Faculty

St. Mark's is extremely proud of its accomplished and respected faculty and administrative team. Click the directory search at right to search our entire Faculty & Staff Directory.

St. Mark's School Faculty Chairs

Through the generous support of donors committed to educational excellence, St. Mark's is proud to have so many endowed Faculty Chairs. Listed below are the chairs and brief personal autobiographies.

  • Adel FahMy Mikhail

    Recipient of the Armour Senior Chair
    An endowed faculty chair
    Established as part of a bequest from A. Watson Armour ’27

    Coming to St. Mark’s was a great blessing to my family and me. I joined the faculty in 1998. It was my first time teaching at the high school level and working at a boarding school. I quickly became more than a math teacher. Now I am a coach, a parent, and a friend to most of the kids at the school. In all of these roles, I get to know students very well. For me, the greatest reward in teaching is when students come back and share their successes.

    Read More

  • David Lyons

    Recipient of the O’Neill Chair
    Recognizing the connection between St. Mark’s and George, Abby and Grover O’Neill
    Established by George O’Neill ’45, P’69

    Teaching at St. Mark’s provides me with a great opportunity to work in a supportive community that emphasizes excellence in the two arenas that I most enjoy: the classrooms and the athletic fields. Moreover, I get to work with a group of students that embodies the values that St. Mark’s holds most dear: curiosity, intelligence, hard work, independence, and compassion.

    Read More

  • Sarah McCann

    Recipient of the Tyler Chair in Creative Writing
    An endowed faculty chair used to support the teaching of creative writing
    Established by Sidney F. Tyler ’25

    My high school English teacher returned my first poem with the words, “Promise me you’ll be a writer.” That comment, the extra time she took to meet with me, and the enthusiasm we shared has kept me enthralled with the possibility of helping people through well-placed words, through poetry. I strive to encourage writers and creative thinkers at St. Mark’s as my teacher inspired me.

    Read More

  • Maria-Esther Sánchez

    Recipient of the Mabley Chair
    Presented in honor of former Head of School Chris Mabley and his wife, Jan
    Established by an alumni donor

    I feel very proud when I see my students go from not speaking one word of Spanish to becoming fluent in the language. I enjoy being part of that transformation. I also love taking students abroad and witnessing the enthusiasm they display as they discover other places and ways of life. A small school like St. Mark’s gives me a chance to follow not only their academic progress but their personal growth, as well. This community strives to create curious and long-life learners, and it is a privilege to be part of it all.

    Read More

  • Kenneth D. Wells III

    Recipient of the Richard A. Rader Chair
    Presented in honor of former faculty member Dick Rader
    Established by alumni/ae and friends

    I have always been keen on camping, hiking, and the outdoors, and these interests influence my perception of reality as “my big world.” Physics endeavors to understand an even bigger world in a particularly insightful way, and environmental sciences illuminate mankind’s role in altering or preserving that world. It is crucial for students to know how to understand and use science beyond the walls of their classroom, so I believe the best science education brings students from a theoretical understanding to a hands-on interaction that shows them they can make a tangible difference in their “big world.” Students may learn about energy and electric current in the classroom and lab, but when they use it to power the St. Mark’s solar-electric truck in competition, they see the complex interactions of the “big world” in action.

    Read More

  • Richard J. Umiker

    Recipient of the A. Watson Armour III Mathematics Chair
    Established by Mr. and Mrs. A. Watson Armour III

    Mathematics is a wonderful playground of patterns and puzzles, where new language is created and extended to serve in communication of logical reasoning. It is appealing and accessible at an elementary level and yet holds extraordinary complexity within its simplicity. Mathematics provides me opportunities to observe and guide young minds as they engage in exploration and discovery within a world of appealing internal consistency. While at St. Mark’s, I participate as broadly as I can as a teacher and athlete, in my faith, and as a learner. I appreciate mathematics as my primary tool for sharpening my own mind and for teaching my students how to think.

    Read More

  • Peter Glomset

    Recipient of the Weezie Foundation Chair
    Presented in memory of Lucile Thieriot Walker
    Established by the Weezie Foundation

    “Men do heartily wrong themselves when they refuse to be present in all ages, and neglect to see the beauty of all kingdoms, and busy themselves only with things at home.” This reflection, by the 17th century English writer Thomas Traherne, touches on my aims and on my pleasures as a teacher. The photograph above points to my love of travel; it was taken not far from the university in West Africa where I taught American studies several years ago. I like to approach literary works from past centuries as another kind of travel, one that gives us an opportunity to encounter ways of thinking that are now vanished. I believe that students enjoy the challenges of broadening their own horizons; in doing so they gain an understanding of themselves, their own time and place that cannot be gotten if they remain “busy at home.”

    Read More

  • Rev. James LaMacchia

    Recipient of the Martin Fenton Sr. Chair in Humanities

    Presented in memory of Martin Fenton Sr. and is designated for a faculty member who is strong in many academic areas.

