Two Rivers Staff

	June Gilch, Director. June comes to Two Rivers from Massachusetts where she served as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction for the Attleboro Public Schools. June has many years experience teaching students in elementary, middle, and high school as well as Special Education and Reading. She also served as Curriculum Coordinator on Nantucket Island. Though she is a Massachusetts native, June has lived and worked in several states and in Frankfurt Germany. As a teacher, June was awarded for "Excellence in Teaching" by the John F Kennedy Library and for Sustained Superior Performance by the Department of Defense Dependent Schools. June has been a presenter for national conferences as well as state and local events. June is happy to be in Boone as her children and their families are nearby. Her favorite new quote is "I wasn't born in the mountains, but I got here as soon as I could"! Contact June at jgilch@trcsboone.org.
	Beth Vossen is the energetic voice for Two Rivers Community School (TRCS). Although she is new at being an administrative assistant, she has run a successful business these last eight years with her husband, Glenn Randle, as self-employed glass artists in the community. Beth has come full circle having graduated in 1987 with a degree in Sociology and a minor in Child Family Development. She and Glenn have lived out in the Bethel community for nine years where they built their own house and studio and started a family. She is the proud mother of Savanna Vossen Randle a fifth grader at TRCS.
	Vicki Meléndez Krueger (Founding Teacher) (pronounced Creeger) . Vicki teaches Kindergarten and provides early morning care. She acquired her B.A. in Elementary Education from Columbia College in South Carolina and hopes to pursue a Masters at Appalachian State University in Educational Technology. She has co-taught 1st and 2nd grade in a multi-age 1st - 5th grade classroom, in the 2 years through kindergarten multi-age classroom at Harmony School in Columbia, South Carolina and at Pierce Terrace School at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. She taught Spanish to all students ages two through fifth grade. She also served as a dedicated aide to special needs students in kindergarten through fourth grade. She and her husband Steve reside in West Jefferson with their dogs Sgt. Pepper, Roxy and Cap'n Morgan. They have four grown daughters. Contact Vicki at: vicki@trcsboone.org
	Halle Pilkington team teaches the multiage first and second grade class. She is a graduate of Appalachian State University. She has degrees in Hospitality Management and Middle School Education- math and social studies. She obtained her master's degree in elementary education with a focus on reading and writing in 2006. Halle has resided in Boone and Blowing Rock since 1991. She spent 10 years managing a tourism based horse stables in Blowing Rock before returning to school for education. She has worked in Watauga county teaching in middle school and AIG for 3-5th grades. She enjoys spending her free time being a wife and Mom to four beautiful children, a dog, two cats, and a hamster!!
	Laura Stone is the Kindergarden Assistant Teacher. This is Laura's second year as an assistant teacher at Two Rivers. She began her teaching career later in life having completed her Elementary Education licensure in grades K-6 in 2007 from Appalachian State University. She also has a BA degree in Economics from Wake Forest University and a MFA in Design from Savannah College of Art and Design. Laura worked in Charlotte, NC in the design field for ten years before deciding to stay home to raise her two children. She moved with her family to Boone four years ago from Mooresville, NC. Laura enjoys spending as much time as possible with her family as well as reading and swimming.
	April Ervin is our new teacher for the multi-age first/second grade class. April graduated from Appalachian State University with a B.S. Elementary Education, April has worked in many interim positions throughout Watuaga County. She also worked in the beautiful state of Washington teaching an energetic multi-age preschool class. Although April loved the mountains in Washington, her heart was truly in Boone and moved back to North Carolina in the fall of 2008. Miss April loves spending time with family, being outside, climbing, running, taking pictures, going on adventures, and traveling. Contact April at aprile@trcsboone.org.
	Mimi Archer supports Ms. April in the 1&2 multi-age class. She studied Elementary Education while attending North Adams State College in Massachusetts. Last year, she was a substitute in the K-3 classrooms, as well as volunteering in the Math U See and Sonday system programs. She is looking forward to focusing her energy on implementing the programs of Expeditionary Learning, and helping TRCS continue it’s growth in the community. Mimi and her husband Pete moved to the High Country from Massachusetts in 1997. Their two children Zachary and Zoa attend TRCS.
	April Eve Hill (Founding Teacher) teaches 3rd grade at Two Rivers . She has a Teacher's Certification in Elementary Education from Appalachian State University (ASU) with Summa Cum Laude status in Dec. 2004. She student taught 1st/2nd grade at Banner Elk Elementary and 3rd grade in Guadalajara, Mexico at a bilingual American School. April has a M.F.A. from Syracuse University and taught art to children for three years. She also directed five university illustration schools in Hawaii. While there, she completed her TESOL certification and taught college ESL classes. April and her husband moved to NC where she taught K-3rd grade for 2 1/2 years at a private school. While at ASU, she worked as the Arts and Technology Coordinator with the Fifth Dimension, an after school program, at area public schools using an Apple laptop, digital camera and camcorder. She has published her illustrations in a book about clogging called "Step In Time".
	Natalie Oransky is the 4th Grade Teacher. She comes to TRCS from Appalachian State University where she taught adjunct in the Psychology Department for the past thirteen years. After many hours volunteering in classrooms and leading science programs for children, Natalie decided to transition from teaching college students to working with children. Natalie’s interests in applying psychological theories to education led her to earn a doctorate in Cognitive Psychology with a minor in Developmental Psychology from the University of South Carolina. She has also taught a range of classes in psychology that are related to education.
