 Meet Our Staff
Click on any staff member's name to jump to their bio. To contact a staff member, just call 608-238-2525 or email them at theirfirstname@wingraschool.org. Job listings are posted here.
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Our Classroom Teachers
The Nest—ages 5-7
The Pond—ages 7-9
The Lake—ages 9-11
The Sky—ages 11-14
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All School Teachers—ages 5-14
Additional Teaching Staff
Administrative Staff
Building Staff
- Chhoeub Chaam - Custodian
- Eddie Smith - Custodian
- Rick Stulgaitis - Building Director
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Angela Baker
Teacher, Ages 7 to 9
Room 103
B.S. Elementary Education
UW Eau Claire |
Angela grew up in the Stoughton countryside, spending most of her time either lost in the woods or lost in a book. She considers herself fortunate because she always knew that she wanted to be an educator. Angela was drawn to Wingra's sense of community and love of learning. She learned even more about progressive education when she joined Wingra as a substitute teacher and then became part of the full time staff in 2004. Angela started out teaching 8 to 10-year-olds in room 101 and now enjoys teaching and learning with 7 to 9-year-olds.
When not at school, Angela enjoys reading, biking, traveling, taking classes and workshops, doing private tutoring, and spending time with friends and family. |
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Debbie Blitz
Teacher
Ages 5-7
Room 102
Master of Science
Health Education
Hofstra University
B.S. Community Health
Hofstra University
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Originally from Peoria, Illinois, Debbie has worked with children in many different capacities for many years.
She worked as a waterfront director at a sleep away summer camp in Waupaca, Wisconsin where she was able to teach children of all ages how to swim, boat, and water ski.
While working on her Masters Degree in health education, she worked in a more traditional environment as Teacher's Assistant for special education at the high school level on Long Island. After receiving her M.S., she taught kindergarten at a private progressive school in New York City for two years.
Debbie moved to Madison with her husband in the summer of 2007. She is very proud to be part of the Wingra community as a classroom teacher.
When not at Wingra, Debbie can be found singing silly songs to her kids, Kayla and Elijah, shopping the farmers' market, and spending time outdoors with family and friends. |
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Rebekah Bovenmyer
Admissions and Communications
Coordinator
Room 200A
B.A. and M.A.
English
Iowa State University
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Rebekah grew up in a small town in southeast Iowa. In college, she indulged her practical side by specializing in technical communication. For her first "real" job, she managed the website and communications for Iowa State University's civil engineering department. But then she gave up on practicality for a bit and focused on creative writing. After receiving her master's degree in English, she was the editor of Go!, an educational online teen magazine.
She moved to Madison with her son in 2008. She was attracted to Wingra’s sense of community and its gentle and engaging teaching philosophy.
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her son, writing a young adult novel, and reading. |
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Paul Brahce
Head of School
Graduate studies
Earlham College
University of Washington
Antioch University Seattle
B.A. and Teaching Credential, Western Washington University
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Paul started as an innovator in education early. As a teenager in Ann Arbor, he helped organize and launch an alternative high school, which he then attended as a senior.
Paul has extensive teaching experience and, prior to joining Wingra School, was Head of the Little School in Washington State for fourteen years. He has served on several not-for-profit boards, including that of the Pacific Northwest Association of Independent Schools.
Highlights of this past summer for Paul included visits with his two daughters in the Pacific Northwest and exploring Northern Wisconsin.
When not engrossed in school activities, Paul enjoys folk music, day-hikes, and takes great pleasure in searching flea markets and thrift stores for discarded mid-century treasures. |
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Mary Campbell
Education Director
B.S. Elementary Education
Science Concentration
UW Madison
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Committed to progressive education, Mary student taught in the British Primary system before working at Metropolitan Open School in St. Louis Park, Minnesota where she was an active member of The Network of Progressive Educators.
In 1990 Mary discovered Wingra School, where she taught until 1997. After having children, Mary worked as a freelance writer and mother of two sons. Mary re-joined the Wingra staff in 2006 in the role of program developer, helping to create a plan to inform, guide, and support Wingra’s leadership into the future.