    The Rev. James LaMacchia joined the SM faculty in 1998 and teaches Heirs of Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, & Islam, together with elective courses in Ethics, Modern Genocide & the Holocaust, The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, Eastern Religious Thought, New Testament, Islam, and Buddhist Meditation/Christian Contemplation. He has done biblical studies and traveled extensively in Palestine/Israel and the Middle East on many occasions, and is deeply engaged in the effort to find a peaceful settlement to the continuing crisis there. He has published articles in the area of Christian ethics and his book, The Riches of the Word of God: Homilies of an American Priest, is available in the SM bookstore. He taught previously at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst for six years and was an English teacher for 16 years before his ordination to the priesthood. He was the Anglican Chaplain at Andover-Newton Theological School before joining the faculty at St. Mark’s.

    Read More

  • Stephen J. Lynch

    Recipient of the Mrs. William Greenough Thayer Faculty Chair
    Presented in memory of Mrs. Thayer
    Established by alumni/ae and friends

    My first goal as a teacher at St. Mark’s is to bring a love of French and France to my students and to bring as many students as I can to France. I hope to encourage them to continue French after leaving St. Mark’s School and to participate in exchange programs or semester or year abroad study programs in France or a French-speaking country. On several of my trips with students to France, I arranged home stays with French families.

    Read More

  • Andrew M. Harris

    Recipient of the Independence Foundation Chair
    The school’s first endowed faculty chair
    Established by the Independence Foundation

    I enjoy many aspects of my work at St. Mark’s, but none more than coaching the girls’ varsity crew. Properly executed, the rowing stroke is fluid, natural, and efficient. Thus coaching is largely a matter of removing impediments, progressively improving a series of movements that rowers are equipped and motivated to perfect. It is my favorite form of teaching.

    Read More

  • Thomas N. Berryman III

    Recipient of the Evill–Glavin Chair
    Presented in honor of former faculty members William J. Evill and William K. Glavin
    Established by the Forbes Foundation

    There is nothing in my professional teaching life that brings me greater satisfaction than working with student musicians. What a joy to lead groups in rehearsal and performance.

    Read More

  • Barbara P. Putnam

    Recipient of the William W. Barber Jr. Chair
    Presented in honor of Bill Barber, a former headmaster
    Established by alumni/ae and friends

    If there is a logical intersection between disciplines, it is the arts. My special interest is the woodcut, a relief printmaking method characterized by its directness and rich tradition. For me, the knife is a drawing tool that cuts, scratches, divides, and alters surfaces. I am interested in wetlands and ocean circulation, which present this and future generations with difficult issues of sustainability. I feel it is important for all of us to learn to see critically and to ask the sort of questions through our work that uncover new ideas and an urgency to pursue them.

    Read More

  • Lee Prudden Wells

    Recipient of the Founder’s Chair
    Presented in honor of the founder of St. Mark’s School, Joseph Burnett
    Established by Mrs. Joseph Burnett

    What began as an act of rebellion has blossomed into a love affair with German. My parents wanted me to learn French, so I chose German. Outstanding teachers and professors and wonderful opportunities to study and work in Germany convinced me that German would play a larger role in my life. Enduring ties to host families and friends in Germany have deepened my appreciation of the language, the culture, the people, and the history of the German-speaking world. Hearing students communicate with one another, hearing of their adventures in a German-speaking country, and watching them come to appreciate the language fuel my continuing passion for German.

    Read More

Online Directory

Search Now

St. Mark’s Faculty Publications

Revised March 2011

 

Michelle Renaud, School Counselor:

Presentation at Contemporary Families-Contemporary Issues Conference, Boston, MA, May 2011

Jason Eslick, English Department Chair:

The Rooms We Never Use, an album of original acoustic and folk music, released on Ragged Mountain Records, November 2009

 

Brent Hamula, Associate Athletic Trainer/Strength and Conditioning Coordinator:

Presentation:  Roles as an Athletic Trainer for Olympic Athletes, Eastern Athletic Trainers Association Conference, Boston, MA, January 2009

 

Jim LaMacchia, Religion Teacher and Assistant Chaplain:

The Riches of the Word of God: Homilies from an American Priest, second printing, published by Polygraphia Ltd.

