Staffing Updates: Summer 2019

7/2/2019

Dear Parents,

I hope you have enjoyed your summer so far and I wish you a wonderful July 4 weekend. In a May Weekly Review, I provided some updates to our faculty and staff changes for the 2019-2020 school year and this afternoon I’d like to follow up with some more news on that front.

NEW HIRES

Katie Kivett will be our new Kindergarten teacher. Katie graduated from The University of Georgia with a BS in Sociology and earned a Masters of Arts in Teaching from Belmont University with a certification in Pre-Kindergarten to Third Grade. From 2009 until this past year, Katie taught in the Four Year Olds class at Westminster School for Young Children. During her time at Westminster, she served as Age-Level Representative and served on various committees and task forces focused on curriculum development. We are excited to welcome Katie to Harding and can’t wait to have her get started.
Jasmin Hopkins will be our new Second Grade Teacher. Jasmin graduated from Fisk University with a BA in Psychology, continuing at Fisk University and completing her coursework towards a Masters in Clinical Psychology, and earning her Masters in Education from Trevecca Nazarene University. Jasmin’s extensive experience includes teaching Second and Fourth Grades in Metro schools where she has served as Grade Level Chair, Department Chairs and managing special projects and academic support. She also taught 6th grade at LEAD Public Schools before moving into the role of Dean of Culture.
Ed Sanders will be our new full time substitute. Ed graduated from Tennessee State University with a BS in Psychology. For ten years he coached football at Delaware State University and Tennessee State University, serving as Passing Game Coordinator, Co-Special Teams Coordinator, and Co-Defensive Coordinator among other responsibilities. Most recently he has served as Campus Supervisor and Head Football and Basketball coach at McKissack Middle School. Ed will take over as Head Football Coach for our 7th/8th grade team in the Early Fall season and Corby Lucas will serve as Head Coach of our 5th/6th grade team. Ed will also serve as a soccer, basketball and track and field coach.

UPDATED ROLES AND INTERNAL MOVES

Braden Bell will be Assistant Middle School Director. He will have a more direct role in the implementation and execution of policies and processes related to discipline and upholding the Community and Honor Codes in the middle school. He will remain Theater and Choral Director for Middle School.
Anne Zuberer will have a new title of PreK Director, both reflecting the unique PreK model, as well as her role as a thought leader in early childhood education. Anne will continue to serve as a full-time classroom teacher, while officially taking on more administrative responsibilities related to the management of our PreK program. Anne will also coordinate our new Natural Outdoor Playspace in Kever Park, an idea of hers that has provided countless hours of outdoor education opportunities for all of our students and their families.
Kristin Dixon will move into First Grade as the new first grade member of the Learning Effectiveness Team and Catie Caldwell will move into Kindergarten as a member of the same team. Our Learning Effectiveness members provide instructional expertise and focus on supporting and challenging our students in equal measure regardless of where they are on their learning journey.

ONGOING SEARCHES

Laura McCarley, Lower School Spanish, has taken a position as a Spanish I teacher at Middle Tennessee Christian School. It is an opportunity for her to teach high school students after spending the last fourteen years of her career in lower school. The search for our new Lower School Spanish teacher is underway and you can find the job description HERE.
Kathleen Rickards, Middle School Latin, has realized a long time dream of hers to teach at a Catholic School and will be moving to St. Cecilia Academy where she will teach Latin and Spanish. The search for our new Latin teacher is underway and you can find the job description HERE.
Wylie Stemple, Middle School Math, will take on a multi-faceted role as the new Jewish Middle School works to start up. The search for a new middle school math teacher has commenced and you can find the job description HERE.

Over the last three years, and particularly over this last school year, as we worked towards achieving our strategic plan goals related to diversity and inclusivity, Harding has taken intentional steps towards becoming a more inclusive place for people of all races, cultures, religions, genders, family structures, and socio-economic levels. In this learning process we have affirmed that in our journey to become more inclusive, we must actively and purposefully diversify our Harding family. I know our entire learning community is supportive of this direction. We are excited to welcome our new faculty members who represent some of these diverse backgrounds and who will no doubt contribute to the ongoing inclusivity work we have prioritized. While we understand that diversity and inclusivity are forever goals, we are excited to be taking this step.

Sincerely,

Dave

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