Darlington to welcome new faculty and staff
By Tannika King - Faculty
Darlington School is pleased to welcome the following new faculty and staff members in 2011-12:
Chris Babb will teach sixth-grade science. He holds a B.S. in Biochemistry from California State University at San Luis Obispo and a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry from the University of Hawaii at Honolulu. He also holds a Georgia Science Certificate and a Georgia Earth/Space Science Certificate for grades 6-12. Babb has 13 years of teaching experience, working most recently at Coosa High School and Berry College in Rome. He is the father of current student Arden ('14) and has served as the assistant Middle School softball coach for Darlington.
Jill Babb will be head of Cooper House, the first-year girls' house; assistant dean of students; and director of weekend activities. She holds a B.S. in Leisure Studies from Southeast Missouri State University and an M.S. in Recreation, Park & Tourism Administration from Western Illinois University. She has over 10 years of experience working with young women through the Girl Scouts of Greater Atlanta. As director of camp program and property for that organization, Babb lived in a residential setting and guided program delivery on five mission-driven, year-round camp programs. She also served as an adjunct health and P.E. teacher at Berry College for several years.
Caroline Clark ('06) will serve as development coordinator in the Advancement Office. She holds a B.A. from Miami University and worked previously as the development assistant in the University of Louisiana at Monroe's Office of Development. She is also certified in Responsible Conduct of Research.
Leah Groat will teach Upper School Spanish. She holds a B.A. in Kinesiology & Spanish from Hendrix College and studied abroad at Universidad Complutense de Madrid. In college, she was a President's Ambassador and held a variety of other leadership positions, including four years on the Hendrix Experience Ambassador Team. She worked in Hendrix College's athletic department for three years and volunteered as a camp counselor at Northern Illinois Special Recreation Association during the summer.
Cary Kilgore will be a nurse in the Student Health Center. She attended Crawford Long School of Nursing and Georgia State University and is Certified by the National Society of Health Coaches. She has 10 years of experience in nursing, most recently as a pediatric nurse at Little Land Montessori School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. She has also been employed as a disease manager for United Healthcare and an R.N. and clinical manager for Cardiology of Georgia.
Liz Koehler will serve as Middle School librarian at Thatcher Hall. She holds a B.A. in English from the State University of New York at Fredonia and an M.S. in Library Science from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In grad school, she was a research assistant at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science and has had field experience at Guy Phillips Middle School and Alamance County Libraries, both in North Carolina. Koehler is a member of the American Library Association, the American Association of School Libraries and the National Council for Teachers of English.
Brad Large ('05) will serve as assistant director of boarding admissions. He holds a B.B.A. in Marketing from Kennesaw State University and has five years of experience in admissions. Most recently, he served as domestic admissions director and marketing communications director at Squaw Valley Academy in California.
Michael Pope will teach Upper School history. He holds a B.A. in History from Georgia State University with a minor in Political Science. A 2004 graduate of The Wesleyan School in Norcross, he returned to his alma mater during his college years to serve as a summer camp counselor. He has also coached at Westminster and Dunwoody, and completed two internships.
Cynde Reneau will serve as instructional technology coordinator. She holds an A.A.S. in Computer Science from Jones County Junior College (Miss.) and a B.S. in Political Science/History from Kennesaw State University. With 19 years of experience in educational technology, she has advanced knowledge of both the Macintosh and Windows operating systems. Most recently, she served as an educational technologist and technology integration specialist at The Lovett School.
Max Roach will serve as director of Upper School. He holds a B.A. in Education from Westminster College, a Graduate-Level Teaching Endorsement in English as a Second Language from the University of Utah, and an M.Ed. in Educational Management and Innovation from Western Governors University, all located in Salt Lake City. Most recently, he served as director of Schools Attuned, dean of the department for teaching and learning, and learning strategies department head at Wasatch Academy in Mt. Pleasant, Utah. He is also a member of the All Kinds of Minds national teaching faculty. Roach has taught at the elementary, high school, college and in-service professional development levels.
