Preschool Team
Gloria Argueta, Starfish Teacher (see Spanish Department)

James Bannister had been a substitute teacher at CDS for ten years prior to joining the school in 2008 as a Starfish Teacher. He received his B.A. from Kutztown University in Pennsylvania and studied early childhood education at San Francisco City College. When not teaching, James is a musician and a singer/songwriter.

Anna Forward, Teddy Bear Teacher, joined CDS in 2008. She has a B.A. in sociology with an art history minor from Brandeis University. Before joining CDS, Anna taught elementary grades for three years at The Willows Community School in Culver City, CA. She has also worked as a teacher and artist in several arts organizations in Massachusetts. Anna is an oil painter and singer, and enjoys sharing her interests in art and music with her students.

Carmen Gerughty, Teddy Bear Teacher (see Spanish Department)

Derrek Gerughty, Outside Preschool Teacher, joined CDS in 2005 after working as a substitute in the preschool classrooms in 2004. He received a B.A. in recreation and leisure studies from San Francisco State University and is currently pursuing child development courses; Derrek is a Spanish speaker. Derrek has experience working in many after school programs and as a dance instructor and hip hop summer camp director. He loves to travel, snorkel, scuba dive and dance.

Candy Mabry, Teddy Bear Head Teacher, joined CDS in 1990 as a preschool teacher. During the 2004-05 school year, Candy was the Assistant Head of School and from 2006-2008, she taught kindergarten. During the 2003-04 school year, Candy served as the early childhood representative for the California Association of Independent Schools Northern Professional Services Committee. Candy earned her B.A. in music at San Francisco State University and received certificates from City College of San Francisco in early childhood education and early childhood administration. Candy is certified in the Project Approach and has received Schools Attuned training. Prior to joining CDS, she spent eight years as a head teacher at the Jewish Community Center, Rosenberg Early Childhood Center in San Francisco.

Gladys Miyahira, Starfish Teacher (see Spanish Department)

Gretchen Ott, Starfish Head Teacher, received her B.A. in child development from California State University, Humboldt. Gretchen has been with CDS since 2000 and is certified in the Project Approach and trained in the Responsive Classroom. In her free time, she enjoys San Francisco's music, cultural and outdoor attractions.

Alicia Perdue has been the Leaping Lizard Head Teacher since 2000 and has been teaching at CDS since 1997. Alicia earned her A.A. in early childhood education from City College of San Francisco and is currently working on a bachelor's degree in elementary education with an emphasis on early childhood education. She has a child development master teacher permit with the state of California, is certified in the Project Approach, trained in the Responsive Classroom and in 2004 served as the early childhood representative for the California Association of Independent Schools Northern Professional Services Committee. As the mother of two daughters, she doesn't have much free time!

Ngoc Tran, Leaping Lizard Teacher, came to CDS in 2000 from Head Start, where she worked for five years. Ngoc received her A.A. degree in child development and a certificate in child development administration from City College of San Francisco; she has a child development site supervisor permit with the state of California. Ngoc is certified in the Project Approach and trained in Total Physical Response (TPR). She continues to pursue child development coursework and classes in English as a Second Language. Ngoc has two children and, in addition to English, she speaks and writes Vietnamese, Cantonese and Mandarin. She enjoys sewing and is passionate about sharing her culture and learning about other cultures with the CDS community.

Elementary Team
Barbara DeMoss, First Grade Head Teacher, brings over 30 years of elementary teaching experience to CDS, including 10 years at St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Oakland. Barbara recently returned from seven years abroad where she had been teaching international students at schools in Romania, Japan and Singapore. Barbara has a B.A. in elementary education and history from Duke University and an M.A. in early childhood education from the University of Louisville. In her free time she quilts, travels and collects books.

Jasmin Hoo, Second Grade Teacher & After School Teacher, joined CDS in 2006 after teaching theater, art, literacy and dance to children for the past eight years. Jasmin has a B.A. in performing arts for social change from the University of Massachusetts. She has co-written, directed and performed in several plays about racial and gender identity. She loves West African dance, hip hop dance, cooking, making jewelry and reading.

Vi Le, Third Grade Teacher, was our first intern from the Bay Area Teacher Training Institute (BATTI), a two-year credential program under the sponsorship of San Francisco State University. Prior to joining CDS in 2007, she volunteered as a first grade assistant teacher, was Associate Director of Student Activities at Dartmouth College and Associate Director of the Reuters Digital Vision Fellowship Program at Stanford University. Vi has a B.S. in geography from Dartmouth College. She plays and coaches ultimate frisbee and loves to cook, swim and play board games.

