New Hires at Laguna

Please join us in welcoming these community members to their new positions at Laguna Blanca for the 2015-16 school year!

Anna Alldredge will teach Eighth Grade English and History as our new Middle School Humanities teacher. Anna has a B.A. and M.A. from Stanford University and has taught at schools in California and abroad. She taught most recently at Cate School before taking time away from work to raise her two children, who are both students in Laguna’s Lower School.
 
Allison Armstrong will be our Sixth Grade Lead Teacher. Allison was an Assistant Teacher in Laguna’s third and fourth grades this past year and has also worked at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. She earned an undergraduate degree in history from Whitman College and a master’s in education from UCSB.
 
Mara Balak will be our Second Grade Lead Teacher. Mara worked this year in our new EK program as the Assistant Teacher and long term substitute teacher during the lead teacher’s maternity leave. Prior to Laguna, she served as the kindergarten assistant at St. Margaret's Episcopal School in San Juan Capistrano for three years. Mara earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California, a master's degree in education and a teaching credential from Pepperdine University.
 
Lolli Lucas Clark Lolli Lucas will serve as Laguna Blanca’s Interim Head of Upper School for the 2015-2016 school year. Before joining LBS, Lolli served as the the Upper School Director at Sierra Canyon School in Chatsworth, CA since 2011. In addition to her administrative duties, Lolli was a member of the history department where she enjoyed teaching Defining Moments: The Civil Rights Movement and Introduction to Psychology. Prior to her tenure at Sierra Canyon, she served as the Director of College Counseling at Brentwood School in Brentwood, CA where she also worked as the Associate Director of Admissions and College Counseling. Additionally, Lolli has held positions in the admission offices of The College of William and Mary and Pomona College. Lolli holds a B.A. in Psychology from Vassar College, and a Doctorate of Education from UCLA. She is the proud mother of a son, Beckett, who will join the second grade at Laguna Blanca.

Jason Donnelly will serve as Laguna Blanca's new Athletic Director and Girls Volleyball Coach. Jason had a previous stint at Laguna from 1996-2008 as the head coach of our girls and boys volleyball teams. During that period, he led our girls to the CIF title in 2006, and also served as our Middle School Athletic Director. Jason left Laguna in 2008 to coach women's volleyball at Rutgers University in New Jersey. After three seasons, he and his wife returned to Santa Barbara where Jason ran the boys and girls volleyball programs at Bishop Diego High School. As a native of Santa Barbara, Jason played high school volleyball at San Marcos. After spending a year playing at SBCC, he continued his college volleyball career at University of the Pacific and graduated with a B.A. in psychology.
 
Nissa Hales will move from the sixth grade classroom into the Technology Department to serve as our Instructional Technology Coordinator. She will work with teachers to enhance our students’ learning experience by incorporating technology into the classroom and helping to organize professional development in this area. Nissa earned a B.S. in Elementary/Early Childhood Education from the University of Alabama and an M.A. Ed. from Antioch University. She has also taught Educational Technology at Antioch University.
 
Jillian Honorof will teach Middle and Upper School Music this fall. Jillian joins us from Westside School in Seattle where she taught performing arts to PK-8th grade students. Jillian has also taught Upper School students at two other independent schools. She holds an undergraduate degree from Mills College and a master’s degree from Boston University. 
 
Dana Ortner will be teaching Middle and Upper School Drama. Dana is a Santa Barbara native who graduated from UCSB and has been working with former Drama Instructor Kate Bergstrom in Laguna’s theater program as an assistant director and costume designer. She has also worked with Stage Left Productions for ten years.
 
Blaire Ridge joined our development team on June 1 as the Associate Director for Donor Relations. After working in corporate accounting for Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Jack in the Box, she ventured into the fundraising world and is coming to us after 11 years with The Bishop’s School in La Jolla where she served as the Advancement Services Coordinator.
 
Frederic Skrzyzpek will serve as our new Director of Technology. Frederic has worked at a number of independent schools as a Middle and Upper School French teacher. His most recent position was Upper School Technology Coordinator at the Friends School of Baltimore. Frederic holds undergraduate and graduate degrees from University Paris in France.
 
Amanda Whalen will teach Upper School biology for a year while Staci Richard is on sabbatical. Amanda has a B.S. from Texas A&M University and has taught and coached in Lower, Middle, and Upper Schools over the course of her teaching career. She taught most recently at Fort Worth Country Day School where she served as the seventh grade team leader and science instructor.
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