 

Steve Lynch, French Teacher:

Presentation:  L'election 2008 de Barack Obama -- un tournant pour les Etats-Unis at Le Lycee de Genas, October 2009

 

Sarah McCann, English Teacher:

Publication:  A translation from the Greek of Jazra Khaleed's poems Still Life and 36 published in World Literature Today

 

Publication:  A translation from the Greek of Yiannis Moundelas's poems Day, A and Call Me at Home, Flambe published in Words Without Borders

 

Publication:  A translation from the Greek of Jazra Khaleed's poem Word published in Westerly Magazine

 

Publication:  A translation from the Greek of Jazra Khaleed's poem Somewhere in Athens published in Poetry International

 

Publication:  Original poems in both Greek (translated by Kyoko Kishida) and English:  Looked After, The Sanitarium of Chunchon, Masters of Decimals, Peripatetica, The Works, Skyline, and Ascian published in Teflon

 

Presentation:  Invited as one of ten translators worldwide to lead workshop co-sponsored by The European Centre for the Translation of Literature and the Human Sciences and Princeton University, Summer 2011 

 

Presentation:  Reading translations at Princeton University's annual Graduate Conference in Hellenic Studies, May 2011

 

Carol Miller, Science Teacher:

Presentation:  Teachers Working in the Field: Impact on Education & Curriculum at the American Council of Engineering Companies Awards Gala, Boston, MA, March 2010

 

Publication:  Physics: Laboratory Investigations,First Edition, September 2010

 

Adria Pavletic, Nurse Manager:

Publication:  Connecting With Frequent Adolescent Visitors to the School Nurse Through the Use of Intentional Interviewing, published in The Journal of School Nursing, March 2011

 

Barbara Putnam, Arts Department Chair:

Presentation:  Taught a drawing/mixed media workshop for Haystack's Center Workshops, February 2011

 

Exhibit:  Two original woodcuts in the Denver Art Museum exhibition Western Horizons, Selections from the Contemporary Realism Collection, through October  3, 2011

 

Exhibit:  Exhibition of original prints and quilts in Gallery Harmonia’s Centre for Printmaking, in Jyväskylä, Finland.  Exhibition runs through April 3, 2011

 

Exhibit:  Exhibition of original woodcuts at Turtle Gallery, Deer Isle, Maine

 

Presentation:  Led workshop at the University of Jyväskylä, Finland entitled Geometry and Print and the other at Jyväskylän Grafikkakeskus called Beyond Woodcut, March 2009

 

Presentation:  Led a workshop at the University of Southern Maine entitled Connectivity, July 2009

 

Publication:  Article written about Putnam’s work, Barbara Putnam: la Naturaleza Desde el Interior, published in Grabado y Ediciòn, March 2008  

 

Jim Tanton, Mathematics Teacher & Founder of The Institute of Mathematics:

Presentations:  Visualisation in Mathematics, Bay Area Mathematical Adventures Keynote Speaker, San Jose, CA, 2011               

 

Presentation:  Pile Splitting, Mathematical Sciences Research Institute: Circle on the Road Program, Houston, TX, 2011

 

Presentation:  A Sampler of Successful Math Circle Topics, Joint Mathematics Meetings, New Orleans, 2011

 

Presentation:  Exploding Dots: A Point of Intersection between the K-12 Curriculum and Math Circles, at Mathematical Sciences Research Institute: Circle on the Road Program, Tempe, AZ, The Math Teachers’ Circle Workshop, Washington D.C., and Special Demonstration Session, Joint Mathematics Meetings, New Orleans, 2010, 2011                           

 

Publication:  Teaching Tip: An Introduction to e^ix without series, published in College Mathematics Journal, January 2008

 

Publication:  A Dozen Questions About Pascal’s Triangle, published in Math Horizons, November, 2008

 

Publication:  Pick’s Theorem – and Beyond!, co-authored with St. Mark’s Institute of Mathematics students, published in FOCUS, February/March 2010

 

Publication: Young Students Explore Proofs Without Words, co-authored with St. Mark’s Institute of Mathematics students, published in FOCUS, May 2009

 

Publication:  Lattice Polygons for Mathematicians and for Engineers, co-authored with high-school student N. Roumas, published in College Mathematics Journal, May 2009

 

Publication:  An Intuitive Approach to the Borsuk-Ulam Theorem, co-authored with St. Mark’s Institute of Mathematics students, published in FOCUS, August 2008

 

Publication:  The Encyclopedia of Science and Mathematics, published by Mathematics Component, In production

 

Laura Warren, Anthropology Teacher:

Publication:  Editor of The Iban Diaries of Monica Freeman 1949-1951, Including Ethnographic Drawings, Sketches, Paintings, Photographs and Letters, published by the Borneo Research Council, December 2009

 

Publication:  Article on the Inuit in Food Cultures of the World Encyclopedia, by Ken Albala, May 2011

 

Publication:  Entries on seal flipper pie, wichetty grubs, pickled walrus in They Eat That?: A Cultural Encyclopedia of Weird and Exotic Food from around the World by Jonathan Deutsch Ph.D. and Natalya Murakhver, July 2011

 

Ken Wells, Science Teacher:

Presentation:  Mainstreaming Environmental Education for STEM Students, Building Energy ‘11 Educators' Summit, Boston, MA, March 2011

 

Presentation:  Imagineering the Future: Mainstreaming Sustainable Energy Education for STEM Students, MEES 2011: Navigating Massachusetts Environmental Education: Mountains to Marine, Holy Cross College, March 2011