Matthew Martin, Kindergarten Teacher, joined CDS in 2007 after relocating from Los Angeles, where he held several long-term substitute positions in various elementary grades. Matthew has a master's degree in elementary education from Pepperdine University, a B.S. from Emerson College in television writing and communication and a California teaching credential. In a previous career, Matthew spent six years as a staff writer and script coordinator for several television productions. In his free time he plays with his two rescue dogs and attends live music shows.

Nick Martin, Fourth Grade Teacher, came to CDS in 2008 as part of the Bay Area Teacher Training Institute (BATTI) program. He previously worked as a fifth grade assistant teacher at The Chestnut Hill School in Massachusetts. Nick holds a B.A. in history from the University of California at Davis and an M.A. in history from the University of Massachusetts.

Molly Meng, First Grade Teacher, joined CDS in 2008 after serving as a CDS substitute teacher for several years. She holds a B.A. degree in English literature from California State University, Pomona and University of Wales, Swansea. Molly is an educator and workshop leader at 826 Valencia: The Writer’s Center, and is a teaching artist at StageWrite, a nonprofit organization that empowers students to gain confidence through the use of dramatic activities. She enjoys photography, art and design, and is the owner of a small business specializing in handmade greeting cards.

Luisa Pinto, Kindergarten Head Teacher, joined CDS in 2008 after teaching kindergarten, first and second grade at Ring Mountain Day School in Mill Valley. She previously taught elementary school at The Nueva School in Hillsborough. Luisa has an M.A. in early childhood education and a multiple subject teaching credential with a focus on early childhood education from Mills College, and holds a B.A. in liberal studies from San Francisco State University. She is fluent in Portuguese.

Sebastian Robins, Fourth Grade Head Teacher, joined CDS in 2008. Sebastian is a Spanish/English bilingual teacher who taught fourth and fifth grades in the San Francisco public schools (SFUSD) for six years. He spent an additional year as an SFUSD Instructional Reform Facilitator, coaching and supporting K-5 teachers. For the two years prior to joining CDS, Sebastian supervised student teachers and taught at San Francisco State University’s College of Education, and also served as a consultant and trainer for Visual Thinking Strategies, training teachers in critical thinking, student-centered education, open-ended questioning, arts integration and reflective pedagogy. Sebastian holds an M.A. in teaching and a multiple subject teaching credential from the University of San Francisco, and a B.S. in philosophy from the University of Michigan.

Christian Strauli, Kindergarten Teacher, is a Bay Area Teacher Training Institute (BATTI) intern who joined CDS in 2008. He has a B.A. in French literature with an ethnic studies minor. Before joining CDS, Christian worked as a paraprofessional aide in the resource specialist program at Lawton Alternative School working with children struggling in classes due to learning disabilities or processing deficiencies. Christian is fluent in French and is a proficient Spanish speaker.

Ginny St. Denis, Third Grade Head Teacher, joined CDS in 2006 after teaching in the Virginia public schools for five years. She has also worked as an instructional coordinator and assistant principal, and piloted a partial Spanish immersion program in the Charlottesville city schools in Virginia. Ginny has a B.A. in Spanish and a masters in teaching (dual certification in special education and elementary education) from the University of Virginia. She loves to travel, read, eat great food and explore San Francisco.

Paula Symonds, First Grade Head Teacher, received her B.A. in bacteriology from the University of California at Davis. Paula holds a lifetime multi-subject teaching credential and is trained in the Responsive Classroom. She has been an elementary school teacher since 1968 and joined the CDS faculty in 2000. Paula is a frequent speaker at meetings and workshops hosted by the California Kindergarten Association, California Mathematics Council and the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics. She is the creator of a nationally recognized mathematics program for students in grades K-2, Box It or Bag It Mathematics. She has also written seven other books for teachers about math. "Chasing Vermeer," an article Paula recently wrote about language arts was published in the California Association of Independent Schools' faculty newsletter. In her free time, Paula enjoys camping and horseback riding.

