Biographies - Humanities
Humanities Middle School Chair: Tamara Bunnell
Humanities Upper School Chair: Sarah Porter
Adina Berg. 10th and 12th grade Humanities.
B.A. (Philosophy), Bryn Mawr College; M.A. (Philosophy), University of Edinburgh; National Endowment for Humanities Fellow. ESL Certified Instructor. Adina started working at The Northwest School in 1989. From 1993-1998, she lived in York, England, and taught Latin and Classics at Bootham School. She has been the recipient of three National Endowment for the Humanities teacher grants; the first was to study the life and work of Charles Darwin in the context of the Victorian era, which led to her historical play, Darwin and Nietzsche: The Malaise of the 19th Century. She has also written several other historical plays and musicals including, The Trial and Death of Socrates: The Musical Comedy and The Chairy Orchard. In 2006, Adina was the recipient of a special grant to study the life and work of Mozart in Vienna and Prague. She is a silver medalist in Highland Bagpiping. Her activities at Northwest include Opera Club, Yiddish Club, and Lost and Found. At NWS since 1989.
Ann Ewel. 9th grade Humanities
B.A. (History), Furman University; MLIS (Library and Information Science), University of South Florida; M.A. (History and teacher certification), University of Alabama. Before joining NWS as the interim Librarian and then the Humanities department, Ann worked for the Randolph School in Huntsville, AL where she was the Upper School Librarian and taught World History. She also taught at the University of Alabama and North Seattle Community College. In 2004-2005, Ann spent six weeks in Japan with the Fulbright Memorial Fund and the East Asian Studies Program. Her interests include reading, gardening and spending time in the woods. At NWS since 2009.
Jeff Blair. 8th and 10th grade Humanities, Upper School Boys Soccer Coach.
B.A. with Honors (Political Economy), Colorado College; M.Ed. (Curriculum and Instruction), Seattle University as James Madison Fellow for teaching the U.S. Constitution; Washington State Teaching Certificate, PLU; 2001 Gates Foundation Teacher Leadership Project grant recipient. Jeff is the teacher/advisor for the Environment Interest Group. He has worked on curriculum projects for organizations such as Facing the Future and the World Affairs Council. Jeff was awarded a Distinguished Fulbright Award in Teaching to do educational research in South Africa. At NWS since 1989.
Suzanne Bottelli. 11th grade Humanities,12th grade Writing, Environment Program.
B.A. (English Language and Literature), University of Virginia; M.F.A (Creative Writing), University of Iowa; M.A. (English Literature), Middlebury College. Suzanne taught at The Bullis School in Potomac, Maryland, The Center for Talented Youth, Elder Hostel, and at the University of Iowa. She is a nationally published poet and has won awards for her work from the Seattle Arts Commission, the Washington State Artist Trust and Jack Straw Studios. At NWS since 1994.
Tamara Bunnell. 7th and 8th grade Humanities.
B.A., (Washington State Teaching Certificate), The Evergreen State College. Tamara won a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Pakistan. She also won the Washington Education Association Leader in Restructuring Award. Before coming to NWS, she taught 7th grade at Shelton Middle School for four years. She has been a Curriculum Consultant and Writer at the Experience Music Project and served on its Educator Board. She recently participated in an international Gilder-Lehrman seminar on the Cold War at Cambridge University (UK), and is currently working toward a master's degree in Independent School Leadership and Organization at Columbia Teacher's College. At NWS since 1994.
Scott Davis. 12th grade Humanities, Mime and Movement.
B.A., Princeton University; J.D., University of Washington School of Law. Scott has a broad range of teaching experience at The Sitka Fine Arts Camp, Viautas Magnus University School of Law (Lithuania), Loon Soup / The Princeton Movement Theater Group, and Gadjah Mada University (Indonesia). He danced professionally with Lingo Dancetheater from 2000-2007 and collaborates and performs with a variety of local artists. At NWS since 1998.
Leslie Eisen. Humanities, Physical Education.
B.A. (Environmental Studies and Community Studies), University of California, Santa Cruz; M.Ed. with teaching endorsements (Middle/Secondary Social Studies and Language Arts), University of Oregon. Leslie's prior experience includes teaching 7th grade English, Humanities and Social Studies. She is a member of the Seattle Outrigger Canoe Club and a certified yoga instructor. At NWS since 2008.
Heather Hall. 7th grade Humanities.