Over the past 22 years, Mary has worked at Wingra School in many capacities, as a teacher in 10-14 year old classrooms, as a substitute teacher, as a member of the leadership team, as a program developer, and currently as the Education Director working on curriculum development, classroom support, program coordination, and admissions. This will be Mary’s fourth year as Education Director of Wingra School. |
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Kim Cotant
Teacher, Ages 5 to 7
Room 100
Master of Literacy Studies
UW-Madison
B.S., Elementary Education (English)
UW-Madison |
Kim first joined the Wingra staff in 1986. Prior to teaching at Wingra, Kim worked in a grocery co-op, sold flowers on State Street, and worked for a seed corn farm. Kim took a temporary Wingra leave to start a family and worked part-time as well as a teacher’s aide at Franklin School. Kim then returned to Wingra in 1989, teaching 5–7 year olds, and she has been there ever since.
In addition to receiving her master’s degree in literary studies in 2006, she has also taken classes in phonics-based instruction such as Orton-Gillingham, Project Read, and Direct Instruction and has used these methods to tutor students privately. This year Kim presented at the regional Progressive Education Network Conference with her co-teacher, Sarah.
Kim has two children, both Wingra alumni. After completing some global travels, her daughter currently resides in Minneapolis, pursuing options to obtain her teaching certificate. Her son will be a junior at Wesleyan University. Kim enjoys spending time running, biking, being outdoors, reading, and practicing her new love of yoga, while treasuring those precious times when her children return to the roost. |
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Allen Cross
Teacher, Ages 11 to 14 Room 202
B.S., Elementary Education
UW Madison
B.A., Economics, Political Science, and Philosophy
UW Madison |
Allen has taught at Wingra School since 1988.
His interest in authentic interdisciplinary study has led to a National Science Foundation grant in 1991; a Keizai Koho Fellowship trip to Japan in 1992; a "Math in Context" institute in the Netherlands in 1995; and a five- week 2002 National Endowment for the Arts fellowship studying the historiography of the Industrial Revolution in Nottingham, England.
Allen presented his classroom action research work about democratic classrooms at the 2004 annual American Educator Research Conference and served as a discussant at the 2005 conference. He presented his findings about the sound culture of the classroom at the 2006 National Council of Teachers of English Annual Convention, the 2007 AERA Conference and at the 2008 University of Pennsylvania Annual Ethnography in Education Research Forum.
Allen participated in a collaborative teacher research project focusing on social justice education and took part in the presentation of their work at the 2007 AERA annual convention. Connie North's book about this collaboration, Teaching for Social Justice?, was published in 2008. Allen completed and presented his paper, "Communicating Well Over Common Texts: Furthering My Development in Democratic Forms of Adolescent Literacy Interventions" at the MMSD action research forum this past spring.
While he is still putzing with highland bagpipes, Allen will also be taking a UW Extension ukulele class this fall with his life partner. |
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Weslie Cymerman
Teacher, Ages 7-9
Room 101
B.S., Elementary Education
Minor in Science
UW Madison
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Weslie grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She earned her degree in Elementary Education from UW-Madison, and completed some of her student teaching at Wingra (with ages 9-11). Weslie then went on to Namibia, Africa to work as a Special Education teacher for children ages 8-15. Weslie returned in January of 2009 and has been a part of the Wingra community since then.
Prior to working at Wingra, Weslie led hiking and canoeing trips in northern Wisconsin and worked with teens with disabilities in and around Madison.
In her ounce of free time, Weslie enjoys practicing yoga, being outside and spending time with her friends, family and big dog, Mike. |
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Ashley Fletcher
Director of Development
Room 200A
B.A., Business Communications
Trinity Christian College |
Ashley moved to Madison in the summer of 2009 from Chicago and is excited to be part of the Wingra community.
Ashley grew up in Pella, Iowa and obtained her undergraduate degree from Trinity Christian College in Palos Heights, Illinois. Before coming to Wingra, she was working in development at Chicago Foundation for Women.
In her free time, Ashley enjoys hanging out with her family and friends, knitting, and reading books. |
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Elizabeth Garcia
Administrative Assistant |
Originally from Mexico City, Elizabeth has called Wisconsin home since 1993. Her daughters Priscilla and Katherine attended Wingra School for three years before she joined the staff in 2002.
