2009 Reynolds Institute Fellows

Deborah Aughey
Deborah Aughey started teaching in Togo as a Peace Corps volunteer in 1989. In her 19 years in education, she has worked in inner city and urban Miami; the suburbs of Seattle; Pusan, South Korea; Cartagena, Colombia; two years as a Florida Virtual School teacher from home; and most recently, the metro-Atlanta area. This past year, at Campbell High School in Smyrna, Ga., she rejuvenated a defunct high school journalism program and established an online blended learning hybrid course for 9th grade repeaters. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English from Florida State University and a master’s degree in learning technologies from Florida International University. She also earned NBCT status in English language arts. She lives in Marietta, Ga., with her husband and two sons. Her hobbies include playing tennis, cooking, reading and participating in contemporary media entities such as Web 2.0 and social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook, Del.icio.us, Nings, and other collaborative learning communities.

Ashley Barnes
Ashley Barnes teaches journalism and senior English at Bel Air (Md.) High School. As an alumna of this school, she is proud to serve as the adviser for the student newspaper, The Bellarion, and additionally as a track and field coach. Barnes earned her undergraduate degree in English from Towson University with a secondary education track. Before graduating from Towson, she studied English literature at the University of Exeter in southwest England. Barnes returned to Towson to complete her master’s degree in teaching. In her spare time, Barnes is an avid world traveler and enjoys backpacking, running, theater and sports.

Virginia Barr
Finishing her third year of advising and fourth year of teaching, Virginia Barr recalls how close the student newspaper was to complete collapse in 2006. Barr teaches English and journalism at Turlock (Calif.) High School and advises The Clarion. She has dedicated herself to the revival of journalism at the school. Barr earned a bachelor’s in English and a single subject teaching credential from California State University, Stanislaus. In her free time, she enjoys reading, theme parks and photography.

Jill Bhowmik
Jill Bhowmik teaches honors freshmen English, AP/IB senior English and journalism at Granite Hills High School in El Cajon, Calif. She enjoys being the adviser for the school’s newspaper, The Clarion, and is hoping to “go digital” within the next year. Bhowmik earned her undergraduate degree in foreign service at Georgetown University, where she discovered that she actually wanted to be a teacher. She joined the Peace Corps and taught English literature in a village in Malawi. After she returned home, she landed a teaching job at the very high school where she had once been a student. Bhowmik earned a master’s degree in curriculum design from University of California, San Diego. When she isn’t teaching, Bhowmik enjoys writing, traveling the world, playing with her beloved cat and volunteering to tutor ESL to a local refugee family.

Rick Burd
Teaching is Burd’s second career; he’s a retired retail manager. He earned his bachelor’s degree in philosophy at Nyack College. He has been teaching an eclectic variety of subjects at the high school level including health education, algebra, career and technology, journalism, marketing and school store. Currently, he teaches at the Wickenburg (Ariz.) High School. He is married and has three grown children and six grandchildren. He lives in Surprise and spends most his free time reading, running, computing, watching documentaries and trying to learn more about his teaching subjects. His heroes include Fred Rogers and S.F. Snyder.

Eric Chow
Although Eric Chow has taught English in the public schools for almost 15 years, nearly all of which have been at Phillip & Sala Burton High School in San Francisco, he is very new to journalism. This is his first year as adviser for The Burtonian. Currently teaching English language development and journalism, Eric keeps himself busy integrating the ELD curriculum with the school program as well as developing the presence of journalism and digital media in the school community. He is also one of the lead teachers for the Academy of Information Technology slated to start next fall. When he has spare time, he takes off on half-day bike rides, puts on an apron, or likes to discuss why a particular novel is better than its film adaptation.

