Tammi Avila (Director of Curriculum & Instruction)
Tammi Avila is the knowledgeable Director of Curriculum and Instruction for all of AXL’s fabulous teachers. Tammi has been with AXL since it opened in 2008. She has two young boys, ages 6 and 2. She enjoys camping, traveling, and spending quality time with her family. Tammi has been active in charter schools for 10 years. She is a strong advocate for the charter school movement and giving families a choice in their child's education.

Emily Boehme (4^th Grade Girls)
Emily Boehme is excited to teach a curriculum that makes learning exciting, hands on, and inspires a lifetime love of learning! She is our fourth grade girls teacher this year and in her free time might be found doing yoga, biking, hiking, and spending time with family and friends. She looks forward to setting big goals for her students, and holding high expectations for herself and her students. Emily loves traveling, and while studying abroad in Spain traveled extensively, experiencing different cultures along the way.  This influenced her path in college, and she graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in Global Studies and Spanish Studies, and a minor in communications.  She grew up in Wisconsin and has a brother and sister who now go to college in Alaska and Washington!

Nichole Bowen (3^rd Grade Girls)
Nichole Bowen leads Langston University, our stellar third grade girls. She was born in St. Louis, Missouri and moved to Colorado at age eleven. She decided to pursue her lifelong dream of teaching after many years in corporate jobs. She’s worked with children for over twenty years in various positions, which included substitute teaching in grades K-12 and teaching kindergarten. She has a B.S. in Health Administration from Langston University and an M.S. Ed. from Regis University. She’s been married to her high school sweetheart for twenty years and they have three great kids: one daughter, age 18, and two boys, ages 12 and 9. When she’s not challenging the minds of young AXL Scholars, she may be found reading and hanging out with her family.

Aria Brewington Huerta (Spanish)
Aria Brewington Huerta is a mother of two who loves spending her free time with her family.  Originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, Aria Huerta is now a proud resident of Aurora and excited to be returning to AXL for a second year. Aria attended Howard University, in Washington D.C, and the University of Minnesota, where she received her degree in Political Science and Global Studies. Her commitment to education and teaching has led her to work towards earning a Master’s Degree from the University of Colorado –  Denver. She is honored to be teaching at AXL so that she can inspire children to accomplish their goals through education. She is looking forward to working with the AXL Middle School team to make Spanish instruction fun and rewarding.

Sarah Chung (Art)
Sarah Chung is delighted to be teaching integrated arts at AXL Academy.  Originally from Illinois, Sarah's interest in the arts was sparked by frequent visits to The Art Institute of Chicago from an early age.  Sarah moved to Colorado in 1999 for the beautiful colorful skies and to pursue a BFA in painting and photography at The University of Colorado.  After college she became a self-taught new media artist performing and exhibiting in the US and Canada.  Sarah is dedicated to fostering creativity and innovation at AXL, equipping students with 21st Century skills that include a synthesis of traditional and technology based creative skills.  In her free time she can be found at home tending her herb garden and making experimental music and videos.

Ryan Farr (PreKindergarten)
Ryan Farr is excited to be teaching in the prekindergarten crew, ITCM Regis. Ryan has his Interdisciplinary Bachelors Degree with minors in History and English as a Second Language from the University of Northern Colorado and is currently finishing up his Master’s Degree in Education at Regis University. He is excited to have the opportunity to teach in a school that implements the newest and most effective ideas in education. Ryan was born in Lakewood, Colorado, but lived in Greeley, Colorado for four years, and in Geneva, Switzerland for seven months. In his spare time, he is passionate about skiing, wakeboarding, traveling, hiking, camping, as well as any opportunity to participate in extreme sporting activities. He is motivated to create relationships with his students so that he can successfully prepare them for college and life!

Anna Foley (4^th Grade Boys)
Anna Foley is thrilled to explore and to learn alongside the eager young minds of the 4th grade boys crew. She considers it an honor to work with her students, their families, and the supportive staff at AXL. After recently graduating from the University of Alabama, she moved to Denver for the opportunity to teach and to enjoy the beauty of the Rocky Mountains. Her undergraduate degree is in English with minors in Spanish, Economics, and Humanities. She enjoys reading books of all kinds, watching Alabama football, skiing, going on long walks, and visiting her family in Texas, Alabama, and Switzerland.

