Meet The Brighten Staff

CURRICULUM COORDINATOR:

Lisa McDonald - lmcdonald@brightenacademy.com 
Lisa McDonald has worked as an educator for the Douglas County Gifted Program at Mirror Lake Elementary School before coming to Brighten. She has 9 years of educational experience, including both regular and gifted education. She has experience with opening two new elementary schools in Douglas County. Mrs. MacDonald earned her Bachelor's of Arts Degree in Program Service Learning and her Gifted Education Add-on certification from Mercer University. She serves as the Brighten Academy Founding Board Vice President. She is a loving wife to Robert, an attorney, and mother to three lovely girls, Halee and twins, Lauren and Abigail.

Angi Andrews / Office Manager: - aandrews@brightenacademy.com
Ms. Andrews comes to Brighten with 16+ years of administrative experience. She spent 15 years working for All-State Insurance Company and made the decision to find a job closer to home in order to have more time for her family. Angi most recently worked as the Ministry Assistant in Education/ Administration at First Baptist Villa Rica. She has been married to her husband, Joey, and their two beautiful children, Jake and Abbi. Angi enjoys being team mom to Jake's baseball team, singing in the adult choir, working with Women's Ministries, teaching children's choir and Sunday School. She is excited to be a part of Brighten Academy and the impact it will have on the future of our children.

KINDERGARTEN TEAM:

Suzanne Helms - shelms@brightenacademy.com
Suzanne Helms is a lifelong resident of Douglasville. She is very excited to be involved in advancing education in her hometown. She graduated from the University of West Georgia with a Bachelors Degree in Early Childhood Education and is currently working on her Master's Degree in Library Media. Mrs. Helms taught second grade at LaBelle Elementary in Cobb County where she was nominated by the county for the Sallie Mae First Class Teacher award. Mrs. Helms left LaBelle in 2001 to stay home with her son, Duncan. She is the loving wife of Jeff, who is a Implementation Support Specialist for Veirnt Systems Inc..

Andrea Davies - adavies@brightenacademy.com

Buffi Triplett, Paraprofessional Kindergarten, - btriplett@brightenacademy.com
Buffi Triplett has been on the Brighten Staff since our last school year. She started as an after school teacher and substitute teacher, and was then hired as a part time paraprofessional in our kindergarten room. Buffi is the proud mom of two daughters, Raven and Carrington, and this school year is the full time paraprofessional in Mrs. Helms’ kindergarten room.

1ST GRADE TEAM:

Tori Andrade - tandrade@brightenacademy.com
Tori Andrade came to us from Sweetwater Elementary School in Douglas County where she taught first grade. She had been at Sweetwater since it's opening in 1997. Previous to that, she taught a ½ multiage class and second grade also. Tori received her bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education from Auburn University and her master's degree from Piedmont College in Demorest, Georgia. Tori and her husband, Jay, live in Douglasville with their two children Joshua and Macy Elizabeth.

Rebecca Bonfield - rbonfield@brightenacademy.com
Rebecca Bonfield is an elementary school teacher, who has taught kindergarten for one year and first Grade for two years. Mrs. Bonfield earned her Bachelor's in Education from The University of North Alabama. Her certification is in Elementary Education grades Kindergarten through Sixth. Mrs. Bonfield will graduate in July from The University of West Georgia with a Master's Degree in Reading Instruction grades Kindergarten through Twelfth. She is married to Gabe Bonfield who is an Investment Banker with SunTrust Bank.

2ND GRADE TEAM:

Kristin Anderson - kanderson@brightenacademy.com
Kristin Anderson will begin her third year of teaching second grade at Brighten Academy. Kristin earned her teaching certification from the University of West Georgia. She is currently working toward earning her gifted certification. She is a long time resident of Douglasville and served in the PTA presidency at Bright Star Elementary. She is married to Joel who is a Police Sergeant. They have three children—Brendan, a talented baseball player, Cassidy, a budding cheerleader, and Owen, who can’t wait to go to Brighten. In her “spare” time Kristin enjoys scrapbooking and spending time with her family. She is extremely happy to be a teacher at Brighten Academy.

R. Garner - rgarner@brightenacademy.com

3RD GRADE TEAM:

Leigh DeNucci - ldenucci@brightenacademy.com
Leigh DeNucci has been a teacher in the Douglas County School System for more then 16 years. She taught at Eastside, Mt. Carmel, Sweetwater, Bill Arp, and Chapel Hill Elementary Schools. She has a Bachelor's Degree from Auburn University and a Master's Degree from Piedmont College, both in Early Childhood Education. Mrs. DeNucci has completed Teacher Support Specialist training and is currently working toward gifted certification. She lives with her husband, Daniel, and their children Mary Cate, Madison, Meredith, and Nicholas.

