Faculty Credentials – Scholars Academy

OUR TEACHERS

At Scholars Academy, we entrust our teachers with being the facilitators of learning and the masters of making magic in the classroom. Our qualified and exceptional teachers are passionate about making a positive and far-reaching impact on the lives of their students.

DR. LAURA LOWDER

Lead Elementary School Faculty

Mrs. Hannah Hill Park

Academy Lead Reading, Social Studies, K-8 Science, & STEM Teacher

B.A. in Elementary Education

M.Ed. in Curriculum & Instruction

K-6 Elementary Education Licensure

K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure

Union County Teacher of the Year ’21

Board Member & They’ll Be Fine Podcast Host for NC Association for Gifted (NCAGT)

Mrs. Alexia Rose

Academy Lead Math, Reading, Writing, & Social Studies Teacher

Academy Oh Freedom! Facilitator: Seeking the Stories of the Underrepresented & Oppressed Voices & Navigating Tough Discussions

K-6 Elementary Education Licensure

K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure

M.Ed. in progress UNC-C

Board Member & They’ll Be Fine Podcast Host for NC Association for Gifted (NCAGT)

Dr. Laura Lowder

Academy Math Instructor

5th grade-Pre-Calculus

Academy Learn-to-Read Instructor

Academy 9-12 ELA Teacher

Academy 9-12 Social Studies Teacher

Academy Director & Curriculum Coordinator

Doctorate K-12 Curriculum & Instruction; Online Teaching and Learning (University of Florida)

Masters K-12 Curricuum & Instruction

Bachelor’s K-6 Elementary Education

K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure

Artistic Faculty

Mrs. Kris McConnell

Music & Choir Faculty; Newspaper Club Faculty Mentor; Story Club Faculty Mentor

B.A. Music & Leaders

Upper Academy English Language ARts & History Faculty

Ms. Julianna Tauschinger-Dempsey

Upper Academy Lead Faculty

English Language Arts & History Harvard University Bachelors in Social Anthropology

Manhattan School of Music

Masters of Vocal Performance Vocalist for Zurich Opera

Upper Academy STEM Faculty

Mr. David Nichols

Upper Academy Science Faculty Columbia University Masters of Philosophy in Chemistry

California Institute of Technology BS Chemistry

North Carolina State Environmental Engineering

Wingate University Chemistry Faculty

Mr. Michael Lowder

Academy Scientist In Residence Volunteer Instructor Co-Founder of Scholars Academy for the Gifted and Artistically Elite B.S. Biology M.S. Department

Head of Life & Physical Science @ Our Dual Enrollment Partner School, Stanly Community College

Recipient of the 2022 NCSTA Don Bailey College/University Distinguished Service Award

Co-Founder of Scholars Academy for the Gifted and Artistically Elite

Newly-Identified Spider Species Named in His Honor ’23 Nesticus lowderi

Upper Academy STEM Faculty

Mrs. Hannah Park

Mindfulness Facilitator

Mrs. Alexia Rose

Mindfulness Facilitator

Peer Mentors Facilitator

Mrs. Kamini Wood

Social and Emotional Faculty & 1:1 Support Coach Mrs. Wood is the CEO of her own professional business, as a certified Life Coach.

Foreign Language Faculty

Ms. Bianca Moeller

Spanish Faculty; Ecology Lab Faculty; Virtual Intensive Faculty

WHAT MAKES A GIFTED TEACHER

Our gifted teachers support scholars by implementing the following practices:

Being able to adjust to unique situations.
Being able to understand the gifted student, what areas they excel in, their struggles, and using that knowledge to help them learn.
Focusing on the strengths of students and reinforcing the positives, instead of on the negatives.
Being able to use our gifted education program to adapt to the needs of gifted students in a nontraditional setting.
Embracing dyslexia, autism, ADHD, or any other exceptionality, and viewing it as an advantage.

Our academy is full of these educators who are making a difference.

OUR GIFTED TEACHERS AT SCHOLARS ACADEMY

Dr. Laura Lowder selects the best and brightest educators and facilitators in a classroom. For example:

The elementary school faculty members have received K-12 academically gifted teaching licensure.
One of our upper academy English and history teachers has a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and a master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music.
Within our gifted education program, our artistic faculty teacher has a Bachelor of Music and Leadership degree.
The STEM faculty all have master’s and/or doctorate degrees from esteemed universities.
The academy employs mindfulness, social, and emotional certified instructors.
The faculty is enriched with a foreign language educator who teaches Spanish.

OUR UNIQUE FACULTY STRENGTHS AT SCHOLARS ACADEMY

Our faculty has additional strengths that qualify us to teach the gifted. Some of these are:

Our staff works academically with pre-professional dancers and are accommodating with their busy dance schedules.
The education program implemented by our gifted teachers provides learning opportunities for students that are self-paced and on their own timeline.
We encourage students to dream big, ask questions, express themselves through creativity, and have classroom discussions where they can openly share their opinions.
As teachers of gifted students, we recognize that learning and school should be fun for them. We strive to bring that energy and environment into our classrooms.
We encourage and work with high-achieving students so that they can reach their academic goals as quickly as they would like to.
We have mastered the balance of encouraging student growth at their own pace (in order to eliminate pressure and stress). At the same time, we challenge gifted students to become better through our education program and teaching.

WHY WE LOVE WHAT WE DO

As educators at Scholars Academy for the Gifted, we love what we do. This is because we get to:

Be part of the process of helping gifted students learn, grow, and change for the better.
Promote positive change and success among students and their families.
Remember that gifted and twice-exceptional students are incredible. As teachers, we see the greatness that you see in your child.
Implement a unique gifted education program that we couldn’t find anywhere else.
To give your child the education they deserve, contact Scholars Academy today.

SCHEDULE YOUR FREE CONSULTATION