Darlington Academic Dean David Powell announced today that Marla Lee will replace Libbie Zimmer as director of the school’s Teaching and Learning Center, effective in July.
“Marla is a warm and genuine person who can build on Libbie’s great work and take our program to the next level,” Powell said. “A thorough professional, she has excellent experience helping both students and teachers understand their individual needs and develop plans for improvement.”
Lee holds a B.S. in Elementary Education and an M.Ed. Reading Specialist from the University of Central Florida. She has 15 years of teaching experience at the elementary, middle school and college levels, during which time she has taught an array of subjects including language arts, reading, science, media production and math. Most recently, she served as the language arts department head at Westlake Christian School (K-8) in Palm Harbor, Fla., and taught students in grades 6-8.
“Schools are blessed with the gift of a diverse community of learners, and the curriculum must provide a positive path that allows diverse learning and teaching styles,” Lee said. “Schools must help each student to identify their talents and how the talent can be applied to ensure a whole and complete individual. Every person has a purpose and the school should provide opportunities for each student to find his or her purpose and passion. This must include the student that struggles to fit within the typical expectations.”
In her new role at Darlington, Lee will direct, assist and support the learning specialists; review Student Action Plans and progress reports; organize professional development opportunities for faculty congruent with the needs of all students; develop programs that support students with diagnosed learning differences, as well as other students; and coordinate all peer tutoring and mentoring services. She will also partner with the Admission staff to determine which candidates are mission appropriate, and will also work with the division heads and College Guidance staff to interpret and manage educational testing information.
“Marla will bring new talent, experience and ideas to Darlington’s Teaching and Learning Center,” said Zimmer, who has accepted a position as head of Lower School at Sanford School in Wilmington, Del. “Areas where she will be a strong asset include sharing prescriptive ways to differentiate classroom instruction, implementing meaningful professional development opportunities, and managing the instructional balance between technology and tradition in the 21st Century classroom. Not only will she strengthen a relatively new program, she will enrich our entire community of learners.”
Darlington’s Teaching and Learning Center was established in 2006 to support and enhance the academic experience of all students in grades pre-K through 12, while directly serving students who have documented learning differences (LD, ADD/ADHD). The role of Darlington’s learning specialists is to provide support to the entire community through instruction, professional development, parent resources and outreach programs.
