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South Campus Staff |
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Executive Director of Island Village Montessori Charter and Early Childhood Programs, was founder and first President of the IVMS Founding Board. Kym has Montessori teacher certification from the American Montessori Society in both early childhood and elementary levels and has taught students from three years old to sixth grade in Montessori environments for over 10 years. She is a graduate of both Pine View School and New College and has been a Sarasota County resident for most of her life, living also in New Orleans, upstate New York, and Michigan. Kym holds a Master's Degree in Charter School Educational Leadership from NOVA University and Florida professional certifications in educational leadership, K-6 elementary education, and integrated middle school curriculum grades 5-9. Kym has returned to NOVA in the Doctorate in Education Program with a concentration in Internet Technology and Distance Education. In addition to school administration duties, she is project director of Montessori Live, an Internet-based Montessori lesson library and teacher training program developed at IVMS as well as Montalign, an Internet-based student tracking software also being developed at IVMS. Both projects are to forward the quality of Montessori programs in the United States and abroad. Kym has two children, Brooks and Jade, and
is married to Don Elder, a local fine arts and antiques dealer. Brooks
was a member of IVMS's first graduating class in June of 2003 as well
as the first graduating class of Island Village Middle School in June
2006. Jade is currently an upper elementary student at IVMS.
Judy comes to us from New England and is licensed as a Paralegal with an Associates in Accounting. She is our Assistant Director and her office is in the Annex Building (the small building you pass as you come into the driveway to the school). She is also a Notary. She loves living in Sarasota on her horse ranch with her husband, Bill, and two teenage children, Tucker and Chelsea. Her son is a world-class Saxophone Jazz musician and her daughter shows horses. Her husband is an Engineer for Porter Construction.
Michelle has her Bachelors in accounting from the University of South Florida and has been a Sarasota County resident since 1990. Michelle and her husband Bob have one child, Nicole, who has been a student at IVMS since 2004.
Jan is the Administrative Assistant/Director of Marketing and After-School Programs. She was also the first President of the IVMS parent's group, PAC. Before semi-retirement, Jan and her husband, Bob, operated a custom home-design construction company. Currently, Jan continues the operation of her energy conservation company. "Having six grandchildren, three of school age and three in preschool is what brought me to Kym's side and to become actively involved with IVMS. I want for my grandchildren as well as for all children the opportunity to receive a quality education and enjoyment of the learning experience IVMS provides." Besides enjoying her time at IVMS, Jan also loves gardening, decorating, her cats and time with her family.
Gail Biroscak joins IVMS as our new registrar. Gail was the main registrar for charter schools at the district level last year. Gail and Nancy worked closely together, and Gail is familiar with all Sarasota County requirements for records and registration. We are expecting a seamless transition and are grateful to Nancy, who took an active role in finding her replacement. We are glad to have such an experienced person in this position and welcome Gail to our staff.
René Arthur moved from Lancaster, PA to Sarasota in 1982. She graduated from MCC with an AA of Science, SPJC with an AS of Veterinary medicine, CDA, and the State of Florida Director Credential. René worked as a certified vet tech and hospital manager of a local vet hospital for 11 years. René is the Director of IVM Preschool. In 2005 Rene became accredited the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
Carol Faber is the curriculum and testing coordinator for the IVMS. In her role as Curriculum Director, Carol provides coaching and training in Montessori methodology and orders materials for the classrooms. Carol is certified by the American Montessori Society in Early Childhood and Elementary (ages 3 - 12). Carol taught at the Upper Elementary level for over 20 years at her own school in Ithaca, New York and for four years at New Gate School here in Sarasota. She has been with Island Village Montessori School since it opened in 2001. Carol is an avid tennis player and is certified as a personal trainer.
