tiles which are presented as gifts to our graduates each May. Nancy is an accomplished artist in her own right and her work has shown in many Santa Fe venues. She works in acrylic on canvas and in a variety of other media. Prior to Monte del Sol, she was a sixth grade teacher at Nava Elementary and an art teacher at Rio Grande School. Nancy holds a BFA from Alfred University in New York and a Master's degree in Applied Psychology and Counseling from the University of Santa Monica. In 2008, Nancy Sue won the Partners in Education Teachers who Inspire Award.
RITA MOYA rmoya@montedelsol.org Rita was born and raised in El Paso,Texas and joined our faculty in 2006. She received her BA in Psychology from the University of Texas and her teacher's certification from Northern New Mexico College where she received a MANA del Norte scholarship. She has worked with abused children as a case manager, an adoption advocate and was the first director of the Chimayo Boys and Girls Club. She also coordinated the Cerro Grande Fire mitigation project employing San Ildefonso youth, a project which won accolades from both FEMA and the DOE. Rita teaches NM and US History. In her own time, she loves to ride horseback through the desert wilderness and enjoys drumming.
MARY ELLEN NEAL mneal@montedelsol.org Mary Ellen is a founding faculty member and developed and directed our Special Services program. She came to us highly recommended from Santa Fe Community College and prior to that worked in the Central Square School district in Upstate New York. Mary Ellen holds a BS Ed in Special Education from the University of Idaho and is well versed in special education law, theory, and practice and in how special services should be implemented in schools to ensure success for all students.
SHARI OSGOOD sosgood@montedelsol.org Shari teaches Japanese and Algebra. She holds an undergraduate degree in Asian Studies with a minor in Engineering from the University of California. She lived, studied and worked in Japan for nearly nine years. Most of that time was spent as a securities analyst on the Tokyo stock exchange, although she also worked in the art market. She moved to Santa Fe to get a Master's Degree from St. John's College, worked briefly in real estate investment, and started her own business. She has been teaching and translating Japanese for more than 15 years in New Mexico, at UNM, LANL, Sandia, SFCC and now MdS. Someday she hopes to get her PhD and maybe join the Foreign Service! She has a son in elementary school and a stepdaughter at UNM.
LISA OTERO lotero@montedelsol.org Lisa teaches World History and is our Dean of Students. She has a BA in Anthropology from Pitzer College and currently is completing her master's degree in educational administration. Lisa spent ten years teaching social science in schools in San Bernadino and Yucaipa in Southern California. Lisa is also a licensed massage therapist and published author having written a book on Relational Learning. In 2006, Lisa won the PIE Teachers who Inspire award.
WINDY PETERS wpeters@montedelsol.org Windy joined us in our founding year and is an instructional aide in the Special Services Department. She has an Associate Degree from Santa Fe Community College where she worked in Special Services as Peer Liaison with Mary Ellen Neal. Windy also worked in Americorp for two years. Most especially, Windy gives the gift of teaching students how to read inspired by her own experience teaching herself to read at age 20. In 2002, Windy was awarded the Martin Luther King Jnr. Beloved Citizen Award for her work in literacy.
JOHN PRZYBROWSKI johnp@montedelsol.org John teaches Radio Arts, English, Geography and World History. Prior to joning Monte del Sol in 2006, he taught at Oakland School for the Arts and Jefferson High School in San Francisco. John has a BA in English Literature from San Francisco State University and was a professional, touring musician for number of years. He continues to play and teaches bass through the Mentorship program.
EILEEN ROGOSIN erogosin@montedelsol.org teaches Moving Out, a dance-based performing arts class as well as musical theater. As a young woman, Eileen was a dancer with the New York City Ballet under George Balanchine and later joined Walt Disney as one of the original Mouseketeers. In Hollywood, she was a casting director and talent agent and acted on screen with Elvis Presley in several movies. With her husband, Roy, she founded regional theater in New Hampshire and offers a popular theater summer camp in Maine. Roy and Eileen moved to Santa Fe in 2006 and joined our faculty in January 2007.
ROY ROGOSIN casasuenos@msn.com is our Choir Director. Roy's career has spanned musical theater, opera, ballet, motion pictures and television. As a conductor and musical director he worked with Johnny Mathis and with Michel Legrand in Paris among other noted artists. Roy has composed five stage musicals performed in regional theaters around the country and is delighted to contribute his talents to the growth of Monte del Sol's performing arts curriculum.
ELLIOT RYAN eryan@montedelsol.org Elliot Ryan joined Monte del Sol in 2006 after six years teaching at Santa Fe High. He studied English, History and Creative Writing at UNM and University of Arizona, and has taught different levels of regular and AP high school English and Social Studies. Elliot is also a certified Clinical Herbalist and enjoyed a modest career as a skateboarder. He can be found most summers wandering the mountains and deserts of the Southwest or under one of many old Volkswagens. He is also a founding member of Samba Fe, a local Brazilian percussion ensemble.
JUDITH SAILOR jsailor@montedelsol.org Judith heads our world language department and teaches Spanish II through IV. She holds a PhD in Education Policy and Administration from the University of Minnesota and has been a professor of education and languages at Adams State College in Alamosa, CO. She has traveled extensively for the Colorado Department of Education giving workshops in the use of technology for language acquisition and in evaluating principals. Judith lived the first ten years of her life in Ecuador, learned French while living in West Africa and France. Judith is not only is a gifted teacher but leads trips to Europe for students and adults and is fluent in both Spanish and French.
AMY SCHROTH aschroth@montedelsol.org Amy teaches English and AP English. She taught at the Native American Prep School, was Chair of the English Department at the
NICOLAS TROUVAT ntrouvat@montedelsol.org Nicolas joined us in 2005 and hails from France. He is our French teacher and also teaches the Health elective. He graduated with honors from the University of Nantes, France and previously taught at the New Mexico Academy of Math and Science. He leads trips to France where our students stay with students of our sister school in his hometime of Nantes as well as in Paris. His most popular local class field trip is to the French owned cafe, Clafoutis.
ELVIRA WAMPLER ewampler@montedelsol.org Elvira Wampler earned a BS in Mathematics from NMSU, a teaching certificate from Arizona State University and an MA in Economics from UNM. She also worked at US West, Los Alamos National Laboratory, New Mexico Public Service Commission, New Mexico Department of Vital Statistics, New Mexico Human Services Department and New Mexico Department of Transportation. She taught at Los Alamos High School, Santa Fe Prep., Desert Academy and the Santa Fe Community College. Elvira teaches higher mathematics at Monte Del Sol and joined us in 2006.
MICHAEL WEBB mwebb@montedelsol.org Michael is a well-known Santa Fe photographer, and has taught photography at Monte del Sol since 2003. He also coordinates our arts' departments and facilitates our annual Arts Fundraiser. He has a BFA from the College of Santa Fe and has worked with the Schienbaum-Russek Gallery. Michael has exhibited his artwork nationally and internationally and has curated a number of shows in Santa Fe. Michael is involved with many creative projects in Santa Fe, and has been teaching photography for at Monte del Sol for six years. He also is a case manager in the special services department.