Dear St. Albans School Family:

As the 2026-27 school year approaches, we are delighted to introduce you to new faculty and staff who will be joining us at St. Albans this fall.  

Alewa Buchanan will be overseeing the Lower School Office as Lower School administrative support specialist. Buchanan received her B.A. in general psychology and M.A. in psychological science from California State University in San Bernardino, where she also played volleyball. Buchanan previously worked as an operations coordinator at Brighten Box LLC, a company specializing in care packages, and as a graduate instructor and researcher and as a writing and statistics tutor at Cal State.  

Matthieu Burkett-Erice joins St. Albans as head wrestling coach. Since 2015, Coach Burkett-Erice has served as head varsity wrestling coach at Riverside High School in Leesburg, Va. He has also worked for more than a decade as a Greco Roman and National Team Coach with the Virginia Wrestling Association and Team Virginia. Prior to moving to Virginia, Coach Burkett-Erice served as Hawaii’s Greco Roman Developmental Coach and National Team Coach. Outside wrestling, Coach Burkett-Erice is a supervisory police officer major with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.  

Ethan Cannistra, human resources coordinator, brings a strong background in communications, marketing, public relations, and multimedia content creation. He has experience managing client relationships and events, developing marketing campaigns, creating social media and promotional content, and producing written and visual communications, including work in higher education at the University of Maryland. Ethan holds a B.A. in multimedia communications and cinema and media studies from Gettysburg College and a master’s in journalism from the University of Maryland. 

Sooji Choi, director of donor relations and stewardship, joins St. Albans from Georgetown Law. Over the past decade, she has worked in healthcare and university development. Choi holds degrees from Parsons School of Design and Columbia University.

Director of Security Strategy and Operations Ally Coyne comes to St. Albans from the U.S. Army Military Police, where U.S. Army Military Police, directing security and safety operations for campuses supporting up to 250,000 people, and working directly with K-12 schools. Coyne served most recently as associate director of emergency services and security operations at Wheeler Army Airfield, and a senior security and operations manager at Schofield Barracks, both in Hawaii. She received her B.S. from Texas Christian University and her M.B.A. from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University.

Mollie Dee moves from a contractor to an employee relationship this year as she continues to support the Lower School. She has extensive experience as a licensed clinical psychologist, with a particular focus on children, adolescents, families, psychological assessment, and school-based support. Most recently, she served as Associate Clinic Director at The George Washington University, where she supervised doctoral students, managed clinical operations, and supported the development of emerging clinicians. Mollie also brings valuable experience working with students in educational settings and conducting psychoeducational assessments, making her a wonderful addition to our school community.

Form I science teacher Blair Dewing most recently taught chemistry, biology, and French at Episcopal High School, where she also served as a dean, coached field hockey and tennis, served as a dorm parent, and helped rewrite the science curriculum to emphasize experiential learning and to incorporate new technology, including AI platforms. In 2023-25 she was awarded the Young Professional Award for Promise in Teaching. Dewing received her B.A. in biology, with a minor in French, from Washington and Lee (where she conducted research on the effect of climate change on Virginia mountaintop salamanders), and her M.Ed. in educational psychology from the University of Virginia.  

Lower School Spanish teacher Nuria Guitart taught Spanish to students in grades one through eight at Blessed Sacrament School, where she was also head of the Foreign Language Department, served as middle school advisor, and conducted a service and language trip to Costa Rica. Guitart previously served as a long-term substitute at Washington International School and taught at the International Language Institute in D.C. and several area community centers. In her home country of Spain, Guitart worked as a journalist for Radio Nacional de España, anchoring and directing programs such as The Americas Hour, About Cinema, and This Is Not a Usual Day. Guitart received her M.Ed. from Moreland University.

Yelina Gyamfi, capital projects coordinator, has more than twelve years of project management experience. She came to St. Albans this spring from Utility Advantage, where she worked as a project coordinator. Yelina received her associate’s degree in business administration from Montgomery College; she is also a Certified Associate in Project Management. Form II science teacher Lara Kossiakoff received her B.S. in biology from Willamette University and her M.A. in teaching (with a focus on science education) from Lewis and Clark College. She most recently taught physical and biological science to seventh and eighth graders at the Tower Hill School in Wilmington. Kossiakoff previously taught middle and high school science at the Catherine Cook School, in Chicago, and at the Arts & Communications Magnet Academy and the Whitford Middle School, both in Beaverton, Ore. At Whitford, she also chaired the Science Department.

Jaime Lockwood, manager of development programs and events, previously held roles in event planning, project management, and development with nonprofit organizations focused on food and environmental justice across the United States. She also is a former Upper School history teacher at Friends Select School in Philadelphia, Pa. Lockwood holds a B.A. in politics from Randolph College, an M.A. in women’s history from Sarah Lawrence College, and an M.A. in politics and education from Teachers College at Columbia University.

Form C teacher Micah Maloney taught fourth grade most recently at St. Stephen’s and St. Agnes School. She previously taught physical education at the Lowell School, taught second grade at KIPP DC Heights Academy, and fourth grade at Rocketship Futuro Academy in Concord, Calif. She received her B.A. in psychology from Christopher Newport University, where she played basketball for four years, and is pursuing her master’s in teaching from Mary Baldwin University.  

