Kim Bishop
Classroom Teacher, 1st Grade
Kim received her B.A. in Psychology, Colorado Teaching Certificate for Elementary Education and M.A. in Bilingual & Multicultural Education from the University of Colorado in Boulder. The first five years of her teaching career began in Denver Public Schools working as a second and third grade classroom teacher. In search of adventure and Spanish, she moved to Costa Rica and taught fifth grade at the American International School for two years. While living abroad she traveled to places like Argentina, Cuba, Spain, Bulgaria, Italy and Germany, took University Spanish courses and lived for extended periods of time in Mexico. Kim has been teaching since the year 2000, and has worked with all age levels from preschool to adult. Excited to be back in Colorado near her family, she is thrilled to be a part of the Mountain Phoenix Community, where the whole child is truly valued and nurtured. She was drawn to Waldorf education because she believes school should be a joyful, healthy experience. Kim also enjoys hiking, camping, yoga, swimming and travel.
Michelle Hollandsworth
Classroom Teacher, 1st Grade
Michelle comes to Mountain Phoenix with twelve years teaching experience, ten of which are in Jeffco Public Schools as a teacher librarian, most recently at a bilingual school. Her path to Waldorf education has been a recent one, but she feels that many of her life experiences have been leading in this direction. She brings a love of storytelling, nature and music, which includes singing and playing the piano, guitar, electric bass, recorder, and pentatonic flute. Michelle is receiving her Waldorf Teaching Training at Rudolf Steiner College in California. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Virginia Tech and her Master’s degree in Library Science from Syracuse University. She has her teaching license in New York and Colorado. Michelle is married and has two grown children. She enjoys doing yoga, reading, bicycling and gardening. She is excited to be joining Mountain Phoenix where she can combine her experience in public education with her love of Waldorf education.
Jessamyn Stevens
Classroom Teacher, 2nd Grade
Jessamyn has worked in schools and has been teaching for 8 years. She considers herself a lifelong learner who thrives in an atmosphere that constantly provides learning opportunities. After receiving her Bachelors degree from Tufts University in Boston, she moved to Colorado to pursue teaching and a Masters in Educational Psychology at the University of Colorado.
In addition to teaching, she has found that nature provides innumerable opportunities for learning. She loves the outdoors, running, hiking, camping and skiing. She moved to Colorado after college where she could be surrounded by mountains, snow, and miles of running trails.
Aaryn Munson-Price
Classroom Teacher, 3rd Grade
Aaryn Munson-Price holds a BA in Fine Art from the Coastal Carolina University. There she ran track and cross-country. Upon graduation she spent sometime over seas backpacking. In 2009 Aaryn graduated with a Masters in Fine Arts from the University of Colorado at Boulder. In 2010, Aaryn entered into the Stanley British Primary teacher preparation program and received her certification in 2011. Before coming to Mountain Phoenix she worked as a support teacher at The Odyssey School in Denver. Aaryn deeply values the integration of the arts with experiential learning.
In addition to teaching, Aaryn loves to spend her time trail running, hiking, tour cycling, camping and painting.
Eric Ebert
Classroom Teacher, 2nd Grade
Eric holds a B.A. degree from St. John’s College in Santa Fe, and an M.A. in Waldorf and Integrated Day education from Antioch New England Graduate School. His transformative experience at St. John’s convinced him of the value of a liberal arts education. He has worked to bring that sort of experience to children in a number of settings, including private and public Waldorf-methods schools. A strong believer in the lessons Nature has to teach, he is particularly happy to return to the mountain west.
Rachel Riccio
Classroom Teacher, 3rd Grade
Rachel Riccio is an elementary education teacher that has taught in a variety of grade levels and content areas, ranging from pre-school to eighth Grade. She graduated with a B.S. in Elementary Education from Susquehanna University in 2004, and began teaching at a Waldorf School in Minnesota later that fall, carrying her class from fourth through seventh grade. Her teaching experiences include both public and private school systems, as well as coaching Varsity Women’s Soccer and directing a middle school choir for several years.
She is originally from rural Upstate New York, but has recently moved from Connecticut’s shoreline to beautiful Colorado. While in Connecticut Rachel taught pre-school, kindergarten and second grade at Hamden Hall Country Day School, a private college-preparatory school where she received specialized training in the Haskins Literacy Initiative developed by Yale University. Rachel is thrilled to reconnect with Waldorf Education, and incorporate art, music and movement into her daily instruction. In her free time, Rachel enjoys painting, gardening, bicycling and Pilates.
Jennifer Cain
Classroom Teacher, 4th Grade
Jennifer taught a multi-aged classroom at our Coal Creek Canyon Campus last year and this year joins us as a Fourth Grade Teacher. She comes to us from the Pacific Northwest where she taught in a Waldorf and Montessori inspired preschool. She also developed and ran her own preschool program there. As an educator for the past fifteen years, Jennifer has worked with people of all ages. She has developed and implemented classes ranging from ecology to art, both in the outdoors as well as the classroom. Her family is in Colorado, so she has returned to our beautiful state where she once developed curriculum and programs for children of all ages at Denver Botanical Gardens. Jennifer brings a love of young children and a passion for integrative education. She is currently completing her Masters in Education.
Noa Wotton
Classroom Teacher, 4th Grade
Noa followed his Third grade class from last year into Fourth grade this year. When he visited East Bay Waldorf School at age eight, Noa observed to his mother that his “childhood would be longer here.” Waldorf education taught Noa to balance creative expression with physical work, analysis with imagination, and academic debate with good old-fashioned play.
Graduating from Wesleyan University, Noa began working with children at The Mosaic Project Outdoor School in 2005, where he helped fourth graders learn conflict resolution skills. Inspired by this powerful work, he went on to work with youth in several states and three countries before settling in Colorado to teach in Denver Public Schools. The depth of learning his students accomplish over time and the relationships he builds with students and their families make teaching worth every moment. When he’s not working in the classroom, Noa leads backcountry trips, cooks delicious vegetarian meals, and hones his accordion skills. He is also a certified Wilderness First Responder.
Rob Erwin
Classroom Teacher, 5th Grade
Mr. Erwin is a former civil engineer but found his true passion in teaching. His education beliefs include whole person, experiential, and outdoor education, all in a nurturing community that empowers each child to discover their own special gifts and talents. Rob has taught for fourteen years, including kindergarten through sixth grade classrooms, and has taught many multi-age classes. In the past year, he completed a rough cut version of his self-produced documentary about education titled Educating for Human Greatness. Rob has his Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Colorado, Denver. He enjoys gardening, hiking, spending time with his two sons and daughter-in-law and travelling with his wife.
Jennifer Black
Classroom Teacher, 5th Grade
Jennifer’s classroom experience ranges from preschoolers to the college level, with the majority of her classroom time spent in the elementary. She received her BA in Education and her MA in Curriculum and Teaching from Michigan State University. She is passionate about education and enjoys creating opportunities for learning through a variety of methods, but art, drama, and literature are some of her favorites.
In her free time, Jennifer enjoys reading, cooking, gardening and crafty projects like painting and scrapbooking. She has a very supportive husband of 15 years and three children, who attend Mountain Phoenix as well.