Dee Garza (Spanish)
Dee Garza is one of our fabulous new SSL teachers! She is very excited to work at AXL because of the friendly, family oriented environment. She attended Aims Community College in Ft. Lupton, CO, and gained an Associates of Arts in Elementary Education. She received a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish at the University of Northern CO in Greeley, CO. She became an educator because her passion is being a part of a children's success. She is a native of Texas, but moved to Colorado because of the changing weather and the Rocky Mountains. She is motivated by her family and her work. She enjoys spending time with my family whenever possible, and enjoys being a part of a child's life whenever she can.

Jessica Glynn (7^th Grade Humanities)
Jessica Glynn is excited to investigate the world with AXL Academy’s creative and curious 7^th graders. Jessica grew up in Chicago and earned her Bachelor of Journalism at the University of Missouri-Columbia before working as a reporter, writer and editor. Coaching young authors at a Denver high school inspired her to change careers. Jessica recently completed the Urban Community Teacher Education Program at the University of Colorado – Denver and is pursuing her Master’s Degree there in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Linguistically Diverse Education. She wants to encourage her new middle school students to keep asking lots of questions while they develop their unique voices. When Jessica isn't teaching, reading or writing, she's spending as much time as possible in the Colorado sunshine with her husband, friends and precocious dog.

Kira Grush (5^th Grade Girls)
Kira Grush is the crew leader for the Fifth Grade Girls. She was born and raised in the “square state” and loves everything to do with sports and the outdoors, so naturally she plans to stay in Colorado as long as she can. She is an avid wakeboarder, Rockies fan, and birdwatcher, but on the few days without sunshine, you can find Kira painting or playing the piano and the hammered dulcimer. She graduated from Colorado College with a BA in Biology and is currently earning a Master’s Degree in Urban Pedagogy and Leadership from the University of Colorado - Denver.  She believes that education is the primary foundation upon which children can develop the power needed to transform the trajectories of their lives. She is excited to challenge her girls this year to grow academically and emotionally into strong, confident, and motivated young women who choose to be actively present and engaged in their learning and their lives.

Annie Gullickson (Special Education)
Annie Gullickson is excited that she is able to be an inclusion special education teacher at AXL because it allows her to work with all of AXL’s awesome grade levels. She is originally from Eagan, MN and has a degree in Psychology and American Sign Language from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire.  Annie is motivated by her family and Teach For America, an organization which pushes her to be the most effective teacher she can be. Finally, looking at her students' bright faces motivates her to fulfill her big goal that all of her students will be productive members of their community and will be strong advocates for themselves.

Shannon Harrison (6^th Grade Boys)
Shannon Harrison is our sixth grade math and writing teacher. She has been teaching with AXL since its inception in 2008.  This will be her fourth year with AXL and second year teaching AXL’s sixth grade curriculum. She grew up in Southern California and graduated from UCLA with a degree in Creative Writing. She has a commitment to inspiring young people and has been professionally trained in the core foundations of leadership, integrity, and service.  She loves music, sports, and learning new things.

Caitlin Howe (1^st Grade Boys)
Caitlin Howe is the crew leader for the first grade boys. She is excited to work at AXL because she gets to encourage children to learn through discovery and provide an amazing education for many children.  She received her Bachelors’ Degree in Elementary Education from Hanover College and her Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education with an emphasis in Special Education from the University of Colorado at Denver. She grew up in Denver and loves cooking and baking, reading, hiking, and spending time with her family and friends.  You might catch her reading The Tenth Circle, To Kill A Mockingbird or hiking mountains in her spare time.