Carol Clarke
Carol Clarke earned her dual major journalism degree from the University of Nevada. Clarke worked for the Gannett chain of newspapers and in public relations before pursuing graduate studies in education and follow a career in teaching. She began teaching in San Bernardino, Calif., where she taught high school English and advised the yearbook and school paper at Cajon High School. Following that, she taught college-bound, second-language English classes and advised the Canyon Springs newspaper in Moreno Valley, Calif. Eventually, Clarke decided to seek a more rural environment and moved to Visalia, Calif., where she was hired to advise the yearbook at Mt. Whitney High School and teach English and photography. In 2005, Clarke became the newspaper adviser there. Clarke lives three blocks from the school at which she teaches. She has cocker spaniel and a vintage Porsche, and she enjoys gardening, bridge and tournament poker in Las Vegas.

Carlos Contreras
After seven years as a marketing director and consultant, Carlos Contreras switched into journalism education. He has just completed his first year at Palmview High School in Mission, Texas. He teaches photojournalism and is eager to start his new challenge as adviser of Palmview’s inaugural newspaper. Contreras earned is bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of Texas-Pan American and has studied at the University of Salamanca in Salamanca, Spain. He is active in UIL Journalism, spreading the wealth and excitement of news writing, editorial writing, headline writing and feature writing. Contreras is an avid photographer.

Melissa Cordova
Melissa Cordova teaches English and journalism. She received her bachelor’s degree in English and secondary English education from the University of Connecticut and a master’s degree in secondary English education from New York University. It has always been her dream to teach. She also enjoys reading and writing and has begun writing and sharing her own personal memoir, which has received rave reviews from her students! She is married and has three children.

Joanne Drapiewski
Joanne Drapiewski teaches English and journalism at Harlem’s Frederick Douglass Academy II in Manhattan. A former actress and online business entrepreneur, Drapiewski earned her bachelor’s degree from Yale University in theater and her master’s degree in journalism from New York University. Prior to her career in secondary education she worked in publishing and advertising. Her interests include politics, philosophy, sociology, scuba diving and cross-country skiing.

Lynn Dulcie
Lynn Wolf Dulcie teaches journalism, creative writing and English at Rock Hill (S.C.) High School, where the school newspaper is The Garnet Black and Gold. Dulcie earned her undergraduate degree in English and journalism from Kent State University and a master’s degree in teaching from Winthrop University. She and her husband have three children. Dulcie is also a freelance writer and enjoys gardening, swimming, music and spending time with her family in Tega Cay.

Jeffrey Fencl
After six years of teaching freshman English and newspaper at Del Norte High School in Albuquerque, Jeffrey Fencl was offered the instructional coach position that enables him to work with struggling or new teachers on strategies to use in their classroom. He also advises The Lance, the campus newspaper, and coaches varsity baseball. He earned a degree in journalism at Northern Arizona University, where he met his wife. He later earned his master’s degree in secondary education at the University of New Mexico. Fencl enjoys playing hockey and softball in his free time along with traveling and spending time with friends and family.

Teresa Gallegos
Having taught at three different high schools in her 10-year teaching career, Teresa Gallegos currently instructs English and journalism at Blackfoot (Idaho) High School. For the past two years, she has been the adviser of the school’s newspaper, the Bronc Writer, and the school’s yearbook. Gallegos earned her bachelor’s degree at Idaho State University with a double major in secondary education and English. Her interests include travel, photography, reading, movies, camping and spending time with her family.

Marc Garcia
A Texas-boy at heart, Marc Garcia’s ambition is as big as the state. He earned a bachelor’s degree in communication arts with emphasis on journalism at the University of the Incarnate Word. He accepted an advertising and public relations position in Austin, but he decided to leave the profession in search of something a bit more meaningful and satisfying … a place where he could make a difference. After three years of teaching ninth-grade English at Sunset High School in Dallas, Garcia was appointed to teach journalism and produce The Stampede, the school’s newspaper. In his spare time he enjoys writing sitcom movie scripts, exercising and weekend trips to New York City.