	Rachel Wood (Founding Teacher) teaches middle school (grades 6-8) language arts and social studies. Originally she is from outside of Washington D.C., but she grew up mostly in Charlotte. She graduated from Appalachian State in 2004 with a degree in Middle Grades Education. Currently she is working on a Master's degree in Professional School Counseling. She loves being outside, writing for fun, reading biographies, and playing with her 3 dogs. Her goals in life are to see a whale, have a goat farm, to some day travel to each of the seven continents (South America first and Antarctica last!).
	Leeann Cronk (Founding Teacher) teaches middle school (grades 6-8) math and science at Two Rivers. She graduated from ASU in 1987 with a degree in High School Science Education. Within a year she had added Middle School Math and Middle School Science to her certification. Leeann has taught in several public schools, a private school, and in the adult education programs offered at a community college and a prison. She also worked for three years at Duke University in the undergraduate chemistry labs. Leeann is married to Scott who is a real estate agent with Premiere Properties GMAC Real Estate. They live in West Jefferson with their two children.
	Sallie Arnold came to Two Rivers from Charleston, SC to be the EC Director in 2008. She taught EC self-contained, resource and inclusion classes in inner city high schools, a residential hospital, and specially designed schools for behavior issues. She attended Glassboro State for a bachelor’s in Special Education, a master’s program at USC in Rehabilitation Counseling and her doctoral program was at FSU in Marriage and Family Therapy. She was also in private practice as a LMFT for 5 years and is a clinical member of AAMFT. She closed her practice when her son was diagnosed with autism, so she could have the same hours as he. She is married and has 4 children, 2 cats, 2 frogs, 1 betta, 1 bunny and 4 dogs. She is thrilled to be at TRCS. She can be reached at kkbexan@mac.com
	Kelly Snider is Two Rivers' Art Teacher. She graduated from East Tennessee State University in 2006 with a degree in fine art. She specialized in painting, but learned much about drawing, printmaking, ceramics, fibers, sculpture, and art history. This is her 4th year at TRCS. Some of her favorite projects here at Two Rivers have been the school mural (completed in 2008) and the annual student art shows at The Jones House in Boone. She was born and raised in the Bethel community of Western Watauga County. Kelly plays fiddle in a local old time band, The Sheets Family Band. She and her husband Ian live in Todd, where they grow vegetables and farm with the help of their team of Suffolk Punch draft horses, Tray and Frank.
	After earning his B.A. in Anthropology with a minor in Theatre from Appalachian State University, Austin Pack (Founding Teacher), "followed his dreams". His cross-country sojourn led him to Los Angeles, California where he failed to be inspired by life as a film actor. Upon his return to the real world, Mr. Pack found solace working with youth at SUWS of the Carolinas (a wilderness therapy program), CNC/ACCESS (as a one-on-one worker), Camp Broadstone, and most recently at Buffalo Cove Outdoor Education Center. Austin now enjoys celebrity status as a fitness coach for TRCS and assistant teacher. (It is rumored, however, that Mr. Pack's brilliant three-second portrayal of a stagehand in the critically lauded film, "Rock Star", left Hollywood yearning for Austin's return to the silver screen.
	Cyndi Rapenske (Founding Teacher) Cyndi teaches Brain Gym to our students at all age levels. Brain Gym is a system including physical movements which reduce stress and activates the various brain hemispheres for improved focus, organization, and communication. She teaches the students how to use Brain Gym in order to more easily actualize their goals to do their best. She is licensed by the Educational Kinesiology Foundation to teach Brain Gym and brings many years experience as an instructor in the field of experiential education. Cyndi 's personal interests include building, gardening, beading, primitive skills and quiet time outdoors.
	Joy Schlagal is a Reading Specialist with a M.Ed. (Summa Cum Laude) and a B.A. (Anthropology) from the University of Virginia. She is certified K-12. In addition, she is a SEMAA instructor, a nation wide NASA program that encourages underserved children to pursue careers in the sciences. She is also certified to teach Permaculture Design. Joy was adjunct faculty at ASU for six years and taught for four years in a residential treatment center. For three years before joining the staff at TRCS she was a Title I teacher. Joy is a co-author of Houghton Mifflin’s "English" and has sold two children’s stories. In addition to providing diagnosis and remediation in reading, Joy is the testing coordinator for End of Grade tests and serves as mentor for new teachers. She lives on Sweetwater Farm, an organic farm and landscape business.
	Joanna Betts is Two Rivers' Exceptional Children Teacher. Joanna graduated from Appalachian State University in 2005 with a B.S. in special education and a minor in psychology. She worked at Grandfather Home for Children as a cottage worker and Grandfather Academy as the behavioral therapist before she joined Two Rivers in 2007. Ms. Jo as she is referred to by the students is from the Charlotte area originally, she came up to go to school and has never looked back. Ms. Jo enjoys being with friends, family and her two very energetic dogs.
	Tracy Healy teaches middle school (grades 6-8) science, technology, and Language Arts/Reading. Tracy came from Miami-Dade County where she taught at an International Bachelaurate school for 11 years. Her dream of living and working in the high country has a been fulfilled with her position teaching at Two Rivers. For Tracy, teaching is all about opening windows of opportunity with each child, so that he/she can reach their highest potential. She believes that success is dependent upon attitude as much as aptitude. Family and friends are major contributors to her growth as a mother and friend. Her personal interests include hiking, camping, reading, and spending time with her loved ones. She lives in the Bethel community, surrounded with everything that makes her tingle.
Additional Support Staff and Contractors: Sandi Henry: 1st and 2nd grade Teacher Assistant Barbara Benson: ELS School Designer Kathy Triplett: Speech Therapist Renee Brown: Occupational Therapy (COTA) Gabriel Lopez After Care Director