Tonya Roskaft - troskaft@brightenacademy.com
Tonya Roskaft begins her 3rd year at Brighten. She has taught pre-k, first, second, third and fourth grades in Douglas County. Throughout her 6 years teaching, Mrs.Roskaft has been language arts chair, Georgia Performance Standards(GPS) facilitator, a mentor teacher, staff development liaison, on the leadership team and contributed to the development of the state wide fifth grade writing assessment. While teaching Mrs. Roskaft has continued her education receiving a master's degree in early childhood education and a specialist degree in educational leadership. Currently Mrs. Roskaft is writing her dissertation in order to complete her doctorate in educational leadership. Mrs. Roskaft lives in Douglasville with her husband, Kristian, Kristoffer and Jenna (their black lab). In her spare time she enjoys reading, playing tennis and traveling.

4TH GRADE TEAM:

Jennifer Hamlin - jhamlin@brightenacademy.com
As a teacher's kid, Jennifer Hamlin grew up loving the sights, sounds and experiences of school. Early in life she ihcaughtle an appreciation for books, an excitement for ideas, and the joy of learning from her educator parents. She still loves to read for pleasure and self-growth. She writes fiction as a hobby and has had a few short stories published in small press magazines. She loves the outdoors, whether horseback riding, snow skiing, taking long walks in the woods, swimming or just sitting by the pool. She enjoys travel, especially with her family. Mrs. Hamlin and her husband, Pete, have been married for over 20 years. They share their lives with three terrific kids. Ruthie is a gymnast, cheerleader, and avid reader. Taylor is a gifted athlete in basketball and baseball.  They are very proud that their daughter, Kyla,  But the baby of their family really runs the house, their Jack Russell Terrier, Cotton. Mrs. Hamlin is so excited to be a part of the Brighten Academy family.

Megan Crawford - mcrawford@brightenacademy.com
Megan Crawford has 6 years experience in the area of Special Education. She graduated with a degree in Psychology from Kennesaw State and later with a Masters Degree in Education from University of Phoenix. She is currently taking classes to become certified in the Montessori system of education through the graduate school at Kennesaw State. She hopes to use her new knowledge in working with young children in the near future. Megan lives in Villa Rica with her husband of 8 years (Ronny) and their children, Andrew and Lauren.

5TH GRADE TEAM:

Amy Caro - acaro@brightenacademy.com
Amy Caro began her teaching career at Brigham Young University where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education. She worked in Provo, Utah as a Paraprofessional for four years and as After School Director for an elementary school. She taught 1st grade for three years at Timpanogos Elementary. As a first grade educator, she was recognized as the Golden Apple Winner for educational distinction. Mrs. Caro has served as co-chair support, team member for school restructuring, and as First Grade Director. Her most recent position has been teaching 5th grade at Mirror Lake Elementary School. Mrs. Caro is wife to Carlos, and loving mother to three wonderful children, Spencer, Rachael, and Robby.

Kim Engleson - kengelson@brightenacademy.com
This is Kim Engleson's second year at Brighten. Kim came to us from Mirror Lake Elementary where she was a fifth grade teacher instructing math and science. This was her second year at Mirror Lake. Prior to that, Mrs. Engleson taught sixth grade math and science in Richardson, Texas for 13 years. While teaching in Texas, Mrs. Engleson was honored with elementary teacher of the year for her district. She has also taught second grade in Austin, Texas and fifth grade in Sumter, South Carolina. Mrs. Engleson received an honor's degree in education from the University of Southern Colorado. Mrs. Engleson has been married to Larry Engleson, a Delta pilot, for 31 fabulous years. She is a proud mom to 27 year old Joel, a PhD candadate at the University of South Florida, and to 23 year old Clint, a Texas A&M University graduate.

MIDDLE SCHOOL TEAM:

Luci Douglas - ldouglas@brightenacademy.com
Luci Douglas graduated with honors from Westminster College in Salt Lake City, Utah. There she earned her B.A. in English and Political Science. After acquiring this degree she attended Weber State University where she obtained her Secondary Education Teaching Certificate. Luci began her teaching career while still in college working as a math tutor for the Granite School District Math Engineering Science Achievement program, and as an English teacher for the Asian Association of Utah. After earning her teaching certificate she taught English at Granite High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. While teaching at Granite she served on a district literary selection committee, and served as the Honors Club advisor. Luci is married with four wonderful children.

