Amana Academy's Faculty

Consistent with the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) regulations as they apply to charter schools, Amana Academy has actively sought the most highly qualified staff possible. All Amana faculty and staff have been rigorously screened on the basis of their academic credentials, relevant experience, validated evidence of student achievement and recommendations from previous employers, parents and the community.

As even the youngest of children can aspire and exemplify Amana principles, so too will they react to examples that are inconsistent with these values. Amana Academy educates by example. As such, Amana Academy staff must exemplify the qualities we strive to guide our students towards. In the words of our partner ELOB, we are not passengers but a "crew". Therefore, ideas and actions of all staff affect the course to which we steer ourselves. As we truly are "charting new waters" with our unique emphasis on high academic achievement, communication excellence, Arabic, ethical character and stewardship, we strive to attract and retain individuals who show enthusiasm for and commitment to these areas.

The Organizational Structure of Amana Academy is available in pdf format:

Amana Organizational Chart

Amana Academy Administrators

Jeff Weiner
Executive Director

email: jweiner@amanaacademy.org

email: jnaim@amanaacademy.org

Since 1983 Jelena has held various positions of increasing responsibility devoted to teaching English and English as a Second Language. She has taught at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, at the American Cultural Center in Alexandria Egypt, at the Oxford County Language Office in Oxford England, and most recently as a Lecturer in the Department of Applied Linguistics & ESL at Georgia State University.

In addition to her classroom teaching experience at Lilburn Middle School in Lilburn, Georgia, Jelena has conducted teacher training programs for international middle and high school teachers and developed curricular materials at Georgia State University. At GSU, she also coordinated learning labs and student activities for the Department of Applied Linguistics, where she served as chairs of the Lecturer Search Committee and Student Evaluation.

Jelena has a Bachelor's Degree in French with a minor in History from the University of Illinois at Chicago; she completed here Master's Degree in Teaching English as a Second Language from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She has studied abroad in France and Spain, and she is certified in Middle School teaching from Mercer University Graduate School of Education.

Jelena was one of a dozen core team volunteers who developed the Amana Academy concept and saw it through to State approval. She served on the Education and Human Resources committees and as Secretary on Amana's Founding Board. Her contributions have been significant, and combined with her educational experience she is especially qualified to be Amana's Instructional Guide.

Jelena joined Amana Academy in 2005.

Kevin Durkin

Director of Student Services

email: kdurkin@amanaacademy.org

Kevin Durkin joined Amana in 2009.

Jean-Jacques Credi
Grade Level Administrator

email: jcredi@amanaacademy.org

Jean-Jacques Credi joined Amana in 2006.  He graduated from the University of Rochester and earned his teaching license and Master’s Degree at Indiana University.  As a sixth year teacher, Mr. Credi also serves as a National Facilitator with the National School Reform Faculty, an organization devoted to promoting high academic achievement and equitable student outcomes through collaboration and professional inquiry.  Mary LoCurto
Grade Level Administrator

email: mlocurto@amanaacademy.org

Mary LoCurto joined Amana in 2006.

Leslie Morrison

Grade Level Administrator

email: lmorrison@amanaacademy.org

Leslie Morrison joined Amana in 2007. Prior to Amana, Ms. Morrison had 12 years of teaching experience. Most recently she has been a kindergarten teacher at Mimosa Elementary School in Fulton County. She is certified in both California and Georgia. She has a BS in Early Childhood Education and has held many leadership positions. Sumayya Allen

Business Manager

email: sallen@amanaacademy.org

Sumaira Akber
School Data Specialist

email: sakber@amanaacademy.org

Sumaira Akber joined Amana in 2009. Paul Holbrook
Directory of Instructional Technology

email: pholbrook@amanaacademy.org

Paul is responsible for all technology planning, implementation, and maintenance at Amana Academy. Prior to joining Amana in 2008, Paul has worked at EarthLink, CNN, and Georgia Tech. Ruksana Shibly
Clinic Nurse and Front Desk Assistant

email: rshibly@amanaacademy.org

Ruksana Shibly joined Amana in 2009.

