FSW Faculty

Pine Grove Campus Faculty
18 months - 2nd Grade

Montessori Teacher 
Jane Lawrence
Jane received a BS in Child Development from East Carolina University in 1974. She received Montessori training at Helen Alice Higgins Montessori and through World Montessori International. She became a directress at Helen Alice Higgins Montessori in 1984 and worked with children ages 2-6 from 1984-2002. She received her Kindermusik certification in the fall of 2001.  She joined the FSW faculty in 2002. 

Montessori Assistant Teacher              
Susan Willis
Susan has worked with children for 15 years.  She has been a nanny for 6 families, and worked at the Helen Alice Higgins Montessori School for 5 years in the Stepping Stones Program.  During that time she received her Montessori training certificate and helped with the Kindermusik program.  She joined the FSW faculty in 2002.

Stargazers
Ages 3, 4, & 5 year-olds (Kindergarten)

Montessori Primary Teacher    
Ursula Flugel
Ursula is a native of Germany, where her family resides. Her love for children led her to pursue a degree in Early Childhood Education and Music in her home country, where she taught model school for 12 years.  In 1989 she came to this country with her husband and taught for 4 years at a Montessori School in Vermont. From 1993 until March 2002 Ursula taught at the Helen Alice Higgins Montessori School and received her Montessori training. She is also certified as a Kindermusik instructor.  Ursula joined the Friends School of Wilmington in 2002.

Montessori Primary Assistant Teacher  
Cheryl Blackwelder
Cheryl joined FSW in 2008.

Montessori Primary Teacher                            
Elise Zalesky
Elise joined FSW in 2006 and brought 11 years of experience teaching at HAH Montessori School and Wilmington Montessori School.  She earned a BA in English from Chapel Hill in 1978 and received her elementary certification from the University of Maine in Orono in 1989.

Montessori Primary Assistant   
Becky O’Toole
Becky joined the FSW staff in 2006 after spending 10 years as a stay-at-home mom to FSW students Emily and Savannah Cornwell. Becky holds a BS in Chemistry from Centre College and is excited about joining FSW permanently after substituting full time in Ursula’s class at the end of 2005.

Montessori Primary Teacher                
Beth Garrett
Beth came to FSW in 2007 with a combined 9 years of teaching experience from Helen Alice Higgins Montessori School and Virginia Shuman Young Elementary School in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Beth earned her BS in Science from NC State University and in addition to her work as a teacher has also worked as a nature instructor at both Carolina Ocean Studies and the City of Raleigh Parks and Recreation.

Montessori Primary Assistant   
Renee Zukerman         
Renee joined FSW in 2008.

1st/2nd Grade Teachers

1st/2nd Grade Teacher                                             Erin Johnson
Erin received her BA in Elementary Education and Psychology from the State University of New York at New Paltz, NY, and her MS in Reading from Adelphi University in Garden City, NY.  She taught preschool for one year in New York and Kindergarten for two years in Maryland.  Erin joined the FSW faculty in 2003.

1st/2nd Grade Teacher                                             Karen Linehan
Karen received a BA in Zoology from UNC-Chapel Hill and pursued additional graduate studies in Biology at UNC-Wilmington.  From 1993-2003 she worked for the NC Museum of Natural Sciences as an outreach educator in both public and independent schools with a special focus on grades K-5.  Prior to joining the FSW faculty, she worked as a science educator at the Wilmington Children's Museum.  Karen is a NC Certified Environmental Educator who began teaching at FSW in 2003.

1st/2nd Grade Teacher
Susan Turner
Susan joined FSW in 2007.  She holds a BA in Biology from UNCW, and received her NC Secondary Science Teacher Certification in 1994.  She comes to us with several years of experience working with children in both Colorado and North Carolina and has taught dance and yoga for children for the past several years.

Peiffer Campus Faculty
3rd-8th Grades

3rd/4th Grade Teacher                                    
Tim McAuliffe
Tim received a BA in Geography from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in May 2007. Tim is a avid surfer who has held prestigious titles such as East Coast surfing Champion. He was also surf camp director for the Wrightsville Beach Surf Camp in 2007. Tim has a long connection with the Friends school. Both of his sister-in-laws graduated from the Friends school in 2001. He learned about the Friends School through fascinating stories told by them. Tim began teaching at the Friends School in 2008.

