Meet Our Teachers



Gillian Lynch | Richelle Puckett | Misty Grant | Jennifer Hall | Dana Fitchlee | Monica Voorhees | Ralette Cruse | Amy Siebert | Sandra Hunt | Sandra Malcolm | Diane Chapin | Tara Rayan | Brian Supowit | Aaron Szabo | Cassandra Sparrold | Wayne Koelmeyer | Jani Minker|Rebecca Moore | Lara Somers



Gillian Lynch - Kindergarten
Born and raised in Tennessee, Gillian attended college in Georgia where she met her husband, Dean. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Early Childhood Education from Mercer University in Georgia and proceeded to follow her husband around the world, teaching various grades in Florida, Panama, Puerto Rico, Germany, Virginia and Georgia. This is her fourth year at GEA and she is very happy to be teaching Kindergarten again. Her interests are cooking, reading, gardening, and playing with her children Owen and Mary Rachel.
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Richelle Puckett - Kindergarten
Richelle moved to Sahuarita from Appleton, Wisconsin in 2004. She is a graduate of Grand Canyon University in Phoenix with a degree in Elementary Education. Richelle’s teaching experience includes Kindergarten, 3rd, and tutor for K-12. Richelle has enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom for almost nine years. She was a parent volunteer for 3 years at GEA before returning to the classroom. Richelle is married to her high school sweetheart, Andy, and has two daughters, Rielly, who is eleven, and Kelsey, who is nine. Her hobbies include writing and reading.
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Misty Grant - 1st Grade
Misty received her B.A. in Elementary Education at NAU, and has also earned her Reading Specialist, Early Childhood, and S.E.I. endorsements. She grew up in Sahuarita, and is happy to have a chance to give back to this community. This will be her seventh year at G.E.A., and her eleventh year teaching. Misty has taught third, second, and first grade during her career. She has been married for ten years and has a daughter here at G.E.A., and two young sons still at home.
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Jennifer Hall - 1st Grade
Jennifer moved to Arizona from Ohio, where she grew up. She met her husband, Brent, at a church conference and they were married on the one year anniversary of their first date. She has lived in many local communities, but has come to love Sahuarita in the 11 years she has lived in Arizona. Jennifer received her Associates Degree in Early Education from Pima Community College and a Bachelors in Elementary Education from Prescott College. She is an experienced Preschool and Kindergarten teacher and is looking forward to teaching First grade at Great Expectations. In her free time she enjoys crocheting, knitting, scrapbooking, photography, baking and reading.
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Dana Fitchlee - 2nd Grade
Born in Buffalo, New York, Dana attended Niagara University in Niagara Falls on a basketball scholarship. She graduated with a degree in Elementary Inclusion Education and Special Education in 2002. Traveling down the coast, Dana has spent the last two years teaching 3rd grade ESE in northeast Florida. Living her whole life on the east coast, Dana is excited to settle in the beautiful desert and mountains of Arizona. She loves art and spends her time sewing, knitting and creating 3-dimensional pieces out of found objects. Dana will be volunteering at Equine Voices horse rescue and enjoys yoga, mountain biking and traveling with her family. This is Dana's first year at Great Expectations and she looks forward to an eventful and fun filled year!
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Monica Voorhees - 2nd Grade
Monica Voorhees grew up in Illinois, and received a Bachelor of Science, in Fine Arts, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She spent five years teaching English as a second language, in Mexico City. She also spent nearly 20 years working in schools in Rio Rico, Arizona, including 10 years as a second grade teacher, as well as a year as a Literacy Facilitator. She is married, and has two children. --> Go to Website








