Principal: Chris Lehmann – clehmann [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Chris is the founding principal of the Science Leadership Academy, a progressive science and technology high school in Philadelphia, PA. Chris has returned to his native Philadelphia after nine years as an English Teacher, Technology Coordinator, Girls Basketball Coach and Ultimate Frisbee coach at the Beacon School in New York City, one of the leading urban public schools for technology integration.

Currently, Chris is a finalist for the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development's 2008 Outstanding Young Educator Award. In 2006, the National School Board Association named Chris one of "20 to Watch" among American administrators. In 2001, Chris was honored by MOUSE as a Champion of Technology and Education for his work on building the portal at the Beacon School. Chris has spoken at educational conferences all over the world, including the Building Learning Communities conference, the National Educational Computing Conference, the Philadelphia Area Educational Technology Conference, The Yahoo Cybercitizen Conference, the Innovative Learning Conference, The Council of Educational Facilities Planners Regional Conference, the K12-Online Conference, the International Conference on Technology and Education and at LinuxWorld, and he has worked with many schools and districts in the U.S. and England as a consultant.

Chris received his B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania and his M.A. in English Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. Chris writes for LeaderTalk, Grant Wiggins' Faculty Room and is the author of the education blog Practical Theory: http://www.practicaltheory.org

Development Coordinator: Jon Amsterdam – jamsterdam [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Jon boasts a twenty year career in youth leadership and citizenship development work. He has founded and directed a number of nationally recognized youth community service programs, assisted in the creation of the Americorps national service program, and developed the design of many popular project based learning initiatives across the country. As a trained lawyer he has taught high school civics and other Law Related Education curricula, as well as served as a Service Learning Instructor at Temple University.

Most recently he managed a University of Pennsylvania sponsored multicultural civic engagement program bringing together students from eighty of Philadelphia's city and suburban high schools for collaborative public problem solving experiences. His broad background in community based pedagogy makes him a perfect fit for SLA.

History: Matt Baird – mbaird [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Matt is a fifteen-year veteran teacher coming to us most recently from Abington Friends. Matt has taught in Quaker schools in New York and Pennsylvania as well as teaching abroad in Costa Rica for four years. Matt has a deep pedagogical background in community service as well as a powerful vision for a case-study methodology for the teaching of History.

Biochemistry: Tim Best – tbest [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – In his second year at SLA, Tim comes to SLA from the Boston area, where he has most recently been working as a high school technology integration specialist, collaborating with teachers to develop technology-based projects. Previously, he taught 4 years of physical science and biology. Tim's experiences with both inquiry-based science teaching and the use of technology in the classroom make him a great fit for SLA.

Spanish: Mark Bey – mbey [at] scienceleadership [dot] org

Humanities: Joshua Block – jblock [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Joshua has taught in public schools in the Philadelphia suburbs, New York City, and Philadelphia. He received his B.A. and M.S. in Education from the University of Pennsylvania. He received additional education while living in Jerusalem and Cameroon and while working as a cabinetmaker. Joshua is passionate about the belief that education should be a tool that allows people to both understand and transform their individual and collective realities.

English: Zachary Chase – zchase [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Mr. Chase comes to SLA from Phoenix Academy in Sarasota, FL. Originally a native of Illinois, Chase graduated from Illinois State University. An avid runner, he has completed five marathons and numerous other foot races. One of 150 Freedom Writer Teachers, Chase has worked with the Freedom Writer Foundation and Erin Gruwell. Alongside Gruwell, Chase looks to Hal Urban, Ron Clark, and his high-school math teacher Mr. Curry when in developing his pedagogical approach. He is also a member of the National Council of Teachers of English, the National Staff Development Council and Blockbuster Video. Though it may be a treasonous statement, Chase is excited to return to the North and experience the frigidity of winter. His dog Sady might not harbor the same excitement.