Rebecca Gemmell
Rebecca (Becky) Gemmell teaches journalism, dance and English at Escondido High School in the north-inland part of San Diego County. Even though she has been at the high school for 12 years, she is only in her fourth year of working with students to produce the student newspaper, The Cougar. With a bachelor’s degree in English and dance from Scripps College and a master’s degree from the University of California, San Diego, in teaching and learning, Gemmell had no prior journalism experience. Her main source for information in inspiration has been from her husband, who is a staff writer with The San Diego Union-Tribune. Her main passion in teaching is helping students express themselves, whether it is through writing or dance. She also works to promote teachers’ voices in her work with the San Diego Area Writing Project. Outside of school, Gemmell spends her time reading for her book club, practicing yoga, cooking and playing with her beagle.

Joanna Greer
A fifth-generation West Virginian, Joanna Greer recently finished her seventh year teaching high school English and television production at John F. Kennedy High School in Silver Spring, Md. Prior to teaching, she worked on Capitol Hill and later at an ABC-TV affiliate. She earned her master’s degree in teaching at the College of Notre Dame of Maryland and a bachelor’s degree in radio, television and film from the University of Maryland. Her professional goal is to bring the school’s newspaper online and emulate The New York Times with podcasts, slideshows, and videos as well as in-depth written reporting. One day her dream of having a small farm with goats and chickens will be realized. She has three grown children and an insane Jack Russell terrier.

Eric Gutierrez
Eric Gutierrez is a graduate of University of California, Los Angeles, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science. Gutierrez also earned a master’s degree from UCLA in public policy, specializing in regional and international economic development. He moved to Miami and worked in the private sector as a consultant for international resort developers throughout the Caribbean and South America. Gutierrez then realized his passion to pursue a career in education and served as an adjunct faculty member at Cerritos Community College. Enticed by politics, he was elected to the board of trustees at Cerritos Community College, where he strongly advocated policies that promoted skill development and job creation while simultaneously strengthening the area’s economic base. During this time, he founded, co-owned and published the region’s sole bilingual community-based newspaper, The Southeast Perspective. Currently, Gutierrez teaches speech and communication as well as journalism at Whitney High School in Cerritos, Calif. He enjoys beach-related activities, cultural tourism and landscaping.

Kye Haina
Kye Haina has taught language arts for 11 years, the past four at Kamehameha Schools Maui in Pukalani, Hawaii, where she teaches English, journalism and yearbook. She earned a bachelor’s degree in theatre education from California State University, Fullerton, and her master’s degree in instructional technology from Grand Canyon University. Haina is responsible for the production of the high school yearbook, Pulama, and the student newspaper, Ka Leo o Na Koa. Haina is married and has a son who attends her school and shares her love of journalism, a penchant passed down through her father, who was also a journalist and editor. She lives in Pukalani, and in her nearly non-existent spare time she enjoys
browsing garage sales, frequenting eBay, feeding wild chickens and loving her two dogs.

Adam Haller
Adam Haller was born in Baltimore. He is a recent graduate of Belmont University in Nashville, earning a bachelor’s degree in English writing. He teaches English at Northwestern High School in Baltimore. This fall he will be the faculty adviser for The Compass, the newspaper. Haller enjoys writing, fishing, hunting, film, making music and good old American road trips.

Anna Horton
Anna Horton earned her bachelor’s degree in English literature, professional writing and secondary education at Capital University. At Highland High School in Gilbert, Ariz., she has just completed her third year teaching sophomore English and her first year teaching journalism and advising two publications: the newspaper, The Highland Sun, and literary magazine, The Muse. Horton has played the violin in the Tempe Symphony Orchestra for two seasons and loves to read, hike and swim.

Rebecca Jackson
Rebecca Jackson will be entering her third year of teaching at Douglas County (Ga.) High School. After earning a business degree in economics from the University of Georgia, she decided to pursue a teaching career in English, the subject that she had always enjoyed the most. She is pursuing a master’s degree in creative writing and hopes to encourage her students’ creativity while teaching journalism for the first time next fall. In her free time, she enjoys reading, writing fiction, traveling around the world, spending time with her husband and taking care of her many cats.