Shawne Grogan - sgrogan@brightenacademy.com
Shawne Grogan has 10 years of teaching experience in the Douglas County School System. She spent 8 years at Fairplay Middle School,one at Chestnut Log Middle School and one at Holly Springs Elementary School. She has taught in both the regular classroom environment and the gifted program. Shawne has served as the department head for the Social Studies department. She was also the team leader for the text book selection committee. Shawne earned her Bachelor's degree in Education from at the University of West Georgia. She has her Gifted Add-on certification. She has been married for 11 years to her husband Jeff, an IT professional. She has spent the last year being a full time mother to her daughter, Lily.

Johanna Williams- - jwilliams@brightenacademy.com
Johanna Williams is very excited to be a part of Brighten again this year. She and her family moved to Villa Rica seven years ago from Texas! Johanna graduated from the University of Texas -Arlington with a BBA in Marketing. While attending college, Johanna worked full time as a Director and Dance Instructor at the studio she grew up dancing in. After graduating, she worked in a recruiting firm and later went on to be a Division Recruiter for a Fortune 500 company. Over the past seven years, Johanna has served as a volunteer in many different organizations while being a stay at home Mom. Johanna also served as a Mentor in the Douglas County Mentor program. Recently, as a substitute in Douglas County and at Brighten she has decided to return to school. She is currently working on receiving her certification and working towards a Masters degree in Education. Mrs. Williams has been married for the past 15 years to her husband, Wayne, a Branch Manager for M & M Merchandisers. They have two amazing children, Dalton, a very talented baseball player and Ashton, an award winning “2007 National Grand Champion” dancer. In her spare time, Johanna volunteers as a Brownie troop leader, backstage dance mom, team mom, room mom, and loves to scrapbook!!!

Jim Reaves - jreaves@brightenacademy.com
Born and raised in Milltown, Alabama. Spent five years as a supervisor at Southwire Company in Carrollton, Ga. Spent the next three as a sub-contractor for Midas Corporation traveling and setting up new and existing business around the country. At the Age of 29 decided that I wanted to fulfill my dream and passion of teaching. I started attending The University of West Georgia in the fall of 2004. I became an apprentice coach for Bremen High School in 2005 and coached Defensive Ends and Punters during college. I Graduated from The University of West Georgia in May 2008 and I am trained in Middle Grade Education with a specialty in Language Arts and Social Studies. I have two children, EmmaLee who is 7 and Noah who is 5. I will be starting the sports program at Brighten. I am getting married to Lora in June 2009 and my residence is in Douglas County.

Melissa Thomas - mthomas@brightenacademy.com
Melissa Thomas has ten years teaching experience. She earned a Bachelors degree in Middle Grades Science Education from The University Of Georgia and a Master's degree from Nova Southeastern University in Science Education. Her most recent position has been teaching gifted science at Smokey Road Middle School in Coweta County. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her family. and riding her bike.

LaTrease Turlington - lturlington@brightenacademy.com
LaTrease Turlington received her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Florida A&M University in 1996. After several years as a stay at-home mom she found herself at Morris Brown College in Atlanta, GA where she worked as an institutional researcher for four years. Life then offered Mrs. Turlington the opportunity to teach at a small private school in Atlanta where she taught second grade math and science as well as high school algebra while completing her Master of Science degree in Educational Research at Georgia State University. As a master’s student at Georgia State University, she investigated the academic resilience of African-American women in science, math, engineering, and technology (college) programs. Upon completion of her studies she was afforded the opportunity to join Brighten Academy as a middle school math teacher in 2008, where she continues to enjoy creating a productive, yet fun learning environment with her students. Some of her interests include cooking, interior design, reading, brainteasers, music, dance, and drama. She is also an active “soccer mom” and is the registrar for her son’s soccer club.

PARAPROFESSIONAL TEAM:

Sandi Gore, PE - sgore@brightenacademy.com
Sandi has lived in Douglas County all of her life. After graduating from Lithia Springs High School (1986), she continued her education at West Georgia College & Kennesaw State College. After two years, she made the decision to become a Certified Travel Consultant at Advanced Career Training. Most of her life has been dedicated to working for her sister at Douglas County Dance & Gymnastics Academy. She started at the age of 14 assisting in class and over the years moved up to becoming Assistant Director of the studio. After 25 years she decided to leave the studio so she could be home at night with her family. Chase (son, age 15) is in his second year in the IB Program at Douglas County High School. Chasidy (daughter, age 10) is a fifth grader here at Brighten. She has been married to James for 18 years. She considers it a privilege to have been chosen to work with the kindergarten class.



