Golden Hills School Teachers

Golden Hills School Teaching Staff

	Lead Junior Kindergarten Teacher- Sandy Acosta sandy_acosta@ghs.edu Prior to teaching for Golden Hills School, Mrs. Acosta taught for nine years in a first grade classroom in the Cupertino school District. Then she went on to teach a kindergarten class for two years at a small private school in the Bay Area. Locally, Mrs. Acosta has run a successful tutoring business for 12 years while concurrently serving as a Kindergarten teacher for Phoenix schools.
	Junior Kindergarten Teacher - Tammy Perry tammy_perry@ghs.edu Prior to teaching at GHS Mrs. Perry spent 17 years as both a Preschool Teacher and Center Director before returning to teaching where she taught Kindergarten for four years. Mrs. Perry studied Early Childhood Education at American River College, Consumnes River College and Duke University.
	Kindergarten - Natalie Singer Natalie_Singer@ghs.edu Ms. Natalie Singer joins the Golden Hills faculty to teach Kindergarten this year. She is a graduate of San Francisco State University where she obtained a B.A. and a teaching credential. Her teaching experiences include many years of service in the private and public schools, mostly at the primary level. In addition to teaching she loves spending time with her two children who are both away at college, visiting with family and friends and gardening.
	First Grade - Viola Gragg vi_gragg@ghs.edu Mrs. Gragg has been our first grade teacher at Golden Hills School since 2001.She graduated from New Mexico State University with a Masters Degree in Teaching. She also holds a teaching credential.
	Second Grade - Bev Werling bev_werling@ghs.edu Mrs. Werling began teaching second grade at Golden Hills School in 2004. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. She was awarded a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from California State University, Sacramento. She has prior teaching experience in second and fifth grades.
	Third Grade - Donna Rogers donna_rogers@ghs.edu Mrs. Rogers began teaching third grade at Golden Hills School in 2003. She received her Bachelor of Arts Degree from San Jose State University. She was awarded a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential from Chapman University in Concord, CA. She has prior teaching experience in first, third and fifth grades.
	Fourth Grade - Christine King christine_king@ghs.edu Ms. King graduated from San Francisco State University with a B.S. in Business Administration (Accounting). She received her teaching credential at The College of Notre Dame in Belmont, CA. She has prior teaching experience in both first and third grades. Ms. King is currently working on her Reading Specialist Credential.
	Fifth Grade - Lisa Parvin lisa_parvin@ghs.edu Mrs. Parvin has been a teacher at Golden Hills School since 1996 for grades kindergarten, first, fourth and fifth. She graduated from the University of Massachusetts with Bachelor of Science in Therapeutic Recreation. She also holds a teaching credential, as well as a reading specialist authorization.
	Middle School, Physical Education/Athletic Director - Geoff Kauppinen geoff_kauppinen@ghs.edu Mr. Kauppinen has taught at Golden Hills School since 2000. He graduated from U.C. Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Science in Law and Society. He also holds a teaching credential and an athletic coaching certificate.
	Computers/Middle School English/Math - Audrey Brandt audrey_brandt@ghs.edu Mrs. Brandt has taught at Golden Hills School since 1998. She graduated from Cal State Northridge with a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies. She also holds a multiple subject teaching credential, a certificate for instruction of gifted and talented children, certification as an education network specialist and is a certified teacher trainer for computers. Mrs. Brandt has been acknowledged by Who's Who Among America's Teachers for the past two years.
	Middle School Science/Math - Judy Hess jdh_hess@ghs.edu Mrs. Hess earned a BS in Chemistry, Secondary and Junior College Credentials at BYU. She has worked as a Forensic Chemist, and as a Criminalist in a Sheriff's Crime Lab. Mrs. Hess has taught at the Jr. High, High School and College level for over 20 years. She Co-Authored a textbook on Remote Sensing, through Harvard University, "The Physical Sciences of Living in California, through UC Berkeley and curriculum for Biotechnology at Lawrence Livermore. Mrs. Hess has two children and six grandchildren. She loves reading, hiking, traveling and all kinds of music.
	Middle School English/History - Steve Cleveland steve_cleveland@ghs.edu Mr. Cleveland graduated from Sac State in 1985, with a BA in Criminal Justice. He was a police officer for four years, including 3years on the SWAT team. Mr. Cleveland earned his Credential in Social Studies at Sonoma State University in 2004. He has been married for over 15 years, and has two children, Rachael and Stevie Jr., both of whom attend GHS. Mr. Cleveland loves the outdoors, including fishing, hiking, camping and mountain biking. Additionally, he and his family enjoy going to Celtic and music festivals.
	Middle school Language Arts/Yearbook coordinator - Connie Durante connie_durante@ghs.edu Mrs. Durante began teaching at Golden Hills School in 2004. She graduated from Eastern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Arts in English. She holds a teaching credential and has experience teaching middle school and high school Language Arts, as well as computer applications at Intel Corporation.
	Middle School Mathematics - Gayle Nygaard gayle_nygaard@ghs.edu Mrs. Nygaard has been teaching at Golden Hills School since 2004. She is also an adjunct mathematics professor at Folsom Lake College. A graduate from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Mrs. Nygaard is a Bronze Tablet Scholar with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Mathematics Education and a Master of Science in Applied Mathematics. She holds a single subject teaching credential in mathematics (CA and IL) with special credentials for computer science, physics, chemistry, and biology.
	Spanish - Myron Shaffer myron_shaffer@ghs.edu Señor Shaffer was awarded a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona. There he studied Spanish, Sociology and Africana Studies. Upon graduation, he ventured to Guadalajara, México where he received his TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification and taught English to both children and adults through La Universidad de Guadalajara. This is Señor Shaffer’s third year of teaching and his first year at Golden Hills School. He has a gorgeous four-year old (canine, not human). For entertainment, he enjoys traveling, hiking, running, cooking and eating.
	Resource - Dianne Pascoe dianne_pascoe@ghs.edu Mrs. Pascoe began teaching at Golden Hills School in 2005. She graduated from California State University, Northridge with a BA in Child Development. She has both a multiple subject credential as well as a learning handicapped credential.
	Art - Janelle Brewer Janelle_brewer@ghs.edu Mrs. Brewer earned her degree in Liberal Studies from Point Loma University in San Diego. She recently finished her Masters of Education in spring of 2007. Mrs. Brewer previously taught at Mira Mesa Christian School in San Diego before moving to Northern California. She loves to read, spend time with her family, and go hiking with her husband and golden retriever in her free time.
	Drama - Brook Ringger Mrs. Ringger received her Bachelor's degree in Music Dance Theatre from Brigham Young University. She has performed throughout the nation professionally in a variety of roles. With her husband, she has recently started Ringger Studios through which she currently teaches voice lessons, does choreography, and teaches singing and dancing groups.
	Middle School Music - Rob Ringger Mr. Ringger has been teaching music professionally since 1996 in a variety of settings. Rob plays and teaches bass guitar, piano, guitar, drums and ukulele. With his wife, Rob has recently started Ringger Studios through which he works teaching private lessons, school groups, and doing music recording and production.
	Elementary Music - Mike Shields mike_shields@ghs.edu Mr. Shields began teaching music at the elementary school level in 2001, and currently teaches at several elementary schools and pre-schools each year. He has been a professional musician since 1972, playing throughout the western United States in bands and as a solo act. He has released two CDs of original material. He plays keyboards, guitar, and harmonica as well as sings. In addition, Mr Shields gives private instructions in piano and guitar.