Jeffrey Jones
Jeffery Jones earned his bachelor’s with a double major in journalism/visual communications and studio arts from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. For 11 years he worked as the chief photographer for The Gallup Independent. In 2008, Jones left the Independent to accept a job teaching high school English at Miyamura High School and began work on his master’s degree in secondary education. In the fall, Jones will be in charge of creating a journalism program at the high school and will teach courses in yearbook, newspaper and multimedia broadcasting. When he isn’t studying for his classes or spending time with his wife and son, Jones likes to take photographs, watch movies and ride his mountain bike.

Andrea Krueger
Andrea Krueger is an English and journalism teacher at Centennial High School in Circle Pines, Minn. In the fall, she will begin her third year as an adviser to the Inscriptions student newspaper. Krueger earned a bachelor’s degree in German and art history from the College of Saint Benedict / Saint John’s University and a master’s degree in English education from the University of Minnesota. She has a love for music, travel and yoga and recently has added triathlons to her list of outdoor adventures.

Alma McDonald
Alma A. McDonald is an instructor at Hattiesburg (Miss.) High School, where she teaches English and journalism. She is the yearbook adviser and poetry club sponsor and serves on the teacher’s advisory board. She has been an educator for nine years. Before teaching, she worked for six years at Hattiesburg’s WDAM-TV, where she was a copywriter and “The Soap Diva”, the host of SUDs, a weekly soap opera update that aired during the midday newscast. She earned a bachelor’s degree in radio-television production at the University of Southern Mississippi, a master’s degree in mass communication at William Carey University and another master’s degree in secondary education. McDonald’s interests and hobbies include singing, acting, writing and event planning. She is married with three children.

Sharon Nolan
Sharon Nolan will be entering her third full year of teaching at North Canyon High School in Phoenix. She teaches sophomore English and advises the school yearbook, Venom, and the school newspaper, The Rattler Review. Nolan earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in computer science. She worked as an IT
consultant and project manager for four years prior to becoming an educator. She recently earned her master’s degree in education from the University of Phoenix. In her spare time Nolan enjoys reading, baking, finding fantastic travel deals and embarking on new
culinary adventures. She lives in Phoenix with her husband and two beagles.

Ana Rosenthal
The art of visual communication captured Ana Rosenthal’s enthusiasm long before she completed her bachelor’s degree in graphic design from East Texas State University. Her desire for a better understanding of the creative process led her to complete a Master of Fine Arts degree from Syracuse University. She worked for a large design firm in Detroit and then ran her own design studio. In 2000 she moved with her husband and children to Dallas and started teaching graphic design at the Art Institute of Dallas. This experience helped her define her need for new and more challenging horizons. In 2008 she accepted a position as the student publications adviser at The Hockaday School in Dallas. Rosenthal works with her students on all upper school publications, including the monthly newspaper, The Fourcast; the yearbook, Cornerstones; and the literary magazine, Vibrato. She enjoys spending her free time reading, cooking, working out and, most of all, hiking and trail biking with her family.

Mark Salvatore
Mark Salvatore teaches English and journalism at Saint Joseph Academy in Brownsville, Texas. His journalism students produce an online newspaper (www.sja.us), “The Hound Collar,” six times a year. He is also the moderator for the recently created school literary magazine, PAW. Salvatore, originally from New York, raised in California and educated, in part, in New Mexico, began his teaching career at the Pan American International School in Paraguay shortly after completing his Peace Corps service. After five years at PAIS, Salvatore and his wife and his two children moved to the lower Rio Grande Valley, where he taught English at two public schools and then worked as a technical writer for a few years before joining the staff of Saint Joseph Academy, where he has taught for five years. Salvatore has published several articles and essays, and he has worked as a land surveyor, drafter and hydrographer. He enjoys writing, reading history and historical fiction, automobile travel and camping with his family, swimming, bicycling and attending soccer games.