Elizabeth wears many hats in her job - taking care of small injuries, supervising lunch, helping kids hunting down that lost mitten, reminding parents of their snack schedule - in addition to answering the phone, scheduling visitors, and keeping the Wingra staff on track. She enjoys working with children and is happy to be part of the Wingra community. |
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Marieka Greene
Extended Day Teacher
B.A., Theater and English
Minor in Elementary Education
Middlebury College |
Marieka was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. Despite her parents' pleas, she ventured all the way across the country to Vermont where she majored in Theatre and English at Middlebury College. While at Middlebury she also studied Spanish and minored in Elementary Education.
After graduating in 2004, she completed her student teaching in a 4/5 blended classroom in a local dairy community outside of Middlebury. Marieka then moved to Bend, Oregon where she most recently taught in a 2/3 blended classroom at Highland Magnet School - a school dedicated to using the Scottish Storyline method of teaching.
When she is not engrossed in her teaching (which is rare), Marieka can be found writing children's plays, practicing her Spanish, and running, cycling or nordic skiing. She also loves to travel. She's spent most of her time in Spanish speaking countries, however most recently explored Thailand and Cambodia with her husband, Marshall, as a late honeymoon. Marieka and Marshall moved to Madison this summer, and she is incredibly excited to find a learning community like Wingra to call "home." |
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Aviv Kammay
Music Teacher
Ages 5 to 14
Room 104
Master of Music
Education
Northwestern University
B.Ed., Music Education
Levinsky College of Education and Rimon School of Jazz and Contemporary Music
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Aviv is a music educator and composer from Tel Aviv, Israel. He plays piano, guitar, and flute, and he has taught students in both Israel and the United States, ranging in age from pre-kindergarten to adult. He especially enjoys working with small ensembles and helping children develop their "musical ear" by sharing and discussing music they love. Aviv's compositions include a string quartet, three miniatures for clarinet and piano, and "Ahava, Ashan, Chalom," a choral piece for which he received the Guild of Temple Musicians 2009 Young Composer award.
Aviv has spent the past nine summers as the music director at Olin Sang Ruby Union Institute, a Jewish summer camp in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin where he works in a unique, collaborative fine arts program with children and teenagers who have a special interest in musical exploration.
When not teaching or composing, Aviv enjoys listening to the Beatles, and his collection of Beatles music and literature is probably unrivaled in Dane County. He lives in the near east side of Madison with his wife, Parthy, and their two furry companions, Rita the rabbit and Shmuely the cat. |
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Lisa Kass
Teacher, Ages 9 to 11
Room 105
Master in Science
Education (Personalized Learning)
Concordia Teachers College
River Forest, IL
B.S., Elementary Education (Mathematics)
University of Illinois
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Before joining the staff in 1989, Lisa taught in Illinois. Lisa thoroughly enjoys teaching at Wingra and creating new units on stimulating topics. She relishes implementing new approaches in teaching math and writing.
Lisa has been trained as a mentor for initial educators and works with UW-Whitewater to help initial educators with their professional development plans. She is the co-facilitator for Clinical Associates, which works closely with the UW-Madison School of Education, specifically with practicum and student teachers.
Her pride and joy are her two children. Ben, her son, is an environmental lawyer and her daughter Shana is a kindergarten teacher in Chicago Public Schools.
When not at school, Lisa enjoys reading, walking, and cheering on her beloved Chicago Cubs and Bears. |
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Stephanie Kirby
Spanish Teacher
Ages 5 to 14
Room 207
B.S., Spanish Education
UW-Madison
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A UW Madison grad, Stephanie is proud to call Wingra her first teaching home. Wingra's philosophy and practices are a perfect fit for her own teaching goals. Stephanie mastered her Spanish in Sevilla, Spain and has plans to visit many other Spanish-speaking countries in the future.
Stephanie completed most of her student teaching in Madison public schools and has also worked for Madison School and Community Recreation in the summer. She enjoys working with children outside of the classroom just as much as inside.