Sara Switzman, Second Grade Head Teacher, served as a "KidCoach" with Future Possibilities, a non-profit organization providing life skills coaching programs to children ages seven to 12, before coming to CDS in 2004. She earned bachelor's degrees from the University of Toronto and the University of Guelph and received her elementary teaching license from the Ontario College of Teachers. In 2006 Sara received a masters in teaching at New College of California focusing on critical environmental and global literacy; she has been trained in the Responsive Classroom. Sara speaks French and has traveled extensively through Europe, North Africa, Australia and New Zealand. She loves to swim, play cards and bake goodies from around the world.

Jennifer Weiss, Kindergarten Head Teacher, returned to CDS in 2003. She was a preschool teacher here from 1995 to 1998. Jennifer holds a B.A. in communications and media arts from Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, along with a master's degree in elementary education from Antioch Graduate School in New England. She is trained in the Responsive Classroom. In between her stints at CDS, Jennifer taught first grade in Ithaca, New York.

Colette Zee, Second Grade Head Teacher, holds a multiple subject teaching credential from San Francisco State University, a master's of music in piano performance from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, and a bachelor's of music from the University of California at Santa Cruz. Prior to joining CDS in 2008, Colette taught first grade for five years at Keys School in Palo Alto. She is trained in the Responsive Classroom.

Middle School Team
Terry Ashkinos, Eighth Grade Homeroom & Middle School Humanities Teacher, was the middle school social studies and journalism teacher at Everett Middle School for six years before joining CDS in 2005. Prior to working at Everett, Terry was an ESL teacher in Los Angeles and Bratislava, Slovakia. He has a B.A. in philosophy and humanities from UC Santa Barbara and an M.A. in philosophy from San Francisco State University. Terry has been trained in the Responsive Classroom. He and his wife have a son, Cash (CDS '17) and Terry is an occasional writer of fiction as well as a guitar player and music writer for the indie rock band Elephone.

Kirk Bell, Sixth Grade Homeroom & Middle School Math/Science Teacher, joined the CDS middle school team in 2005 with 17 years of teaching experience, largely in Washington state. He also worked for five years in a non-profit organization training teachers and school administrators about diversity and harassment issues. Kirk received his B.S. in land use planning and environmental design from the University of Manitoba. He has a Washington teaching credential from Western Washington University and is trained in the Responsive Classroom. Kirk enjoys hiking, gardening, art, maps and dogs.

Doug Garfinkel, Seventh Grade Homeroom & Middle School Math/Science Teacher, earned his B.A. in political science from UCLA and his M.B.A. in public and private management from Yale School of Management. Prior to going into teaching, Doug was a partner at Accenture, a global consulting and professional services company where he worked with major corporations on information technology strategy. While earning his CLAD teaching credential, Doug taught in two schools in the East Bay. He is trained in the Responsive Classroom. His personal interests include family time, cooking, piano playing, reading, hiking and traveling. Doug came to CDS in 2003, and his children Aaron (CDS '06) and Miriam (CDS '12) joined him in 2004.

Christopher Gonzalez-Crane, Middle School & After School Teacher, joined CDS in 2005. He has worked as a middle and high school English teacher in Concepcion, Chile at the Thomas Jefferson School and as a writing teacher in the Town School for Boys summer program. He has a B.A. in English from Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota and speaks Spanish. In his free time he enjoys reading eighteenth century literature, backpacking and visiting big cities.

Melanie Liu, Fifth Grade Homeroom & Middle School Humanities Teacher, came to CDS in 2005 from New York where she taught fourth grade at the Little Red School House, and fifth and sixth grade humanities at the Calhoun School. She has an M.S. in education and a teaching credential from the Bank Street College of Education (with a focus on middle school) and a B.A. from UCLA in political science. Melanie is trained in the Responsive Classroom. In her free time she enjoys traveling, cooking and attending concerts.

Specialist Teachers
Luz Andino, Spanish Teacher (grades 4-8) (see Spanish Department)

Misty Cummings, Environmental Education Resource Teacher, has been an environmental educator for over ten years, most recently working as the Conservation Education Coordinator for San Francisco Unified School District's Environmental Science Center at Fort Funston before joining CDS in 2004. She grew up on a non-profit farm in Ohio with a garden, chickens, rabbits and horses and has a B.A. in environmental studies from Hiram College and an M.A. in women's studies from Ohio State University.

Jim Flanigan, Athletic Director & Physical Education Teacher, joined CDS in 1999 with more than 30 years experience coaching basketball and volleyball at elementary, middle and high schools. He enrolled in the University of San Francisco's exercise and sports science program at age 50 and earned his B.A. in three years. Jim served two years in Vietnam on the U.S.S. Alamo and spent over two decades working for Brinks Inc. and Crown Zellerbach Corp. He enjoys all sports activities, especially golf, softball and basketball.