Bryan Long (5^th Grade Boys)
Bryan Long will be leading our fifth grade boys crew this year. He is excited to loop with the boys that he led last year and meet the new students and families that will be joining AXL in 2011. Bryan takes pride in working at AXL because of the hands-on approach of the school and the deep relationships he has built with students and families. Throughout his years guiding backpacking trips, he came to understand that students learn more effectively when they take an active part in their learning process. After graduating from the University of Illinois, Bryan worked in Guatemala as a Peace Corps Volunteer. He enjoys using the Spanish he learned in Guatemala with AXL students and families.

Reed McCoy (1^st Grade Girls)
Reed McCoy is ecstatic about teaching through a model that both makes the curriculum exciting and feeds students’ insatiable curiosity. Generally a non-fiction lover, he cherishes any chance to delve into a new text. He grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and attended three different universities before earning a Spanish and a Business degree from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. Due to his voracious appetite for adventure, he spends the large majority of his spare time traveling abroad and rock climbing. His motivation to teach derives in large part from his two adopted sisters whom attend third and fifth grade in Milwaukee.

Erik Mikulak (7^th & 8^th Grade Science)
Erik Mikulak is passionate about teaching, science, and being outdoors. Growing up in Michigan, Erik earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Central Michigan University.  He has also maintained trails throughout the Pacific Northwest, coordinated environmental education programs in Michigan and Virginia, and most recently has completed the teaching certification program at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Outside of the classroom, Erik enjoys running, hiking, snowboarding, reading, and playing trivia.

Leah Miller (8^th Grade Humanities)
Leah Miller can now be found teaching all of our eighth graders humanities. When she’s not sparking the curiosity of AXL scholars she can be found feeding her own curiosity for new recipes and gardening techniques. She grew up in the Land of Enchantment (New Mexico) in a family of five adventurous kids with a love for the outdoors. Leah earned a BS in Business Administration and Master’s Degree in Leadership & Ethics, which equipped her to work in a leadership development capacity prior to joining the amazing work of educating AXL scholars. One of the quotes that reminds her of why she’s here at AXL is from Søren Kierkegaard - “If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of the potential, for the eye which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible.”

Audrey Milligan (RtI Coordinator)
Audrey Milligan is our amazing Tutor and RtI coordinator and the mother of three wonderful children. She was born in Greeley, Colorado. She enjoys working at AXL because of the children, where each day is a different challenge. She says her husband is her inspiration – he is one of the strongest people she has in her life and they have conquered many obstacles together. In her spare time she can be found hiking, cooking for her family, and vacationing in New Mexico and Arizona.

Clare Nelson (Director of Student Achievement)
Clare Nelson is one of AXL's founding teachers and is combining her experiences over the past three years as a 1st and 2nd Grade Boys' Crew Leader, Special Educator teacher, and RtI Coordinator into a new role of the Director of Student Achievement. This year Clare will be overseeing Special Education, Challenge, Response to Intervention, and Differentiation implementation school wide. While originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Clare spent four years in Nashville attending Vanderbilt University studying Special Education, and a year in Boston while completing her M.Ed in Risk and Prevention at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her collegiate experiences sparked her interest in education reform and social equity. In her free time, Clare enjoys running, hiking, and reading. She loves AXL’s emphasis on active learning, strong crew culture, and believes that the collaboration and support from staff helps to make all of us more effective educators for our students.

Laura O’Dowd (Kindergarten Girls)
Laura O’Dowd is teaching kindergarten girls this year, after having taught AXL’s inaugural prekindergarten cohort.  Prior to that she taught the boys' second and third grade crews here at AXL.  Laura grew up in Nashville, TN where she spent her time playing soccer, swimming, and enjoying the outdoors.  She received her undergraduate degree in Environmental Science from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 2005.  She later went on to obtain a graduate degree in Elementary Education from Trevecca University in Nashville, Tennessee.  Laura enjoys the challenges and rewards that come with teaching each and every day, and looks forward to spending a great year with the kindergarten crew. Outside of school Laura loves to spend time outdoors running, biking, snowboarding, and hiking.  She also enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her friends and family.

