Meet Our Staff

Steve graduated from UNC Wilmington with a BA in Physical Education Health. He received Montessori Certification in Lower Elementary and Upper Elementary in 2001. Steve began his teaching career at Lake Norman Day in 1996 before joining Phoenix Montessori in 2005. Steve has developed physical education programs, as well as lead teaching roles throughout the levels.   Steve believes in building a relationship with the whole child and individualizing their education to meet their needs.
 
Steve enjoys officiating flag football, watching athletic events and spending time with his family on the weekends.

Ms. Kathy Brennan teaches Art to Enrichment aged students (Kindergarten through High School). She helps students learn about the important concepts and history of art and provides opportunities for students to create their own art. Her goal is to help students understand the artistic concepts in various types of visual communication, including drawing, painting, and design.

Roxanne received her Associates degree in Early Childhood Education from Central Piedmont Community College. She taught one year at Bethel Presbyterian Church Weekday Program. It was during that year that a parent introduced her to Montessori.

Roxanne attended the North Carolina Center for Montessori Education where she received her Infant/Toddler Certification. She has taught in a Montessori classroom since 1995 serving as the lead instructor for most of that time and has been with Phoenix since 2006.

India has experience teaching in Montessori classrooms since 1995. She is also a Montessori teacher trainer in Elementary I math and philosophy and Elementary II math and philosophy. She earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Belmont Abbey College where she graduated cum laude from the honors program. She then completed studies to become Montessori I & II (grades 1-3 and 4-6) and Montessori Secondary I (grades 7-8) certified. India completed the Endicott College masters program and received a Masters degree in Education specializing in Montessori and Integrated Learning.

Originally from New Hampshire, Faith moved to Charlotte, NC to attend Johnson & Wales University where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Hotel Management with a concentration in Hospitality Sales and Meeting Management. Throughout high school she participated in several programs which allowed her the opportunity to work with primary and elementary age students. Faith joined the PMA staff in 2009. She has worked as an intern and assistant teacher in the LE classroom while attending the Center for Montessori Teacher Education, North Carolina (CMTE/NC). After completing the teacher training program in the summer of 2014, she received her American Montessori Society (AMS) Lower Elementary credential.

Lauren earned her B.S. in Mathematics in 2011 from Sweet Briar College. She was first introduced to Phoenix Montessori in 2004 when her sister, Nicole, began as a student. Lauren joined the PMA staff in 2012 as the high school math teacher and after school teacher. As of July 2015, Lauren received her American Montessori Society (AMS) Secondary I/II credential from the Houston Montessori Center (HMC). Lauren received her Masters of Education in Montessori Integrative Learning from Endicott College in May 2016. As Middle/High School Lead Teacher, Lauren continues to build the program and offer unique experiences both in and out of the classroom. Outside of school, Lauren enjoys traveling and swimming. 

Ms. Ady (Maria Adriana McCormack) holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) and completed postgraduate studies in National Security and History of Mexico. In Mexico City she worked as analyst for the Mexican Secretary of State, the Treasury Secretary and the Mexican Mail Service. In Atlanta she worked for the Mexican Consulate, the Mexican American Business Chamber, the Mexican Cultural Center and the newspaper El Nuevo Georgia where she still participates as a freelance writer. In Charlotte she worked for the Family Outreach and Counseling Center and diverse companies translating documents. For the last three years she worked as lead teacher in the pre-K program of the Presbyterian bilingual school La Escuelita San Marcos, where she enjoyed working with 3,4 and 5 year old children. Ms. Ady has been teaching all levels of Spanish for the last seventeen years in the US but her teaching experience began in Mexico City where she taught English and painting to adults and kids. She likes to interact with people, paints, plays piano, enjoys learning new languages and reading the Bible. She lives in Huntersville with her husband Bruce and her daughters Sharon and Any.

Mr. Jovan Miller joined the PMA staff during the 2019-20 school year.  Jovan has a B.S. in Child and Family Studies from Syracuse University, a B.S. in Sport Management from Queen University of Charlotte and a M.S. from Loughborough University in the U.K.

Jovan has been in academia full-time since 2017. He loves building strong relationships with students through critical thinking. During his downtime, he loves to read and write. He is an advocate of creative writing and discussion and believes it is essential for a student to possess the ability to effectively voice their thoughts on paper. He is also the host of the podcast “Give it Context.”