3rd/4th Grade Teacher                                    
Sheri Welsh
Sheri received a BFA in Art Education from East Carolina University.  She has taught art at the Boys and Girls Club of Knoxville, Tennessee, and in after school art programs in Carteret County.  As a faculty member she also helped establish an independent school in Beaufort, North Carolina during its first years of operation. After the birth of her daughter, Ellie, in 1996, she ran a preschool out of her home.  In 2000, she taught art in a K-8 school in Carteret County.  She has been at the Friends School of Wilmington since 2002.

5th /6th Grade Teacher                                            Jana Jones
Jana joined FSW in 2008.

5th/6th Grade Teacher                         
Daniel Kay
Daniel joined FSW in 2007 with 7 years of experience teaching grades 4-8 in both the United Kingdom and New Zealand. He has a BA in Business from Massey University in New Zealand and a postgraduate diploma in teaching from Wellington College of Education. Daniel’s extensive experience teaching in multicultural environments along with an enthusiasm for a variety of extracurricular activities such as chess, drama, soccer and tennis make him a wonderful addition to FSW’s team.

7th /8th Grade Teacher                                    
Cameron Francisco
Cameron earned a BA in History (geography minor) and an MS in Education from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville.  He conducted his year of student teaching at Farragut High in Knoxville, TN, and began teaching Social Studies at FSW in 2003.

7th /8th Grade Teacher                                    
Jessica Jackson
Jessica joined FSW in 2006 with 5 years of teaching experience and certifications at both the elementary and middle school levels.  She received a BA in Business Administration and Economics from Marshall University in Huntington, WV and a MAT in teaching from Johns Hopkins University in Rockville, MD.  Her lively energy makes her a wonderful addition to our Middle School team!

7th/8th Grade Teacher                                     
Bruce Kenney
Bruce received his doctoral degree in Botany from Duke University in 1985 after researching seaweed physiological ecology at Duke Marine Lab for 5 years.  He received a MS in Botany from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee in 1977 and a B.S. in Biology from Bates College in Lewiston, Maine in 1974.  He taught marine biology, oceanography and environmental science courses while conducting research on marine algae and phytoplankton ecology for 15 years at the Duke Marine Lab.  He has served as a research consultant to companies involved in aquaculture and marine biotechnology, and has strengthened his interest in sustainability and appropriate-scale technology.  After 4 years teaching Science in the public schools, Bruce began teaching Science at FSW in 2004.

 Specialist Teachers 

Art Teacher                                                     
Sharon Ely
Sharon earned her BA in Creative Arts from Appalachian State, and her Master of Fine Arts from UNC Greensboro.  Sharon has a well-established reputation for excellence in the Wilmington community, both as an artist and as an educator for 7 years at Parent’s Community Preschool.  Sharon began teaching at FSW in 2004.

Music Teacher                                                 
Sarah Howard
Sarah has a BA in Music Performance from West Connecticut State University and is a certified Kindermusik teacher! She is also an accomplished flutist who has spent the last three years teaching music at both the high school and preschool levels. Sarah joined FSW in 2006.

Physical Education Teacher                              
Tracy Tertzagian
Tracy received her Bachelor of Science in Health, Physical Education and Recreation from High Point University in 1994.  In addition to one year’s experience as a preschool teacher, she has eight years of experience as a PE teacher. She has coached youth volleyball, soccer, golf and basketball teams (and led one team to their league’s championship!)   Tracy began teaching at FSW in 2004. 

Spanish Teacher                                                       Laurel Johnson
Laurel is a graduate of Earlham College, a small Quaker liberal arts college in Indiana. She has a B.A. in Anthropology and Sociology and has spent several years studying Spanish at the college level as well as through immersion experiences in both southern Mexico and the US-Mexico Border. She has also worked for five years as a trip leader with Teen Adventure, the Baltimore Yearly Meeting Camping Program. Laurel joined the FSW community in the fall of 2007.