Lynne Schneider
Lynne Schneider, a teacher for 14 years, teaches journalism and English at Murrah High School in Jackson, Miss. Schneider is a founding member of the Jackson Area High School Press Association and is a member of the public relations committee of the alumnae association of Mississippi University for Women, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. Schneider is married and has four children. She enjoys reading, swimming and spending time with family. Prior to teaching, she worked as a journalist in two small daily papers in Mississippi.

Mark Silverstein
Mark Silverstein has worked in media production of one form or another since 1985. During university he worked at a public radio station in Flagstaff, Ariz. In 1987 he was hired for an entry-level position at CNN Headline News. Two years later, when he left to enter production work full-time, he had moved up to recording sound on news crews during the day and editing on the overnight shift. Over the years Silverstein has worked on news programs, feature films, network news crews, produced a documentary and has been fortunate enough to travel for work. He teaches media production at Douglas High School in Douglas, Ariz. In his free time he enjoys reading, travel, playing the guitar and listening to music.

Juli Stricklan
Juli Stricklan has been teaching high school English for 10 years. Five years ago she began teaching at Rigby (Idaho) High School, at which time she also became the adviser to the school newspaper, the Trojanier. Stricklan teaches English and newspaper. She enjoys reading, writing (essays, poetry, and pieces of a novel) and laughing (at funny things). She writes a monthly column on the opinion page of the Idaho Falls Post Register. Stricklan earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Brigham Young University. It took her 11 years after that to decide to become a teacher. She is an enormously patient woman and has a well-developed sense of the absurd, which is how she survives teaching teenagers.

Ariawna Talton
Ariawna Talton earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin. After graduation, Talton accepted an advertising position with COMPUSA and a communications position with AT&T. Talton finished her first year as journalism adviser at Moline High School in Dallas, teaching journalism and English. Talton advises The Jaguar Print and sponsors the weekly class broadcasts. She aspires to be a songwriter and successful author and feels privileged to mold young minds while exposing students to the world of opportunity she believes awaits them. In her spare time Talton enjoys playing basketball, photography projects, traveling, blogging and working on a few songs and book-writing projects.

Mark Webber
Mark Webber is an original faculty member of the Vidal M. Treviño School of Communications and Fine Arts in Laredo, Texas, a magnet high school that opened 16 years ago. He started the print journalism program which offers journalism, photojournalism and three levels of newspaper production, among others, and founded and advises the student newspaper, The Magnet Tribune, and its Web site. Since 1975 Webber has worked as a part-time news/copy editor at the Laredo Morning Times. He is also an adjunct instructor in communication at Texas A&M International University, where he also advises the student paper, The Bridge, and its Web site. Before switching into education, Webber worked full-time at daily newspapers in the paste-up era. When he’s not teaching and advising, Webber enjoys collecting (and using) fountain pens, the majority of which are Sheaffer and Esterbrook, and enjoys working around the house.

Trampus Willis
Trampus Willis just completed his fourth year as a student publications adviser at South Side High School in Fort Wayne, Ind. Willis teaches journalism, junior English and student publications. Willis earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism from Cameron University and his master’s degree in education from Indiana Wesleyan University. Willis worked as a television news photographer for KSWO television in Lawton, Okla., before moving to Fort Wayne, Ind., to pursue a career as a district executive with the Boy Scouts of America. Willis is married and is the father of a daughter and son. He enjoys reading, camping, photography, golf and diving and is an active member of his church.

Jessica Young
Originally from southern Oregon, Jessica Young earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism and anthropology at San Diego State University. She now works at Orange Glen High School in Escondido, Calif., where she advises the student newspaper, The Musket. She teaches journalism and English. Outside the classroom, she enjoys the beach (as any good Southern California girl would), browsing used bookstores, playing volleyball, writing and photography.