After 20 years of experience in marketing and business development in the private sector, Lorena has returned to Education as a co-teacher of Spanish immersion primary at Phoenix Montessori Academy.  She has been a longtime advocate for children in underprivileged and under-served communities. 

Lorena is currently a Charter Member of the the Rotary Club of The Queen City - Charlotte and serves on various committees for Rotary District 7680 and Rotary Zone 33 as Rotaract Adviser.

Lorena and her husband Thom moved from Miami, Florida to North Carolina since 2007 and settled in Charlotte in 2011. 

Ms. Lauren Ashley Radford graduated from UNC Charlotte with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Elementary Education and a music minor. Lauren Ashley has been teaching private music lessons to all ages since 2015. Lauren Ashley has taught color guard, soccer and pop performance band for high school. Ms. Lauren Ashley joined PMA as the music teacher and assistant teacher for the Primary class in 2017. She believes music can contribute to strengthening child development. Music uses multiple intelligences that students should have the right to explore. Music can be an outlet for expression. Ms. Lauren Ashley's goal is to provide a musical opportunity to all students at Phoenix.

Ms. Elizabeth Sanchez Bello holds an Architecture Degree from ISCYTAC- LA SALLE Instituto Superior de Ciencia y Tecnología de la Laguna University, Gómez Palacio, Durango,Mexico. She holds an AMS (American Montessori Society), credential in Primary level, from Centro de Entrenamiento, Colegio Montessori Sierra Madre, Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico and is a Certified Montessori Teacher (Early Childhood Teaching). She began her career in Education with Postgraduate studies on Educational Investigation and Software Applications to Classroom Environments. (UNAM-UJED / ESCYTA-UJED). Ms. Elizabeth has experience in education since 1996 and has held positions in teaching at both levels College and Primary Environments as a Lead Teacher. Considering herself as a proud mother of two daughters, both raised in the Montessori Philosophy, she is a true believer that Montessori is a long-life way of living. She enjoys reading, designing, art, music, and spending time with the little and big masters, the children!

Amy graduated from Taylor University in Upland, IN with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education with a concentration in Social Studies. She began her career in adult education for corporate America before teaching in both private and charter schools since 2002.  She has gained experience in education through administration, as well as classroom teaching. Amy enjoys interacting with students in the classroom with energy and passion for the whole child to learn in an interactive atmosphere.

Amy and her husband Joe are “empty nesters” as their two children are attending college. They enjoy watching athletic events, spending time with family and relaxing with a good book.

Sandy graduated from West Chester University with a Bachelor of Science in Special Education.  She has taught in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Illinois and North Carolina. She joined PMA in the summer of 2016 when a business transaction brought Phoenix to the place of her former employer.  After interacting with the students and staff, Sandy was hooked and wanted to join the staff.  She enjoys traveling and reading with an emphasis on combining the two.

Rachel received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Literature and Art History from Washington University in St. Louis in 1993. She continued graduate work with an emphasis in Anthropology, Archaeology and Non-Western Art at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, Illinois and earned an Interdisciplinary Graduate Certification in Museum Education. She traveled to study Ancient Mayan sites as well as spent a summer abroad in Rome, Italy. Exploring the world and learning something new every day is one of her greatest passions. She began teaching at the college level in 1997, but always had a special interest in childhood education and Montessori Philosophy. She joined the staff in 2014 as a co-teacher in Upper Elementary. In 2018 she worked in Lower Elementary as she pursued an El and EII Montessori Certification from CMTE/NC. Full of inspiration, Rachel is excited to begin her new journey as a Cosmic Education teacher. Following the Great Lessons and cultural works of Dr. Montessori, she hopes to share with all PMA students her sense of adventure and curiosity!

Tammie received her B.A. in Business Administration from Belmont Abbey College in 1994. She then earned Infant/Toddler Credentials from the Center for Montessori Teacher Education in New York in 1998. She also obtained a Daycare Administration Credential from Central Piedmont Community College in 2008.

Her Montessori teaching experience includes: Toddler Lead Teacher from 1997 and 15-plus years as a Summer Camp Coordinator in a Montessori Program serving children 18 months to 12 years of age. Tammie also worked for one year as an After School Coordinator in a traditional setting, serving children ages 4 years to 13 years of age. Before entering the field of education, Tammie was a nanny for 3 young children.