Physics: Rosalind Echols – rechols [at] scienceleadership [dot] org -- Rosalind is in her first year teaching physics at SLA, following two years at University City High School in West Philadelphia, during which time she received her MSE for Secondary Science Education. She earned her undergraduate degree in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University and came to teaching in Philadelphia after a year in Tanzania teaching English and Math. She coaches students involved in the program Students Run Philly Style, a mentorship program centered around running and goal setting that works with students all over Philadelphia. In her free time, she contemplates the science of her life, most notably running, baking, and her car. And then insists on sharing these contemplations with her students. 

Spanish: Jillian Gierke – jgierke [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Jillian is in her second year at SLA. She has a MAT in Spanish (with a focus on Service Learning) from Indiana University in Indianapolis. She has experience teaching Spanish at the university level as well as teaching English to teenagers in Spain. 

Counselor: Karina Hirschfield – khirschfield [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Karina brings a wealth of experience to SLA. She has been the founding counselor of a charter school, so she is well prepared to create the systems necessary to run an innovative and effective guidance program. In addition, Karina will be working with the faculty to craft the core of our advisory curriculum. Before becoming a guidance counselor, Karina spent six years as an ESL teacher in New York City, so she will give our emerging English language students added support.

Digital Arts: Marcie Hull – mhull [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Before becoming SLA's founding Technology Coordinator,  Marcie spent five years at Shoemaker Middle School in SDP. She brings a powerful understanding of both the fine and digital arts and their role in schools. She has established a reputation as one of the top digital arts educators in the city. Marcie has presented at the National Educational Computing Conference, PETE&C, the NY Tech Forum and has worked training teachers all over the School District of Philadelphia.

English: Matthew Kay – mkay [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Matt is a product of the Philadelphia Public Schools, having graduated from Saul High School and West Chester University. For a young teacher, Matt has had an incredible amount of teaching and coaching experience, having worked as an assistant football coach at West Chester, as a Summerbridge Math and English teacher and as a teacher and naturalist at the Awbury Arboretum.

Mathematics: Brad Latimer – blatimer [at] scienceleadership [dot] org - Brad comes to SLA after earning his Masters Degree in Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum from the University of Pennsylvania. While at Penn, Brad also worked as the Assistant Academic Coordinator for the Athletics Department. Prior to his time at Penn, Brad spent three years teaching high school mathematics at The Bullis School in Potomac, MD. While at Bullis, he was also very much involved in the athletics program, serving as an Assistant Football and Track coach. Before his time at Bullis, Brad spent six months working with Middle School students in Monteverde, Costa Rica, after completing his student teaching assignments right here in Philadelphia at CAPA.

History: Diana Laufenberg – dlaufenberg [at] scienceleadership [dot] org -- Diana Laufenberg is a nomad. Diana is a true life-long learner. She currently works with 11th grade students at the Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia. Experiential education is an integral part of her educational pursuits taking students from the classroom to the real world and back again. Before finding her way to Philadelphia, she was an active member of the teaching community in Flagstaff, AZ where she was named Technology Teacher of the Year for Arizona and a member of the Governor's Master Teacher Corps.

Spanish: Melanie Manuel – mmanuel [at] scienceleadership [dot] org -- Melanie has a BS International Business and Spanish and MS Education Spanish. She is a candidate for the National Board Certification in Teaching. After college Melanie taught English at la Universidad de los Andes in Venezuela. She also spent one year as a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar studying Bilingual Intercultural Education at la Universidad del Valle in the highlands of Guatemala, where she was the only non-Mayan in the program and the only non-Guatemalan on the college campus. Melanie has organized and led many international trips for her own students to the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Costa Rica, the US-Mexico border and Guatemala. In her free time Melanie wanders aimlessly in the city on her bike, dances salsa and hiphop, dabbles in art and guitar, travels to countries with US State Department issued travel advisories and, takes long walks on the (Schuylkill) beach.