Form I and II math specialist Madeline Manaker comes to St. Albans from Bishop O’Connell High School, where she taught algebra/trigonometry and geometry, created lesson plans to address individual student needs, and served as an advisor. For a decade, Manaker has also offered private tutoring and test prep to high school students. Manaker received her degree from Vanderbilt University, where she studied mathematics and secondary education and minored in music, and her master’s in music from George Mason University. Throughout her career she has pursued her interest in music, teaching voice and piano at Music Spectrum School for the Arts and leading the alto section at the First Baptist Church of the City of Washington, D.C.

Katy-Ann McDonald joined us as communications content developer in February. McDonald received her B.A. in journalism from Louisiana State University, where she ran track and field, receiving All-American honors, and her master’s in journalism from Georgetown University. After interning in newsrooms, she began her communications career at Airbus, the aircraft manufacturer in Herndon, Va. She then joined Holton-Arms School in Bethesda, where she coached track and field and worked in the school’s Communications Department.

Upper School math teacher Julia Penn has taught math in D.C. for fifteen years—at Georgetown Day School, Benjamin Banneker Academic High School, and Capital City Public Charter School. At GDS she also served as a faculty advisor, coached the math team, and was assistant coach of the girls’ soccer team. As a recipient of the Math for America Master Teacher fellowship at the Carnegie Institution, Penn offered monthly professional development sessions for D.C. area math teachers. She has also tutored math for more than a decade. Penn received her B.A. in mathematics from Wesleyan and her M.A. in teaching secondary mathematics at American University.  

Poet, writer, and teacher Martheaus Perkins will join us as our 45th writer in residence. His first book, a collection of poems titled The Grace of Black Mothers, was released in 2025 by Trio House Press. A graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University, Perkins received his M.F.A. in poetry from George Mason University, where he co-edited the journal BRAWL Lit. He has taught creative writing and composition at George Mason University and poetry at Virginia juvenile detention centers. His poetry has appeared in the Harpy Hybrid Review, Mystic Owl Mag, West Trade Review, and the South Florida Poetry Journal. This year, he was nominated for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work in Poetry.

Noel Quiñones joins us as a three-quarter-time member of the Upper School faculty, teaching English and supporting Upper School programming related to diversity and belonging, as Kyle Money transitions to a new role as Upper School dean of community life. A distinguished visiting professor at Odessa College and a poet in residence at the Chicago Poetry Center, Quiñones has also taught English at San Francisco University High School and the University of Mississippi and served as associate director of service learning and civic engagement at the Brooklyn Friends School. Quiñones’s debut poetry collection, Orange, was published this year by CavanKerry Press; their work has also been published in Poetry magazine, the Boston Review, Poem-a-Day, the Michigan Quarterly Review (for which they won the 2025 Jesmyn Ward Fiction Prize), and The Best Short Stories 2026: The O. Henry Prize Winners Anthology. Quiñones earned a B.A. in English literature with a minor in education from Swarthmore College and an M.F.A. in creative writing from the University of Mississippi.  

Franny Sewell, coordinate theater director and teacher, received her B.A. in theater (with a focus on acting) from Muhlenberg College, where she minored in Africana Studies. She was previously a theater teacher and musical director at the Abington Friends School in Jenkintown, Penn., and the Crefeld School, in Philadelphia; a theater teacher and artist in residence at Wolf Performing Arts Center, in Bryn Mawr, Penn.; an assistant director and improv teacher for the Traveling Players Ensemble in Great Falls, Va; and an acting coach at Colonial Middle School in Plymouth Meeting, Penn.

Forms C, B, and A math specialist Kamille Scarlett has fifteen years of experience teaching middle school math at Inspired Teaching Demonstration School in D.C. and middle and upper school math at Mastery Charter Schools in Philadelphia. She received her B.S. in psychology, with a minor in communications, from Hunter College and her M.Ed. in multicultural education from Eastern University.

Derek Spanellis received his B.A. in psychology from Dickinson College and his master’s in liberal studies from Wesleyan, where he studied education and human development. He comes to St. Albans from Mercyhurst University, where he was assistant men’s basketball coach and recruiting coordinator. He previously served as assistant coach at both his alma maters, supporting a comprehensive rebuild at Dickinson and helping lead Wesleyan to a 25-4 record, a NESCAC championship, and an NCAA tournament appearance. He also coached men’s basketball at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and was head JV coach at Calvert Hall.  

Nate Stone joins St. Albans with more than 10 years of experience in landscaping, horticulture, grounds maintenance, and facilities operations. Most recently, Nate has worked at Washington National Cathedral, progressing through several roles in grounds, turf, and horticulture, giving him extensive familiarity with the Close and the care and maintenance of its unique landscape. He also brings hands-on facilities experience, strong equipment and maintenance skills, and a background in leading teams and coordinating projects.

Lily Wolman joined the Development Office as assistant director of annual giving. Wolman previously served as alumni and development associate and assistant varsity softball coach at the Peddie School in Hightstown, N.J. Wolman attended Sidwell Friends School and graduated from Columbia University in 2025, where she studied Urban Studies and Education.  

Please join us in extending a warm welcome to the newest members of the St. Albans family and in thanking our long-term colleagues for agreeing to take on new roles.

Jason Robinson       Sherry Rusher
Headmaster             Dean of Faculty