Dr. Czaja has been involved in the Montessori movement for over 45 years. He received his masters degree in philosophy and his doctorate in education from Fordham University. Dr. Czaja was on the founding faculty and, eventually, headmaster at the famous Whitby School the American Montessori Center, in Greenwich, Connecticut, from 1960 until 1978. He has been involved in Montessori teacher training for many years, and has worked with Montessori public schools as well as private schools. Dr. Paul is currently acting as Principal of the Middle School while Becky Morris is on Military leave.
Becky has been integral in the development and technical coordination of Island Village’s first charter middle school and serves as the school’s principal and science teacher. She earned her BA in Biology at Westminster College in Fulton, MO where she was also commissioned in the US Army Reserves through its ROTC program. She has her Elementary 6-9 Montessori Certification and holds Elementary Education K-6 and Biology 6-12 temporary certificates. Becky is currently completing her professional certification requirements through NOVA Southeastern University’s graduate courses. Becky has been teaching at Island Village since its inception and has served as the school’s Technology Coordinator and Webmaster. She has three children at IVMS who have grown and thrived in the Montessori environment. Becky is looking forward to yet another wonderful year with Island Village and its community of students, families and friends.
Elaine relocated to Florida in 2002 from Nashville, Tennessee. Her first group of students was a K-2 learning environment. Many of those original students were with Ms. Elaine throughout her four year tenure as a classroom teacher at Island Village Montessori School and are now entering middle school. Elaine earned a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Tennessee and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee. Ms Elaine is certified in both early childhood and elementary education by the American Montessori Society. In 2001, Elaine published articles in two international educational Magazines: Montessori Life and Tomorrow’s Child. She is also a national and regional workshop presenter. Recently, Elaine has joined the faculty of the Montessori Live Educator Training Program. Elaine’s longtime husband and partner Larry Billings is also an enthusiastic supporter of our school and Montessori education. Elaine and Larry have three grown children and four grandchildren.
Sherry Evans, who moved to Venice a year ago from Virginia, has worked for 31 years with children and families. She has a B.S. in Social Work from the State University of New York at Buffalo and an M.Ed. in Counselor Education from the University of Virginia. Sherry developed the elementary counseling program at Grafton Elementary in 1989. She worked there until 2003, serving grades K-5. She has also worked as a middle school counselor, visiting teacher, Head Start social service director, and as a member of child study teams. She emphasizes teaching children skills, such as peacemaking, friendship, confidence building, citizenship, and cooperation.
Brandreth Anne Blow graduated from Lynchburg College with a BA in Marketing. Prior to coming to IVMS Brandreth work with such companies as Nordstrom, Arthur Andersen and Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice. She brings to IVMS 12 years of experience in global training, computers, customer service, and bookkeeping. Originally from Connecticut; Brandreth has been a resident of Florida for the past 10 years. She is married to Jim and has three children Abagail, Matthew and Christopher. Abagail is a student at Pine View, Matthew is in his third year at IVMS and Christopher is just learning to crawl. She loves to bake, being in the outdoors, and spending time with her family. She is active in her church and is a Girl Scout troop leader. Sharing knowledge with others is what thrills her most and she lives for the “aha” moment when an individual learns something new and that joyous smile appears on their face. She is very excited about joining the IVMS team.
Lisa was born and raised in Illinois on a farm. She moved to Florida in 1982 after graduating. Lisa is married to Steve and they have a daughter Danielle. They enjoy, as a family, boating and camping. Lisa joined the IVMS staff in 2002 and works in the administration department. Before that she worked at Verizon for 14 years and attended MCC.
Randy Nixon joins IVMS as head of our maintenance department. Randy has worked for Sarasota County Schools in maintenance, and received certification in both computer networking and registration. He also brings continuity from his district experience. We look forward to Randy’s leadership and knowledge.
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Kym
Elder 
Judy
Antell 
Michelle Vitiello 
Jan
Pearman 
Gail
Biroscak
René
Arthur
Carol
Faber 
Dr. Paul Czaja
Becky
Morris
Elaine Mitchell Palmore
Sherry
Evans
Brandreth
Blow
Lisa
Gifford 
Randy Nixon
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