Vanessa Lyons, Community Based Learning Coordinator, joined CDS in 2006. Vanessa has worked as an outdoor leader and environmental educator in addition to teaching high school biology, anatomy and environmental studies. She has a B.S. in environmental studies from the University of Oregon and a master’s of education and teaching credential from New College of California. She enjoys hiking, climbing, skiing, snowboarding and spending time outside with her children.

Mimi Maio, Learning Specialist, is an educational therapist who sees private clients for both cognitive testing and long term remediation. Mimi has been trained in Lindamood Bell and Schools Attuned, and prior to joining CDS in 2007 taught kindergarten at Convent Elementary School in San Francisco for five years. She has certificates in educational therapy from UC Berkeley and Holy Names University, a master's in education and a multiple subject teaching credential from USF, and a B.F.A from Emerson College. She enjoys traveling, cooking and gourmet cuisine.

Elizabeth McClellan, Art Teacher, has been teaching at CDS since 1991. She has been a guest artist at the Museum of Crafts and Folk Art at Fort Mason, as well as a guest artist in ceramics for the children's workshop at the Anderson Art Ranch. She received her B.F.A. from the University of California at Davis and is trained in the Responsive Classroom. She is the illustrator of a children's book, Stop This Birthday, published by Chronicle Books in 2005, and is an accomplished Etch-A-Sketch artist with artwork in several private collections including the Ohio Art offices in New York.

Grace Renaud, Middle School Music Teacher, joined CDS in December 2006. Prior to CDS, she worked as a K-8 music teacher in Oakland and has worked in churches as a choir director and organist. Grace has a BFA in music performance and an MFA in pipe organ performance and literature from Mills College. In her spare time she loves to dance, create puppet operas with her husband and spend time with her two children.

Celia Richard, Physical Education Teacher, joined CDS in 2007 after four years at St. Paul’s Episcopal School in Oakland. Celia was the Admission Assistant at St. Paul's before becoming a lead physical education and swimming teacher. A lifelong athlete, she received her California single subject teaching credential in physical education in June 2007. Celia has a B.A. in journalism from Pepperdine University and enjoys open water swimming, reading, taking nature photography and knitting ipod socks.

Emilie Rohrbach, Music & Middle School Drama Teacher, has a B.A. in theatre with a minor in faith, peace and justice studies from Boston College. She is a certified Level II teacher in the Orff Schulwerk method, an approach that combines holistic, hands-on methods in music and movement and celebrates and cultivates what comes naturally to children. She came to CDS in 2003 with four years of experience teaching music and movement. She enjoys traveling and being active outdoors and has spent recent summers studying Spanish in Antigua and Guatemala, and meditating in Thailand.

Karen Slovak, Art Teacher, earned her B.F.A. from the State University of New York at Purchase and her art teaching credential from San Francisco State University. Karen has been trained in the Responsive Classroom and recently completed a yoga education teacher training program. Her teaching experience includes working for the Guggenheim Museum's Learning Through Art Program which places artists into New York public schools. She has also taught camps in mixed media and ceramics at the Bay Area Discovery Museum, worked as an art therapy volunteer at California Pacific Medical Center and installed exhibitions in the galleries of Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Karen is a practicing artist who enjoys painting and sewing. She joined the CDS community in 2000.

Spanish Department
Luz Andino, Spanish Teacher (grades 4-8), joined CDS in 2006 after working as a Spanish teacher at the Hamlin School and the French American International School. Prior to teaching Spanish in the Bay Area, Luz lived and worked in Argentina for 8 years. She received her B.A. in education from The College of Italian Culture in Buenos Aires and, in addition to Spanish, has taught music, literature, acting and drama. She loves camping, traveling, reading and surfing.

Gloria Argueta, Spanish & Starfish Teacher, joined CDS in 2000 with over a decade of experience teaching preschool children. A native of El Salvador, she received her A.A. degree in child development and a certificate in child development administration from City College of San Francisco; she has a child development site supervisor permit with the state of California. Gloria is certified in the Project Approach and trained in the Responsive Classroom and Total Physical Response (TPR). She is passionate about teaching young children leadership and cooperation skills. She enjoys playing piano and accordion and sewing clothing for her daughters.