Originally from McFarland, Wisconsin, Stephanie has always loved living in the Madison community and all it has to offer, and is glad to be educating its future citizens. When away from the classroom, Stephanie enjoys reading, watching sports (Go Brewers! Go Packers!), fostering animals for DCHS, and cavorting with friends and family. |
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Miriam Kopelow
Teacher,
Ages 9-11
Teacher, Ages 11-14
Technology Teacher
B.S. Elementary Education
Minor in Global Cultures
Certificates in Middle East Studies and Religious Studies
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Miriam originally hails from the Canadian prairies but has lived in Midwestern United States since she was in elementary school. She enjoys biking, reading, dancing, photography, and exploring all the exciting elements of Madison. She studied elementary education at UW-Madison and has taught in a variety of classrooms across Madison and the Chicago area, as well as in Israel and India. Most recently, Miriam spent part of her summer in Honduras working in schools with two Wingra teachers (Stephanie and Tiffany), as well as teachers from the Winnetka School District.
Miriam deeply believes in the values of progressive education and teaching for social justice. She loves teaching and learning through theater, music, movement, and other ways that bring the exciting parts of life to the classroom. She has facilitated social justice courses for college students and continues learning new strategies for meaningful and constructive dialogue for all ages. She is always learning from the wonderful staff, teachers, and kids here at Wingra School! |
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Dawn Liska-Tollefson
Teacher,
Ages 11-14
Room 202
B.S., Elementary Education
Health Education
UW Madison
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Dawn grew up in the unglaciated region of Wisconsin where she continues to spend time exploring nature in the beautiful rolling hills and river bluffs. This is her third year collaborating with area educators to plan and implement a Wingra Watershed professional development course, with the ultimate goal of teaching students to be environmental stewards. Dawn continues to partner with other Wingra teachers under the UW Arboretum Earth Partnerships for Schools program in hopes of creating educational green spaces around Wingra. This school year, Dawn has chosen to work fifty percent to spend more time with her new baby and three-year old.
Prior to her eight years at Wingra, Dawn coordinated, directed, and facilitated academic and youth programming for youth ages 5–14. When not immersed in youth culture, Dawn can be found strolling the neighborhood with her kids in tow, likely headed to one of Madison’s fabulous parks or libraries. |
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Kathy Oker
Teacher,
Ages 11-14
Room 200
B.S., Criminal Justice
University of Dayton
B.S.,
Elementary Education (grades 1-9)
UW-Madison |
Kathy is a firm believer in a progressive approach to education and has loved being a part of the Wingra community since 2000.
A native of Cincinnati, Kathy was educated at the University of Dayton and the University of Wisconsin. She spent eight years traveling the world with her husband, Dave, prior to joining the Wingra faculty. In addition to exploring the U.S. and Canada, the couple spent six months living in a tent in Australia and resided in Taiwan for two and half years, where they taught English. Kathy and Dave have three children, Willie, Leo and Laurel. |
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Colleen Pardun
Physical Education Teacher, Ages 5-14
Room 106
Master of Education
Learning Community
UW La Crosse
Elementary Education,
Adaptive Education,
UW La Crosse |
Colleen grew up in the north woods, battling mosquitoes
and snowdrifts in Rhinelander, Wisconsin. After college in La Crosse, she got a job in Edgerton, Wisconsin. She taught there for four years, working with 8 to 10 year olds in a double room with a master educator as her friend and mentor. During that time she also got her Masters in education from the University of La Crosse.
When it was time to make the move to Madison, Wingra was the only place Colleen wanted to be, because the philosophy of the school so closely matched her own. She taught in the Pond for six years before making the move to PE teacher. |
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Tiffany Rampey
Teacher, Ages 7-9
Room 103
Technology Teacher
B.S., Elementary Ed
minor in Theatre and Drama
UW Madison
Cultural exchange
teacher in Honduras |
Even before Tiffany was a student at UW, she knew that her energy and desire to live life to its fullest would translate well into an elementary classroom.
She began her teaching career in the Winnetka school district (just north of Chicago) teaching 4th grade. While in Winnetka, she learned a great deal about how beautifully progressive schools can run when the entire community is working with the children's best interest at heart.
Tiffany is fortunate enough to travel to Honduras regularly to establish a cultural exchange between schools and work on teacher education.
