Born in Portugal, Marco Almeida grew up in Newark, NJ. He received his Bachelor of Arts from Vassar College in Physics and Mathematics. He went on to obtain his Master of Science from Boston College in Physics, gaining valuable laboratory and teaching experience. The lure of education was inevitable: Marco went on to teach physics at Longmeadow High School for five years, where he was proud to support students not only academically but in all their endeavors. Marco joined The Academy faculty because he was attracted by the school’s close-knit community and the opportunity to support students’ curiosity about the world around them through authentic scientific inquiry. When not in the classroom, Marco can be found in the kitchen, playing tennis, or with his cats and dog.

Born in Northampton and raised in Williamsburg, Katherine ’16 is an enthusiastic life-long citizen of Western Massachusetts. A loyal and loving alumna of The Academy, Katherine completed her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Education & Child Studies at Smith College where she worked in the Office of Admission and swam competitively. During her time at Smith, she also spent a summer studying abroad in Denmark and another summer interning with the Development Office at the Commonwealth Honors College at UMass Amherst. Katherine spends her free time pursuing a variety of arts and crafts projects, tending to her many house plants, tossing a frisbee around, and teaching herself to cook. She is grateful beyond words to have her first “adult” job be at The Academy; it is nothing short of a dream come true. 

Nora Bates Zale ’00 earned a Bachelor of Arts with high honors from Marlboro College in Photography and Art Education, and a Master of Arts from NYU in Art Education, with a focus on using art as a tool for social justice. Nora has taught art and photography at all levels of the K-12 range in locales from New Zealand, to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, to the Museum of Modern Art and all five boroughs of New York City, and finally the hilltowns of western Massachusetts. She takes great joy in facilitating the sorts of encouraging yet challenging community experiences from which she benefited as an Academy student, as well as occupying the office with the most comfortable furniture on campus, perfect for all manner of conversations with Aardvarks and their parents. Nora lives in Conway, MA with her wife Synphany, their children Enzo and Symone, and their fur-children (canine Cleome Roux and feline Timecat), where she enjoys romps in the woods and tending vegetable and flower gardens.

Mary Kay comes to the Academy after teaching biology, math, and chemistry at independent schools in New York, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. She taught biology and math for a trimester at the Academy in 2016 and is looking forward to returning to the Academy this fall. Mary Kay earned a Biology and Environmental Studies degree from Wells College and a Masters in Neurosciences from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (2008). She grew up outside of New York City and moved with her family to Western Massachusetts in 1985.  She loves sharing her enthusiasm for science and the natural world with students and especially loves to create hands on experiences for students on field trips and in the school lab. She lives in Conway where she enjoys exploring the South River and woods with her two dogs both in and out of the water. She also loves to sea kayak, watch school sports, play games, read, and travel. She has three grown children and five grandchildren.

Aethena Enzer-Mahler ’00 received her Bachelors of Arts from Hampshire College with a focus on Education and Incorporation of Arts into the Classroom. After graduating from Hampshire she worked in early childhood and elementary education supporting the growth and development of young children. Aethena returned to school and received her Masters from Smith College School for Social Work and has been working clinically with children and families for the past 10 years. In her clinical practice Aethena tries to bring a playful yet grounded approach to her therapy and works with ages ranging from five through young adult. Given her background in education, Aethena loves consulting with schools and feels grateful to be able to do so all over the region. She is especially excited to be able to return to the Academy in this role.

Aethena lives in Northampton though loves to travel and is often planning her next trip. She also likes to eat delicious food, make lists for projects she will someday start, and to stay active, especially by taking circus classes!

Neale Gay joined The Academy at Charlemont in the fall of 2012 after spending 9 years teaching English and history at a public high school. He appreciates the rigorous curriculum at The Academy, the risks it demands of students, and the freedom that comes with a solid academic foundation upon which to build. Neale has a Bachelor of Arts in Classics from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a Master of Education from UMass. Outside of teaching, counseling, and administrative duties, Neale enjoys spending time with his wife and daughter, reading European fiction, and collecting vinyl records.