Ralette Cruse - 3rd Grade/Teacher Mentor
Ralette hails from Connecticut and is the middle child of four daughters. She received her undergraduate degree in 1974 from Chicago State University and a Master’s Degree equivalent honor from the State of Maryland. Ralette has been teaching since 1985 and retired in Maryland in 2007, but returned to teaching one year later when she missed the interactions with children. Ralette has two grown children, Chris and Raleigh, who live in Maryland and are both married. Ralette is a devoted grandmother of 4 who delights in spoiling her grandchildren. She has written two children’s books, one about the Constitution and one about the Underground Railroad. Ralette loves traveling, spending time with friends and enjoying Arizona weather. She is an avid Red Hatter.
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Amy Siebert - 3rd Grade
Amy moved to Sahuarita two years ago from Galena, Illinois. She decided to relocate to be near family and escape those nasty Midwestern winters! She has been a classroom teacher for 12 years, having taught kindergarten, first, third, and fourth grades. Amy attended Northern Illinois University for her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and Rockford college for her Master’s degree in Instructional Strategies. In her free time she loves to run, read, and indulge in her favorite treats – dark chocolate, coffee, and ice cream! This is her third year at Great Expectations Academy.
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Sandra Hunt - 4th Grade
Sandra is originally from Phoenix but moved to Arkansas when she was in middle school. Before receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Education from the University of Arizona, she worked with Head Start and was a substitute teacher. Sandra is very excited about her sixth year of teaching at Great Expectations. She loves being around and working with children and seeing the smiles on their faces when they learn or accomplish something new. Sandra is married and has four children. She and her husband have lived in Green Valley for eleven years.
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Sandra Malcolm - 4th Grade
Sandra is originally from Houston but has visited and lived in many places including Germany, Holland, Iceland, England, California, and South Carolina. She has taught Fifth through Eighth Grades in addition to coaching boys’ and girls’ basketball and girls’ volleyball and serving as Student Council Sponsor for 3 years. This is Sandra’s seventh year teaching at Great Expectations.
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Diane Chapin - 5th Grade
Diane Chapin is a native Tucsonan who comes to Great Expectations with over 35 years of teaching experience in grades K-8. She continues to teach because she loves working with children and helping them learn and grow. Diane earned a BA and MA in Elementary Education from the University of Arizona, as well as a Supervisor Certificate and numerous endorsements. Diane taught first grade in Casa Grande Unified District, then worked for three years on Mt. Lemmon as Head Teacher of Zimmerman School, one of the few one room K-6 schools in the United States. She was employed with Sunnyside Schools for 30 years teaching various grades, including working with teachers as a Reading Coach, and most recently as a Reading Interventionist for grades 6-8. Diane has been married for 26 years to Tom, an artist and teacher at Pima College. They live in Tucson on 3 desert acres with three dogs and a cat. Her hobbies include travel, reading, hiking, and swimming.
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Tara Rayan - 6th Grade
Tara is very excited to be our new middle school science teacher. This school year will be her 7th year teaching the wonderful world of science. She has taught at bigger schools and always finds that real learning, understanding, and growth happens in the more family-like school settings. Tara always wants to learn and discover new things, especially with her students. She has just finished her Master’s Degree in Educational Technology and plans to continue her education in biology with specifics in heredity. Tara’s goal is to help the students at Great Expectations Academy excel in academics. She knows that goal can be reached by all of us joining together as a team to see that our children succeed.
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Brian Supowit - 6th Grade
Brian Supowit is a native Tucsonan with over 4 years of teaching 6-8th grade science and language arts in TUSD. He coaches middle school track and table tennis as after school programs along with developing MESA (math, engineering, science achievement) programs. He is an avid outdoor athlete who loves and plays on three soccer teams. He is very excited to start his first year at GEA and enhance the minds of today so they can be succesful and make a better tomorrow. Brian is happily married, with no kids as of yet, and enjoys long hikes in the beautiful Arizona mountains.





Aaron Szabo - 7th Grade
Aaron moved to Green Valley in 2006 from Santa Cruz, California. He attended San Jose State University and earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics with minors in Music and Spanish. Aaron spent many years working for Santa Clara County Probation Department and has recently started a new career in education. He enjoys working with adolescent students. Aaron also enjoys playing music and performs in several salsa bands in Tucson. This is his first year at Great Expectations Academy.





Cassandra Sparrold - 8th Grade
Cassandra is a native Tucsonan and alumna of the University of Arizona with her Bachelors in English Literature and a Masters in Secondary Education from the University of Phoenix. She transitioned from the banking industry into teaching to enjoy building relationships within the classroom. She is a former caver, exploring many caves around Southern Arizona. She also has four cats and two dogs and spends her spare time reading, knitting and hanging out with her critters.
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Wayne Koelemeyer - Special Education
Wayne moved to Tucson from Chicago in the fall of 1996 to enjoy the natural beauty that Arizona has to offer. Prior to teaching he served as a youth social worker, working with homeless and parentless children. Wayne has a Master’s Degree (Education) from the U of A. He likes to use his energy in an effort to promote socially responsive, child centered educational practices. He firmly believes that social justice can be enhanced through fundamental educational reform. As an educator he finds fulfillment when students can express joy, engage the world through social interaction, and can find or create solutions. During his free time he enjoys art, music, travel, sports, and wearing plaid.




Jani Minker - Title I/Special Projects
Jani and her husband, Al, have lived in the Sahuarita area since 1981. They have a twenty-year-old daughter. As a family, they enjoy music, reading, camping, and travel. Jani graduated from the University of Arizona with a BA in Elementary Education. Graduate work has been in the areas of Counseling, Guidance and Reading Instruction. She is also trained in Reading Recovery. Jani has 26 years of experience teaching Kindergarten, 1st, 3rd, 4th, 7th and 8th grades, reading and gifted programs.






Rebecca Moore - Physical Education
Rebecca is a native Tucsonan with roots going back to her great-grandmother. She and her husband now live in Sahuarita with their two children. A certified personal trainer, Rebecca specializes in youth fitness, childhood and adult obesity as well as pre and post-natal training. Rebecca successfully ran her own fitness classes in and around Sahuarita before joining the GEA staff. Her hobbies include triathlons, 5 K runs, swimming, cycling, reading and working on her scrapbook. This is her sixth year at GEA.
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Lara Somers - Elementary Art
Lara received her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from Northern Arizona University and is now attending the University of Arizona for her Master’s in Art and Visual Culture Education. She recently mentored at Second Street Children’s School where she developed an understanding and appreciation for the Reggio Emilia teaching philosophy and the creativity that exists in young children. Lara is also interested in incorporating contemporary works of art into her classroom and helping students to appreciate the practical and imaginative side to art.

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