This year at Maggie Walker, we had nine new additions to the faculty and staff in various departments. These new additions include Mr. Maples, Ms. MacPherson, and Ms. McLaughlin to the English department, Mr. Clark and Dr. Goldberger to the social studies department, Mr. Ryba and Mr. Cottrell to the science department, Sra. Manning to the international languages department, and Mr. Revell to the visual and performing arts department. To learn more about these amazing new teachers, we interviewed a few teachers about where they were before Maggie Walker and how they have adjusted to the school so far. 

Beginning with the English department, Ms. MacPherson teaches World Literature 10 as well as AP English Literature. Before coming to Maggie Walker, she taught for nine years at Hanover High School. MacPherson was inspired to become a teacher because of her English and theater teachers in high school. When she attended college and took collegiate-level English courses, she knew that she had “found [her] calling.” She added, “I love reading and talking about books, so why not get to be the type of teacher that made a difference in my life?” MacPherson joined Maggie Walker to teach in an environment that supported her professional creativity and had a different curriculum as well, citing the “wide sweeping ‘deselections’ of materials” and the removal of books at Hanover as another reason for the switch. When asked about her first impressions of Maggie Walker, MacPherson answered, “The students and staff are so welcoming,” and she also elaborated that she looks forward to “[w]orking with the Speech Team Leadership…to send some of our members to Regionals/Super Regionals/Nationals in the spring.”

Ms. McLaughlin is also a new addition to the English department. She teaches AP English Language and Composition as well as World Literature 9. Although she originally began her education in college on the pre-med track, she quickly realized that education was the right field for her. McLaughlin has been teaching for 18 years, first at C.D. Hylton High School, then at Colonial Beach High School, and then finally at Spotsylvania High School, which is part of the Commonwealth Governor’s School Program. She was encouraged to apply to work here by her wife, who is actually a Maggie Walker alumna. McLaughlin stated that her “favorite thing about MLWGS is that the default is to trust and respect,” and that she is “looking forward to working with incredibly bright, motivated students…[and] making friendships with colleagues that love and value teaching as much as I do.” However, she also added that her first impression of the school was that the building was “confusing,” and she has “gotten lost.” McLaughlin has lived in Okinawa, Japan, and is a “massive U.S. Women’s National Team [soccer] fan.” She loves to cross-stitch, crochet, and read in her free time.

Moving on to the science department, Mr. Ryba is Maggie Walker’s newest chemistry teacher, teaching four sections of Honors Chemistry and one section of Chemistry Plus this year. Prior to joining the MLWGS faculty, Ryba taught chemistry for three years in Hawaii. He was motivated to become a teacher because of his family, as his mother and all of his grandparents were teachers. While he is interested in all fields of science, he specifically pursued the field of chemistry because the subject would allow him to apply different fields of mathematics to real life. Although it has only been a few months into the school year, Ryba has already enjoyed the opportunity to work in such a hands-on, lab-centered course at Maggie Walker, where he can use his love of interactive learning to explain core concepts. He also highly values the collegiate and preparatory nature of programs at MLWGS. Outside of the classroom, Ryba enjoys running, swimming, and generally being in the outdoors, and is looking forward to a great year of teaching chemistry in great depth and detail. 

Mr. Cottrell joined the MLWGS science department as one of its newest teachers this year, teaching freshman Molecular Biology and Anatomy and Physiology classes. Prior to Maggie Walker, Cottrell taught at different local Richmond high schools. He was inspired to teach and pursue a career in education because he enjoys getting students excited about his passion for human biology and anatomy, which comes from him being an athlete, as he is a competitive duathlete and triathlete who has competed on the international stage, and is a track & field coach at MLWGS. Cottrell enjoys how MLWGS students are incredibly driven and knowledgeable, but are humble and not conceited about their accomplishments. Besides training for duathlon and triathlon competitions, he enjoys traveling and playing Super Smash Bros, and is looking forward to a great year, especially coaching track & field. 

Our next department with new additions is social studies. Mr. Clark recently joined the Maggie Walker community and teaches AP US History as well as Global Studies 10. After receiving both his bachelor’s degree in history and master’s degree in teaching from VCU, Clark taught at Richmond High School for the Arts (previously George Wythe High School) and later Prince George High School before coming to Maggie Walker. Before becoming a teacher, Clark has worked in sundry “weird” jobs, such as “museum tour guide, butcher, rental car agency manager, fishing boat mate, security guard, and teaching assistant at VCU.” When asked about his first impression of the school, Clark also expressed confusion about the building layout. However, in terms of students, he stated that he loves that the school “is really centered around the students” and is “about the learning and the experience.” In his free time, Clark likes to spend time outdoors and hunts, hikes, and fishes. He also enjoys playing history-related video games like War on the Sea, participating in drills with the National Guard, and helping his fiance with her art. He is “really excited about getting back to basics with teaching” and is looking forward to “refocus[ing] practices around [his] love for history.” He has denied the rumor that he used to be a pirate, but students continue to believe it. 

Dr. Goldberger is one of Maggie Walker’s new social studies department teachers, teaching five sections of AP Psychology this year. Prior to joining Maggie Walker, Goldberger completed his master’s and doctorate degrees at the College of William & Mary. His favorite part of the process was teaching undergraduate students history courses, which inspired him to pursue a teaching career. He joined the MLWGS community because of its academic prestige and its emphasis on collegiate levels of thinking, and he loves how MLWGS students are passionate about their education and career aspirations. In his free time, Goldberger enjoys running, reading, and traveling. On one of these trips, he once even caught a ball at Wimbledon! He is looking forward to a great year teaching more classes and learning more about the MLWGS community and its students. 

Mr. Revell is the newest member of the visual and performing arts department, and he teaches Chorus and Drama. Before teaching at Maggie Walker, he lived and worked in the United Kingdom as a freelance musician. Teaching high school students is a new experience for him, and he just recently moved to the United States from the UK. So far, Revell loves how committed the students are, even to the arts classes. In his free time, Revell is still “finding his feet” and loves to cook. He is looking forward to “growing the programs” and collaborating with the other staff members, such as Ms. Barnes, in the performing arts department. 

The final teacher and only new addition to the international languages department this year is Sra. Manning, who teaches Spanish 1, 2, and 3. She had a “non-traditional start” to teaching – Manning served in the army for four years, where she went to the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center and learned Spanish through a Spanish-immersion program there. After leaving the army, she attended the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where she majored in Spanish. Manning has taught Spanish for seventeen years at various schools in Chesterfield County, but she chose to apply and work at Maggie Walker due to its emphasis on international languages. In her opinion, Maggie Walker is like the “promised land” in the way that “language is core and not just seen as an elective.” She believes that the caliber of students in her Spanish classes is unmatched and loves “the mutual respect [she] see[s] between teachers and students.” When asked about what she would change about the school, she commented on how cold the school was. Manning is looking forward to working more closely with the Spanish Honors Society and “sharing her passion for Spanish language and culture.”

Maggie Walker is very excited to welcome these new teachers into our community!