Wesley Styles will teach Upper School science. He holds a B.S. in Chemistry and an M.A. in Leadership from Shorter College. He has 10 years of experience teaching and coaching, most recently at Rome High School. In 2004, he was named STAR Teacher and Region Assistant Coach of the Year in Wrestling.
Jennifer Tullis will teach P.E. and Health at the Upper School. She holds a B.B.A from St. Mary's College (Ind.) and has over 20 years of experience teaching American Red Cross swimming, lifeguarding, CPR and first aid. She is also certified in high and low rope courses, spin, and water aerobics. Most recently, Tullis was a Fitness instructor at the Rome YMCA and a rope course facilitator at Winshape Wilderness. She formed and currently coaches the Harbin Sports Foundation Youth Triathlon Team and conceived and coached the YMCA running training program for the Berry Half Marathon. She has completed five Half Ironman triathlons and several half marathons and marathons. She also completed an Outdoor Education Program in Adelaide, Australia, leading youth in outdoor backpacking and kayaking.
Kristen Wilkins will serve as a learning specialist at the Lower School. She holds a B.A. in English from Saint Joseph's University (Penn.) and has seven years of experience in the field of education. Most recently, she taught English and was an academic support specialist in English at The Phelps School, where she also proctored evening study hall and served as middle states coordinator. Wilkins has a great deal of experience working with students who have learning differences and developing strategies to enhance students' growth and independence. Her husband, Tyler, is head of Moser House and dean of students.
Tyler Wilkins will be head of Moser House and dean of students. He holds a B.F.A. in Music Performance from the University of the Arts (Penn.), ABA Certification from the University of Massachusetts and an M.A. in Educational Leadership from Immaculata University (Penn.) Most recently, he served as dean of students and director of technology at The Phelps School, where he has also been a teacher, coach and dorm parent. His wife, Kristen, is a learning specialist at the Lower School.
Kate Willingham will teach sixth-grade humanities at Darlington School. She graduated magna cum laude in May from Sewanee: The University of the South, where she earned a Bachelors of Arts in English and minored in Spanish. There, she received many accolades for her academic and athletic successes, including The Presidential Scholarship from 2007-2011. She also graduated as a member of the prestigious academic society, The Order of the Gownsmen, which is a badge of academic distinction. While at Sewanee, Willingham served as captain of the varsity soccer team and was named All-SCAC in 2008, 2009 and 2010 and Defensive Player of the Year in 2008. In addition, she was recognized as All-SCAC Honor Roll for 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010.
Tracy Wolfer will be a learning specialist in the Upper School's Glenn Learning Center. She holds a B.S. and an M.A.T., both in Mathematics, from Georgia State University; International Baccalaureates in Math Methods and Math Studies; and Georgia Teacher Certification. She has 10 years of experience teaching and tutoring math and has served as a private math tutor at Darlington since January.
Bebe Zazzaro will be the Middle School counselor. She holds a B.S. in Education from Bowling Green State University and an M.S. in School Counseling from the University of West Alabama. She has more than 15 years of experience working with young people. Currently, she is the school counselor at Carolina Day School in Asheville, N.C., where she also teaches language arts and social studies and serves as middle school activities director and student government sponsor.
John Zazzaro will be head of Neville House, assistant dean of students and head of student government. He holds a B.A. in History from the College of Wooster and an M.A. in Social Sciences from Wesleyan University. He has more than 15 years of experience teaching, coaching and working in residential life. Currently, he is chairman of the history department at Carolina Day School in Asheville, N.C., where he also serves as student government sponsor and member of the school's Admission and Diversity committees. Prior to this, he was a teacher, duty team leader and dorm parent at Christchurch School (Va.)
Brian Zobel will be director of facilities services. He holds a B.S. in Civil & Environmental Engineering from the University of Wisconsin - Madison and an M.S. in Engineering Management from the Milwaukee School of Engineering. He is also certified as a plant maintenance manager by the Association for Facilities Engineering. Zobel has 14 years of experience in facilities services and capital program management in universities and school districts, serving most recently as director of facilities at Millikin University in Decatur, Ill.