Amana Academy Teachers and Support Staff

Engy Abdalla

Kindergarten Teacher Assistant

email: eabdalla@amanaacademy.org

Engy Abdalla joined Amana in 2008.

Sarah Armbruster

3rd Grade Teacher

email: sarmbruster@amanaacademy.org

Sarah Armbruster joined Amana in 2009.

Hana Arslan
Arabic Teacher

email: harslan@amanaacademy.org

Theresa Ardolino

Kindergarten Teacher Assistant

email: tardolino@amanaacademy.org

Theresa Ardolino joined Amana in 2006.

Angelique Barnett

1st Grade Teacher

email: abarnett@amanaacademy.org

Hiba Bawji

2nd Grade Teacher

email: hbawji@amanaacademy.org

Hiba Bawji joined Amana in 2009.

Djaouida Bensaadoun

Arabic Teacher

email: dbensaadoun@amanaacademy.org

Ms. Bensaadoun joined Amana in 2007 and was previously a kindergarten teacher's assistant. She has a degree in dentistry from Algeria and is finishing her teaching certification through Perimeter College. She currently certified in Georgia as a French teacher.

Asuza Callaway

1st Grade Teacher

email: acallaway@amanaacademy.org

Asuza Callaway joined Amana in 2008.Lori Casal
Kindergarten Teacher

email: lcasal@amanaacademy.org

email: vcastro@amanaacademy.org

Vicky Castro joined Amana in 2006.

Shanna Curry

3rd Grade Teacher

email: scurry@amanaacademy.org

Shanna Curry joined Amana in 2009.

Natasha Condoll

3rd Grade Teacher

email: ncondoll@amanaacademy.org

Natasha Condoll joined Amana in 2007. Mrs. Condoll previously taught 2nd grade at Woodland Elementary Charter School in Fulton County.  She has been a teacher for over 11 years.  She is certified in the states of Georgia and Louisiana for K-5th grades and ESOL.  Throughout her career she has served as coordinator and chairperson for various committees and teams.  She has a BA in Education and an MA in Curriculum and Instruction.

Cheryl Dill

3rd Grade Teacher

email: cdill@amanaacademy.org

Cheryl Dill joined Amana in 2007. Ms. Dill has been a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teacher for the past 8 years.  Prior to Amana, she taught 5th grade at Langston Hughes Elementary in Washington D.C.  While there, she has served as the grade level chair for the 4 years.  She has a BA in Communications and an M.Ed. in Elementary Education.Basma Elashker

Arabic Teacher

email: belashkar@amanaacademy.org

Basma Elashker joined Amana in 2007.

Cheryl Dill

3rd Grade Teacher

email: cdill@amanaacademy.org

Cheryl Dill joined Amana in 2007. Ms. Dill has been a 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade teacher for the past 8 years.  Prior to Amana, she taught 5th grade at Langston Hughes Elementary in Washington D.C.  While there, she has served as the grade level chair for the 4 years.  She has a BA in Communications and an M.Ed. in Elementary Education. Peter Epstein

email: pepstein@amanaacademy.org

Peter Epstein joined Amana in 2009. Laurie Guthrie

Paraprofessional

email: lguthrie@amanaacademy.org

Laurie Guthrie joined Amana in 2007. Brooke Heimerl
7th Grade Science Teacher

email: bheimerl@amanaacademy.org

Brooke Heimerl joined Amana in 2005.

Karen Helz

ESOL Teacher

email: khelz@amanaacademy.org

Karen Helz joined Amana in 2007.Merry Herdt
4th Grade Humanities Teacher

email: mherdt@amanaacademy.org

Merry Herdt joined Amana in 2005.

Priya Kadambi

3rd Grade Teacher

email: pkadambi@amanaacademy.org

Priya Kadambi joined Amana in 2009.

Leena Khan

2nd Grade Teacher

email: lkahn@amanaacademy.org

Leena Kahn joined Amana in 2009.

Denise Klein

Kindergarten Teacher

email: dklein@amanaacademy.org

Denise Klein joined Amana in 2007.