Tiffany loves everything having to do with the outdoors, from swimming, to hiking, to playing ultimate frisbee. She and her husband look forward to becoming more and more involved in the outdoor lifestyle that is so prevalent in Madison. |
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Christen Ring
Capital Campaign Manager
Room 200A
B.A. Sociology
UW Madison
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Christen recently joined the Wingra staff in 2010. She is passionate about progressive education and thinks it is wonderful to work where her children go to school! She is excited about the future of Wingra and honored to be working on its behalf.
Christen was raised in Madison and is glad to call it home again. After being away for six years, she and her husband, Joe, moved back in 2002.
For the past seven years, Christen has enjoyed the opportunity to stay home full-time with her two daughters, Natalie and Rebecca.
When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing golf, swimming, reading, yoga, and learning violin with Natalie. |
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Bonnie
Schey
Business Manager
Office 203B |
Since joining
the Wingra School staff in 1988, Bonnie has enjoyed working in a
place where she has daily contact with children. Watching performances
at an all-school Follies or supervising kids in the lunchroom is
a nice contrast to balancing the budget.
Bonnie's official job description covers all things financial—tuition, bills, budgets, tuition assistance —but she can also be
found reading to the kids in Room 100. When she's not at Wingra, Bonnie
spends her time working on house projects, gardening, and relaxing
with family and friends. |
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Tresi Smyth
Teacher, Ages 7-9
Rooms 101 & 103
Post-Baccalaureate – Teacher Education
Edgewood College
B.A. Political Science and Psychology
UW La Crosse |
Tresi has been working in progressive schools for more than twenty years, happily learning and teaching among an amazing contingent of committed children, colleagues and families. She first arrived at Wingra as a student teacher in 1991, and she has been fortunate to play a number of different roles in the Wingra community over the years, as well as teaching at a progressive school in Minnesota.
Tresi remains equally enthusiastic whether thinking about progressive education or preparing to share the daily life of the classroom with students of any age. Growing up with six siblings, Tresi has never lost her love of being among a merry band of children.
When she's not at Wingra, Tresi can be found reading, writing, cooking, singing, talking on the phone, traveling, walking in her neighborhood, or spending time with her precious family and friends. |
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Emily Sonneman
Teacher, Ages 11-14
Room 200
B.A. Elementary Education Grades 1-8
Cardinal Stritch
B.A. Psychology
Hope College |
Emily has been a part of the Wingra community since 2001. This school year will be her fourth year adventuring with the Sky. Previously, Emily lived in Minneapolis where she spent time teaching ESL and social studies classes at the high school level to new immigrants from Mexico and Somalia. This year, Emily is taking classes and conducting action research in order to complete her masters in teaching.
When she's not at school, you'll find Emily riding her bike around town, hanging out at the farmer's market, traveling, canoeing, practicing yoga, working on the next home renovation project, and—most importantly—playing with her children. |
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Angie
Sparks
Librarian and ISACS Self-Study Coordinator
Master of Library Science
School Library Media Centers
UW-Madison
B.S., Elementary Education
UW-Madison
B.S., Business (Marketing)
Indiana University |
Angie has worked at Wingra since 1989. Previously a classroom teacher of nine to eleven year olds, Angie began the Wingra Library and Technology Program in 1996 and oversees its growth of resources and services available to students, teachers, and families. She loves collaborating with teachers and students at all levels to find ways to creatively integrate literature and library/technology skills into classrooms units. She is looking forward to applying progressive practices to the process of the ISACS self-study during year two of our re-accreditation journey.
Freshly invigorated by her participation in the Greater Madison Writing Project Summer Institute, Angie loves being creative (and organized!), her yoga practice, making videos, and having fun with friends and family. She is delighted to be sharing a school with her daughter Addison! |
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Claire
Weiss
Teacher, Ages 9 to 11
Room 107
B.S., Special Education (Cognitive Disabilities)
UW Madison
B.S., Elementary Education
UW Madison |
Before coming to Wingra, Claire taught special education at the middle and secondary levels, worked in Madison food co-ops, and spent time with her children, now young adults.
When not at school, Claire enjoys camping and hiking, reading, cooking, and vicariously experiencing her far-flung children's adventures, most recently in Italy and China. She lives with her husband and cats in rural Mt. Horeb. |
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Our
approach to progressive education »
Descriptions
by subject »
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How
we evaluate student progress »
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Meet our staff »
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