B.A. (English), University of North Carolina; M.A. (Liberal Studies), Duke University. Heather has taught at Annie Wright School, Duke University and the Casady School in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Her interests include soccer and reading. At NWS since 2006.
Gary Jones. 10th grade Humanities.
M.A. (English and American Literature), University of Oregon; Doctor of Arts (British Romantic Literature, Rhetoric and Composition), University of Oregon. Gary taught writing and literature at Iowa State University. He was an Associate Professor of English and Director of Composition at Upper Iowa College; Associate Professor of Writing and Literature at Central Connecticut State University; and an Associate Professor of English at Cornish College of the Arts. His interests include theories of play and games, folklore and folk songs, performing arts and spectator sports. At NWS since 1995.
Greg Jones. 6th grade Humanities.
B.A. (Liberal Studies), California State University, Chico; M.A. (Curriculum and Instruction specializing in Literacy), Lesley College, Cambridge, Massachusetts; K-12 Teaching Credential. Greg's 20-plus years of experience in education include teaching multi-age classes (grades 3-6) at Oakdale Heights School in Oroville, California; 3rd grade at the Oakdale Heights School; 6th grade at the Anna McKenney School in Marysville, California; and being an Environmental teacher at the Woodleaf Outdoor School in Woodleaf, California. Greg loves being a dad and spending time outdoors. At NWS since 1996.
Harumi LaDuke. Music Studio, 10th grade Humanities.
B.A. (English Literature and Creative Writing, Music), Dartmouth College; Royal College of Music, London, UK; winner, Metropolitan Opera Honorable Mention; winner, Performing Arts Festival of the Eastside (piano, voice); Gold Medalist, Seattle Young Artist Music Festival. Harumi has been a featured artist with Opera North, Skagit Opera, Lyric Opera Northwest, Seattle Community Outreach and Dart-mouth College. She is Director of the Junior Division at the Seattle Conservatory of Music, where she teaches music history, theory and ear training. At NWS since 2008.
Benji Perin. 9th grade Humanities.
B.A. (English Literature), Middlebury College (minor in Biology); coursework in Physics and Chemistry, University of Washington. He has previously taught Upper School Humanities and Physical Science. He works part time as a translator for Spanish-speaking patients. At NWS since 2008.
Sarah Porter. 11th grade Humanities.
B.A. (English Literature), Bryn Mawr College; M.A. (English Literature), University of Virginia. Sarah has been a member of the Humanities Department since 2002 and Department Chair since 2007. Prior to moving to Seattle, Sarah taught English at The Tandem School in Charlottesville, Virginia. A certified TESOL teacher, she also hasexperience teaching ESL and EFL in Seattle and in Istanbul, Turkey. Her interests include reading, travel and speaking French. At NWS since 2002.
Daren Salter. Humanities.
B.A. (English and History), University of California, Davis; M.A. (American History), San Francisco State University; Completed doctoral coursework and exams in American History at the University of Washington. Daren taught for a year at Brandeis Hillel Day School in San Francisco and three summers for the Institute of Reading Development in the San Francisco Bay Area and Seattle. More recently, he taught a variety of undergraduate courses in American and European history at the University of Washington. For the past 4 years he has been the Associate Editor of the Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project, a multimedia educational website sponsored by the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies at the UW. In his spare time, he enjoys playing with his 2 children, Quinn and Dane, reading, tennis, basketball, playing the guitar and hiking. On Sundays during football season he watches too much TV. New to NWS in 2009.
Calvin Shaw. 9th and 12th grade Humanities, Track & Field Coach.
B.A. (English), University of Hawaii; M.A. (Composition and Rhetoric), University of Hawaii. Calvin's interests include jazz and reading. At NWS since 2005.
Daniel Sparler. 11th and 12th grade Humanities, Spanish.
B.A. (Spanish) Phi Beta Kappa, University of Arkansas; B.A. Ed. Summa Cum Laude, Eastern Washington University; Kansai University of Foreign Studies, Osaka, Japan (diploma); Coursework completed for M.A. (Comparative Literature), University of Arkansas. Daniel was a journalist with the Seattle Post-Intelligencer from 1981-1988. He is on the Board of the Northwest Horticultural Society. At NWS since 1992.
Glen Sterr. Dean of Faculty. 12th grade Philosophy, Outdoor Education Program Coordinator.
See biography under Administration.
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