Stephanie Kumpf

7th Grade Humanities Teacher

email: skumpf@amanaacademy.org

Stephanie Kumpf joined Amana in 2008.

Eman Maamoun

Arabic Teacher

email: emaamoun@amanaacademy.org

Mrs. Maamoun joined Amana in 2007 and has been a teacher since 1988 in the United Arab Emirates teaching ESL and serving as a media specialist.  She served as a consultant for Amana while developing the charter, specifically working with the Arabic component.  Most recently she has been working as a volunteer in various educational institutions in the area of media.  She is certified in the state of Georgia as a librarian, to teach ESOL, and as proficient in Arabic.  She has a BA in English Literature and an MA in Information and Library Services.

Ayesha Mawad

4th Grade Math/Science Teacher

email: amawad@amanaacademy.org

Ayesha Mawad joined Amana in 2008.

Shonda McField

Instructional Support Teacher

email: smcfield@amanaacademy.org

Shonda McField joined Amana in 2008.

Kristen McNeil

2nd Grade Teacher

email: kmcneil@amanaacademy.org

Kristen McNeil joined Amana in 2009.

Ghada Mohamed
Kindergarten Teacher Assistant

email: gmohamed@amanaacademy.org

Ghada Mohamed joined Amana in 2008.

Seema Rokarya

Kindergarten Paraprofessional

email: srokarya@amanaacademy.org

Seema Rokarya joined Amana in 2009.

Sarah Passoff

1st Grade Teacher

email: spassoff@amanaacademy.org

Sarah Passoff joined Amana in 2009.

Svetlana Savova

Kindergarten Teacher

email: ssavova@amanaacademy.org

Svetlana Savova joined Amana in 2009.

Melissa Singh
Library Specialist

email: msingh@amanaacademy.org

Melissa Singh joined Amana in 2005. She is a school library media specialist from Long Island, New York. She holds a Master's Degree in Library and Information Science from Long Island University and a BA in Elementary Education/Psychology from Dowling College. Melissa has 5 years professional experience at the elementary level in which she had the opportunity to establish and develop a new library facility. She has also administered an enrichment program, providing challenging academic activities to those students in need of more intellectual stimulation. Melissa was attracted to Amana, because of the opportunity to create a customized library that reflects and supports students and staff. She is also interested in the philosophy and learning approaches of a small sized charter school, which is a refreshing change from New York's public schools. Melissa and her husband live in Roswell.Ghada Swadek
Student Support

email: gswadek@amanaacademy.org

Ghada Swadek joined Amana in 2005.

Ivan Tcherepov
Physical Education/Health Teacher

email: itcherepov@amanaacademy.org

John Temples

6th Grade Science Teacher

email: jtemples@amanaacademy.org

John Temples joined Amana in 2007. He previously taught 6th grade science for two years at Calhoun Middle School.  He has an extensive background in outdoor and experiential education.  His BS is in Recreation and his MEd. is in Education.  He has had experience with teaching conflict resolution and group therapy.

Dinah Thomas

2nd Grade Teacher

email: dthomas@amanaacademy.org

Dinah Thomas joined Amana in 2008.

Sami Tunick joined Amana in 2005..

Maria Vaughan
Health/Fitness Teacher

email: mvaughan@amanaacademy.org

Maria Vaughan joined Amana in 2005.

Michelle Valerius

5th Grade Humanities Teacher

email: mvalerius@amanaacademy.org

Michelle Valerius joined Amana in 2008.Rochelle Wilson

7th & 8th Grade Humanities Teacher

email: rspears@amanaacademy.org

Rochelle Wilson joined Amana in 2007. Ms. Wilson has taught Language Arts for the past 5 years.  Most recently she has been an English teacher at MceEachern High School.  She has a BA in English and an MA in Professional Writing (2008).  She is certified in Georgia in English, Behavioral Science, Economics, Geography, History, and Political Science.  She is also a published author.

Lakeem Winborne

Art Teacher

email: lwinborne@amanaacademy.org

Lakeem Winborne joined Amana in 2008.