Natalie Osborn  (7^th & 8^th Grade Math)
Natalie Osborn recently earned her Master’s Degree in Education at Colorado State University in Fort Collins. Prior to that, Natalie studied mathematics, statistics and design for theater and earned her BS in mathematics (also at CSU). During her college years Natalie worked as a mentor for first year college students, a mathematics tutor and youth program coordinator for the children of international students on campus. Natalie is a Colorado native and loves to be outside in the Colorado sunshine, sew, bake and read books. She is excited to share the wonderful world of math with her students.

Brent Reckman (Kindergarten Boys)
Brent Reckman is the crew leader for the kindergarten boys at AXL.  Brent grew up in Ohio where he earned a BS in Early Childhood Education and an MA in Educational Studies at the University of Cincinnati.  Most recently, he moved to Denver from Massachusetts, where he completed a Master’s Degree in Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education.  Brent is excited to explore the deep content encouraged by Expeditionary Learning at AXL.  In his spare time, he can be found hiking in the mountains or catching a bluegrass show.

Joe Riehl (6^th Grade Girls)
Joe Riehl is our sixth grade reading and content teacher. He was born in Helena, MT and moved to Colorado five years ago with his wife, Eboni. Joe attended the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks and has a degree in Elementary Education. Upon graduation from college he spent two years in the United States Peace Corps teaching English in the country of Uzbekistan. He returned to the United States and taught in Chicago before coming to Denver. Joe has two wonderful daughters. He loves to read, write and fish.

Jacob Rierson (2^nd Grade Boys)
Jacob Rierson is thrilled to teach AXL’s second grade boys this year.  Born and raised in North Carolina, Jacob attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (go Tar Heels!) and graduated with a B.A. in U.S. History.  Jacob likes to balance his spare time between reading, being active outdoors, and learning new things, and he hopes to impart his love of all three onto his students. What excites him about teaching at AXL in particular is the chance to spark students’ curiosity through hands-on learning expeditions.  This being his first year at AXL, Jacob looks forward to building lasting relationships with his students and their families – so if you see him, feel free to introduce yourself!

Julie Schlacks (ELD)
Julie Schlacks is teaching ELD for her second year at AXL.  She loves working at AXL because of the incredible opportunity for support that comes from not only the administration, but also from other teachers.  Julie was born and raised in the Chicago area, and moved out to Colorado in 1995 to be where the winters were mild and the humidity was practically non-existent.  As she’s lived here, she has found a love for the mountains to ski, hike, and camp, in addition to loving attending concerts.  She’s been teaching for too many years to count, and is looking forward to helping her students become better readers, writers, speakers, and listeners.

Allison Seifert (^{2nd G}rade Girls)
Allison Seifert grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and moved to Colorado in 1999 to participate in an AmeriCorps program.  After working with Colorado Youth Corps for a few years she accepted a term of service with the United States Peace Corps.  She spent three years in the Philippine mountains working with a college of forestry creating and implementing environmental education.  It was there that she discovered her passion for working with youth and decided to pursue a degree in education.  Allison attended The University of Denver where she received a Master’s Degree in Education with an emphasis in Urban Education. She is excited to be working at AXL for the second year, and is thrilled to be teaching within the Expeditionary Learning model.  In her free time she enjoys spending time at concerts and exploring the wilderness.

Jessica Welch (Spanish)
Jessica Welch grew up in New Mexico, where she earned a B.A. in Spanish Literature at the University of New Mexico. During her undergraduate studies she studied abroad in Spain, where she fell in love with the literature and music. After finishing her undergraduate studies, she lived in Tanzania for three years, where she co-founded a community arts center, and taught music to students representing more than 30 countries. She recently completed a Master’s Degree in Mind, Brain, and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, which deepened her belief in the power of effective education to spark social change. She is excited to be teaching Spanish at AXL this year, and looks forward to being able to share her love of the language with her students. In her free time she loves to play music, read, run, and travel.

Kaarem Zobeck (PreKindergarten)
Kaarem Zobeck is our PreK crew leader. She was born in Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico, she moved to Colorado four years ago. She loves working in the early childhood field and helping scholars discover, learn and build their curiosity. Kaarem also enjoys spending her free time painting, cooking, exercising, and spending time with her loved ones.