Karl Helander is a songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist from Great Falls, MA. After studying music at the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts in high school, Karl pursued a degree in studio music and jazz at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, and finished his BA in poetry and short fiction at Hampshire College. Though new to running the music department, the 2021-2 school year marks Karl’s fifth year enthusiastically teaching music at The Academy. Karl is the drummer in the long-running Northampton psych-pop band Sun Parade, was a founding member of the band Cousin Moon, and has helmed as producer for artists Jake Klar, Andrew Daly Frank, and Sir Orfeo. Karl currently co-runs a small music studio (with fellow faculty member Maxwell Wareham) called Almost Always Records, where he can be found making music under the moniker Karlo Rueby, among many other projects and collaborations.

Andrea is a Western MA native, who grew up in the hills of Colrain.  She graduated from Greenfield Community College with an Associate’s Degree in Business Management in ’06.  Andrea married her high school sweetheart Devon and they have a wonderful son Deegan.  They live in Buckland with their dog, Luna and their kitty, Willow. She has worked in a variety of offices ranging from a vitamin manufacturer to a construction company to a local stone business.  She has now found her way to The Academy, which holds a special place for her because her grandmother-in-law Lucille Joy was a founder and bookkeeper here.

In her spare time Andrea loves to paint, make jewelry, read (especially about vampires), rock hound and hunt and fish with her family.  She is also a huge Patriots fan and can usually be heard yelling at the TV during games.

Rafael received a Bachelor of Arts in Art and Comparative Religion from Marlboro College as well as a Master of Fine Art in Combined Media from Hunter College in New York. Rafael grew up in Vermont in a family of educators; while he began pursuing art at an early age, the skills and practices of teaching were also in the air. Rafael joined the Academy in 2021 after five years at Phillips Academy Andover; he also previously taught art in various after-school programs and youth workshops in New York and Vermont. Rafael has made work in a range of mediums, from sculpture to drawing to video. In teaching, he seeks to help students discover new materials and new strategies for making, looking, and thinking. Rafael currently lives in Charlemont with his partner, child, and hound; they are all thrilled to be living among rivers and hills.

Originally from Germany where she earned a Master’s degree in teaching French and English, Sabine has spent the last 20 years teaching both languages in the US. After a 12-year stint at Deerfield Academy teaching and running girls’ dormitories, Sabine has taught French at all levels at The Academy at Charlemont for the past eight years. Sabine’s responsibilities also include leading occasional trips to French-speaking countries, advising the Cultural Exchange Council, and administering the domestic exchange program, The Network of Complementary Schools.  Sabine serves as International Student Coordinator at The Academy, taking care of all aspects of the international students’ experience at school and with their host families. Sabine has two cute daughters and a tolerable husband. She travels through the local universe in a vehicle known as “Cosmic Blue.”

Will Miller began teaching high school math and science in 2007 and joined the Academy community in 2015 after a 1-year sabbatical working on a grass-fed dairy farm in Williamstown, MA. His love of teaching stems from his lifelong curiosity about the natural world and from the joy he finds working with other inquisitive learners. His love for the sport of Ultimate has led him to enjoy several years of coaching at multiple levels at the Academy. Hobbies and interests include board game design, 3D printing, gardening, cooking, and music. He lives in Greenfield with his wife Madeline, three kids (Owen, Dorothy, and Frederick), dog Clover, and five chickens: Cricket, Crickety, Goldie, Snowflake, and Chicken Chinbeard.

Jen is from Long Island, NY. She attended Ward Melville High School, and when her siblings moved to California to open a restaurant, she followed them and finished at Calabasas High School in Calabasas, CA.  She did not meet any Kardashians.  Jen attended both Cal State Northridge, and Suffolk County Community College. She also spent a summer studying marine biology at Occidental College, where 90210 was filmed. She did not meet Dylan, Donna, or any of the other Beverly Hills gang.   Though a licensed esthetician, she has found her true calling here at The Academy as Office Manager.  When not handing out Band-Aids or cough drops, she dreams of helping to organize a faculty talent show in which she could treat the crowd to her air-drumming skills. She has two children, Ella (’22)  and Grayson (’18)  and 3 stepchildren, Syry, Reed, and Bron. When not at The Academy, she enjoys being at home dancing to ’90s hip hop with her husband Alfie, their two cats, and three adorable dogs.