Physical Education / Health: Pia Martin – pmartin [at] scienceleadership [dot] org

English: Larissa Pahomov – lpahomov [at] scienceleadership [dot] org - Last year, Larissa earned her Masters degree in Education from the University of Pennsylvania while student teaching at a Philadelphia charter school. Before that, she worked as a Fulbright Teaching Assistant for English in a high school in Germany. Larissa is also involved with the One Book and One Film programs run by the Free Library of Philadelphia and enjoys working for both her school and her city.

Mathematics: Sunil Reddy – sreddy [at] scienceleadership [dot] or -- As an undergraduate, Sunil graduated cum laude with a dual degree in Mathematics and English Literature from Colgate University. In his fifth year at Colgate, Sunil earned a Master of Arts in Teaching degree in Secondary Mathematics Education, and subsequently became a New York and Pennsylvania state certified instructor. During college, Sunil tutored math at the high school level in all subjects and singularly coordinated the tutoring program. Sunil also spent three years teaching math daily—and coordinating evening tutoring sessions—to Philadelphia adolescents through the University of Pennsylvania and Harcum College's Upward Bound programs. Prior to this year teaching at SLA, Sunil worked for a PA virtual academy, responsible for educating nearly 300 students via distance learning.

Sunil does not believe that any student is incapable of learning, rejecting the notion that some people "can't do math." It is Sunil's belief that all children are able to excel in math if they are provided with ample individualized instruction. Everyone has a different style of learning and Sunil is proficient in differentiating instruction to best address his students' needs. Sunil is a patient practitioner who is able to contextualize mathematical concepts for students, grounding them in many real world examples.

Mathematics: Kenneth Rochester – krochester [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Kenneth is entering his second year of teaching at Science Leadership Academy.  His educational background includes a M.A degree in Education from Tufts University and a B.A. degree in mathematics from Morehouse College. Upon the completion of his first year at SLA, Kenneth has learned many things about students and teaching.  One such thing is that teaching students forces you to bring out the best in yourself and in doing so you will undoubtedly bring out the best in your students.  Kenneth continues to bring with him a passion for teaching and dedication to SLA’s inquiry and project-based approach to student learning and understanding.

Information Specialist / Librarian: Paul Scaer – pscaer [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – As our founding librarian, Paul made the move from Masterman to SLA. He has been the librarian at Masterman for many years, and he has established himself as one of the premier Open Source “Blended” librarians in the country. By coming to SLA, Paul is able to take his vision of the digital school beyond the library and into the larger school culture. Along with Marcie, he forms the backbone of our digital information pedagogical faculty.

Biochemistry: Gamal Sherif – gsherif [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Gamal is a veteran teacher and administrator who has worked for SDP, with independent and in the charter school movement. He has run his own consulting group, Progress-Ed, and he has worked with many schools on curriculum mapping and educational design.

Mathematics: Caitlin Thompson – cthompson [at] scienceleadership [dot] org-- Caitlin joins us after a busy year of finishing up her bachelors at Tufts University in Boston and starting her teaching career as a Philadelphia Teaching Fellow.  She earned her degree in engineering science and geology and is excited to expose students to the wide range of mathematical applications in the world.  She also looks forward to sharing her love for cycling and the outdoors with Philadelphia's finest youth.

Biochemistry / Math: Matt VanKouwenberg – mvank [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Matt comes to us from West Philadelphia HS where he was the Math Department chair. By coming to SLA, Matt is able to take full advantage of his background as a double major in biomolecular engineering and chemical engineering at Penn. Matt is a Yale Teaching Fellow, and he has been running staff development workshops for the district.

Special Education: Anissa Weinraub – aweinraub [at] scienceleadership [dot] org – Anissa is a Philadelphia Teaching Fellow who is coming to us after working at Kensington CAPA High School. Before coming to the School District of Philadelphia, Anissa was involved in education as the Assistant Program Director of an after-school arts program in Providence, RI, as well as teaching in the CCP Upward Bound program and at a charter school in Philadelphia.
She also has experience in educational theater, touring college campuses with an independent theater troupe that explored issues in the Middle East. Anissa is working toward her MA in Education at Temple University, and she received her BA in Urban Studies/Creative Writing from Brown University.