Kimberly Richison, School and Special Ed Paraprofessional - krichison@brightenacademy.com
This is Kimberly's first year at Brighten. She is very excited to be a part of the team. She has taught pre-K for 4 years and for the past 7 years has taught at a Christian School. She is married to Tad to whom she has been married to for 20 years. She has one daughter, Amber, who is 16. She is looking forward to a wonderful year!

GIFTED TEAM:

Mandie Hardeman - mhardeman@brightenacademy.com
Mandie Hardeman begins her tenth year teaching and her second at Brighten Academy this year. She has taught in both the regular and gifted classrooms. Mrs. Hardeman earned a Bachelor's degree in Middle Grades Education from University of West Georgia, a Master's degree in Early Childhood Education from Piedmont College, and added gifted education to her certification three years ago. She and her husband, Ronnie, have two children, Olivia and Avery.

Dana Pace - dpace@brightenacademy.com
Dana Pace received an AA in sociology from Florida Technological University and a BA in education from the University of Florida. Her first teaching job was at the DeKalb Training Center working with severely emotionally disturbed and/or mentally handicapped children and adults. She came to work in Douglas County as a behavior disorders teacher and then switched fields and began teaching gifted resource classes. Mrs. Pace taught in several different elementary and middle schools. Mrs. Pace took a sabbatical from teaching to move to Germany with her husband and to raise her three children. She then went back to teaching Program Challenge, and has worked in that capacity for the past 12 years. She is currently teaching at Arbor Station Elementary. Mrs. Pace has been involved in many community activities, including Friends of the Douglas County Library, Junior League, and the Douglas County Literacy Society. She has also volunteered as a mentor and in other capacities in the public school system. She serves as the Brighten Academy Founding Board Treasurer. Mrs. Pace lives in Douglasville with her husband, Mike. They have three wonderful children: Adam, Andrew, and Becca.


SPECIAL EDUCATION TEACHER:


Jocelyn Wood - jwood@brightenacademy.com

EIP (early intervention program)Teachers:

Antoinette Andrey - aandrey@brightenacademy.com
Mrs. Andrey is the proud mother of two wonderful 6th graders (Malik and Nicolette) and the wife of Jonathan Andrey (Brighten's IT Admin.). She earned a Bachelors Degree in Computer Science from DeVry Institute of technology and is presently pursuing a Masters Degree in Education. Mrs. Andrey has spent the last five years working in the Douglas County School System as both a Paraprofessional and Long Term Substitute Teacher. Prior to that, Mrs. Andrey worked as a Paraprofessional in the Fulton County School System.

MEDIA SPECIALIST:

Connie Arnold - carnold@brightenacademy.com
Mrs. Arnold will begin her second year as the media specialist for Brighten Academy. She has taught kindergarten and first grade at Beulah Elementary and Mirror Lake Elementary. Mrs. Arnold received her Bachelor's Degree in Early Childhood Education from West Georgia College. She earned her Master's Degree from Piedmont College and her Specialist's Degree from Lincoln Memorial University. She has served on various school committees including the Relay for Life team and the leadership team. This summer Mrs. Arnold has spent many hours preparing the media center for students with the help of many parent volunteers. She is married to Brian, who is currently a board member and a member of the technology committee. She has three wonderful sons: Jacob, Ross and Joey.  She enjoys outdoor activities such as biking and walking with her family, and of course, READING!


SPECIALS TEAM:

Christy House, dance/movement, art, drama - chouse@brightenacademy.com
Mrs. House brings her outgoing personality and or- ganizational skills to her new position at Brighten. Mrs. House obtained her B.A. degree in Fashion Merchandising from Louisiana Tech University. She was employed in Retail Management and Customer Service in the temporary help industry. She was the on-site coordinator for Edwards Baking Co. for Ranstad Staffing for 6 years. She later coordinated private business charters for Hill Aircraft for 5 years. Christy is married to Bob House, a lifelong resident of Douglasville. They are parents of Garrison and Ashley. They have been active members of First Baptist Church of Douglasville for 13 years where she served as the Children's Coordinator of the Children's Ministry for 4 1/2 years. She has served in a variety of roles in this position including Vacation Bible School, director of holiday programs, summer program director, and Sunday School Teacher. Mrs. House currently participates on the Fundraising Committee for Brighten.