Holly grew up in Western Mass and has happily returned to the area to raise her family and embrace the Hilltown life. She graduated from Greenfield Community College with a Liberal Arts degree and continued her education at Salem State University where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Communications with a focus in Public Relations. After five years of living in New Jersey and working as an event manager, she decided to go back to school for nursing. She moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan and graduated from Michigan State University with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing. In 2013, she moved home to the hills of Western Mass and has since been working in an emergency department at a local hospital. She is excited to be back “in school” as The Academy’s school nurse and looks forward to connecting with the community and its students. When she isn’t at work or taking care of her four kids, she enjoys yoga, paddle boarding, hiking the hills, and a wicked good cup of coffee with her husband.

Kimberly came to The Academy as a 16-year teacher, mostly in independent schools. She earned a Mathematics degree from Bryn Mawr College and a Masters in Musical Theater from The Boston Conservatory. Having grown up in Texas, Kimberly moved to the Pioneer Valley in 2005 and as an Academy faculty member, she teaches mathematics and directs our theater program. She has taught math courses ranging from Inquiry-Based Algebra to Advanced Calculus and sees math as a universal language that is accessible to all. She was the Director of Theater Programs at The Ethel Walker School for 11 years, is founder of local theater company, Ghost Light Theater, and is actively involved in local community theater in Northampton where she now calls home.

Robbie joins us from Brattleboro, VT where she co-owned a family property service company with her father. Robbie has also worked as a substitute teacher and coached her daughter’s Jr. Iron Chef team for three years. Robbie is an activist for all animals focusing on breed-selective legislation and working to end breed discrimination. During downtime, she enjoys hiking and kayaking with her lump of love pitbull, Brisket, and never passes up the opportunity to watch old movies with her family.

John grew up in eastern Massachusetts, earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Environmental Studies from Bucknell University, and later earned a Master of Arts in Private School Leadership from Teachers’ College at Columbia University. He has taught math and science at Beaver Country Day School, The Academy at Charlemont, and Four Rivers Public Charter School, and he was a teacher and Head of School at The Island School, a high school semester study abroad program. As an avid runner, biker, and outdoors person, John has coached a range of sports and led cycling, backpacking, and wilderness sea kayaking trips for students.

Lauren Marie Schmidt is the author of three previous collections of poetry: Two Black Eyes and a Patch of Hair Missing; The Voodoo Doll Parade, selected for the Main Street Rag Author’s Choice Chapbook Series; and Psalms of The Dining Room, a sequence of poems about her volunteer experience at a soup kitchen in Eugene, Oregon. Her fourth collection, Filthy Labors, chronicles her volunteer teaching experience at a transitional housing program for homeless women in her native New Jersey. A teacher at the secondary and post-secondary levels for nearly twenty years, Schmidt holds two writing-related Master’s Degrees: a Master of Arts in Writing and Rhetoric and a Master’s of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. Schmidt is currently at work on a Young Adult novel in her new home in Shelburne Falls, where she lives with her husband and a feisty Pomeranian.

Hannah Smith ‘06 is excited to return to her alma mater as a Development Assistant and a Creative Writing Studio Block Teacher. Hannah earned a Bachelor of Social Work from Skidmore College and a Master of Social Science with a concentration in Women and Gender from the University of Colorado Denver. She founded and runs the creative writing workshop Write Freely Listen Deeply and believes in unlocking her student’s voices, creative thought, and confidence. Her own business model serendipitously aligns with the Academy’s “Find your voice. Speak your mind” mission. Hannah has lived worldwide from New York City to Argentina, Costa Rica, Australia, and most recently Boulder, Colorado. Throughout her travels, she’s explored many career paths and has always dedicated herself to being in service of others. In her spare time, she teaches and practices yoga, runs 1 mile at a time, and slows down with her husband, Jesse, and her orange cat Janeway.