IST's staff is truly international and reflects the international orientation of the school.Our teachers (and TAs) have degrees, the majority have Master's, and are either certified in their own countries or are pursuing Arizona certification.
Approximately one-third of our faculty are State Department-sponsored international exchange teachers who come to the US for 2 - 3 years and then return home to share their experiences. These teachers also bring with them news and experiences of educational developments in their own countries, for example concerning current educational reforms in France, Germany and England. This brings a vibrancy and excitement to the School, while our two-thirds "local" staff bring the constancy and institutional knowledge a school needs.
Please click here for definitions of Pre-School / Junior School at IST.
Mme Alonso came from Paris to take her BA at the University of Arizona, and previously taught at the Portland French School. This is her second year at IST. Mme Alonso also coaches Chess.
Ms Aussprung maintains an active teaching schedule and private studio and has over 10 years of experience teaching piano and double bass lessons to young people. She has played with the DePaul and Arizona Symphonies as well as the Southern Arizona Symphony and Tucson Chamber Orchestras and has taught in the Opening Minds Through the Arts program as a teaching artist. This is her second year at IST.
Pre-School Spanish Teacher / Assistant Head of Pre-SchoolSra Boudreau is from Lima where she qualified in Spanish and English Language and Literature and taught Elementary and Secondary English and Spanish. She has a particular interest in first language teaching methodologies for second language and immersion learners. Sra Boudreau joined IST in our second semester when we had only one class! This is her seventh year at IST.
Pre-School Spanish TeacherThis is Sra Brambila's fourth year at IST. Sra Brambila trained and qualified as a teacher in Mexico.
Pre-School French TeacherM Drame hails from Ivory Coast where he gained his degrees, trained, qualified and then taught for two years prior to coming to the US. He tried New York, but found Tucson suited him and his wife more and so their daughters were born here. M Drame joined us in our second year when we had just two classes, and this is his sixth year at IST. He also coaches IST Soccer.
Ms Elliott comes from Illinois and moved to Tucson with her family. As a parent, she is in her sixth year at IST. She is also a former ISTPA President, and was previously a member of the school's Board of Trustees.
Ms Fan is in the final year of her PhD in Second Language Acquisition and Teaching("SLAT") at the University of Arizona. She teaches Chinese B to our J4-5 students and is in her first year at IST.
Junior School Spanish Teacher
Sra Keila Flores - Puerto Rico
Sra Flores taught as an elementary teacher before coming to Tucson. She taught in IST's Pre-School for two years and is in her third year at IST.
Pre-School Office Assistant
Mr Sullivan Greif - USA
Mr Greif is a student at the University of Arizona and assists with all kinds of tasks, principally in the Pre-School office. This is his third year at IST.
Pre-School Chinese TeacherMs Lien came to Tucson from Taiwan where she was an elementary teacher and launched our Chinese programme. She has five years teaching experience in language teaching. This is her third year at IST.
As a parent, Mrs McDonald has been at IST for four years, and as a teacher one. She is on maternity leave this year.
Mr McDonald joins IST as we move into our new campus. He has responsibility for the grounds, trees and exterior / interior maintenance.
This is Sra McKenna's third year at IST. She also coaches Basketball and Soccer.
Fr Meyer came to Tucson from Germany as a child and completed school here. This is Fr Meyer's first year at IST.
This is Sra Molina's first year at IST.
Junior School English TeacherMs Nelson was a primary teacher in Manchester for three years before moving to Tucson, and is a diehard fan of Manchester United. Curiously, so too are many IST students. This is Ms Nelson's third year at IST. She also runs the Science Club.
Mr Noble ("Coach Matt") is in his first year of studying pharmacology at the University of Arizona. This is his third year at IST.
Ms Palma was a well-known and greatly-loved Early Childhood administrator around Tucson before joining IST. She is a senior member of "Las Familias", a community of Ealy Childhood Educators which shares good teaching ideas and helps newer teachers improve their practice. This is Ms Palma's first year at IST.
This is Sra Rivera's fifth year at IST.
Junior School English Teacher / Head of BasketballMr Rutledge taught for three years in a Sydney primary school before moving to London and then to Tucson. He played Rugby League and professes to prefer League over Union; the State of Origin match is his annual highlight. This is Mr Rutledge's third year at IST.
Ms Shepard comes from mainland China where she was a Middle School English teacher. This is her first year at IST.
Mr Smee joined IST after teaching in a Queensalnd primary school, which may explain his support for the Reds, and he joined IST part-way through the 2010/2011 year. This is his second year at IST. He also coaches Basketball and Soccer.
Junior School German Teacher
Hr Strub was a middle school teacher in Switzerland for four years. He taught German, History, Geography, and Music before moving to Tucson. He plays the violin and the guitar. He also likes to sing and go hiking in the Catalina Mountains. This is Hr Strub's first year at IST.
Head of Junior SchoolMs Thompson has taught in Washingon DC, Beijing, Buenos Aires, where she taught IB English A, ToK and was the IB Diploma Co-ordinator, and Nairobi, where she taught IB English A and ToK. She is married with a son who has spent the last nine years raising her. This is Ms Thompson's seventh year at IST.
Mme Toulze has taught in France and Louisiana and is to start at IST Semester II, 2011/2012. More information to follow.
Head of School
Vice-President, Arizona Association of Independent Schools; Member, Board of Directors Tucson Meet Yourself; Member, Advisory Board Center for English as a Second Language at the University of Arizona; Member, Advisory Board Center for Education Research in Culture, Language and Literacy at the University of Arizona ("CERCLL"); Member, National Association for the Education of Young Children; President, Oxford and Cambridge Society of Tucson; President, Tucson's Australians and New Zealanders.
Mr Young has taught in Christchurch, Tokyo, London, where he taught IB English A1, English B and IGCSE, Vienna, where he taught IB English A1 and A2, and Buenos Aires, where he taught IB English A1, and was a school head in Buenos Aires, Nairobi and Los Angeles. He is ever hopeful that the All Blacks will win the World Cup; he has played, coached and refereed national league volleyball, his JV Girls Basketball team reached the Austrian U-17 semi-finals and he and is surely one of the few Tucsonans to have played cricket in Argentina. He is married with a nine year-old son. This is Mr Young's eighth year at IST.
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