As the new school year is now underway, CHS is once again filled with familiar and fresh faces. Among those faces are the new faculty members of this Blue Ribbon school. Exclusive to the Observer, these new teachers spill about everything from what they are most excited about in this upcoming year to their favorite food.
Joshua Neuman-Sunshine
Who is he? Sunshine is the assistant principal for the Class of 2018. He was formerly a teacher in the Social Studies department here at Churchill. Sunshine is also a proud Churchill graduate.
What is he excited about for this upcoming year? “As both a graduate and former teacher at Churchill, I am very excited to be returning to my roots and serving the Bulldog community.”
Favorite food? Either sesame chicken or fajitas.
His craziest experience? “I am not the most adventurous person in the world, but I have to say swimming with dolphins was pretty crazy.”
Cathy Libbee
Who is she? Libbee is the attendance secretary. She formerly worked at Little Bennett Elementary School. She additionally grew up in MCPS where she attended Seneca Valley High School.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “Going to some football games.”
Favorite food? Jamoca Almond Fudge Ice Cream from Baskin Robbins
Her craziest experience? “When I was 15, I traveled alone to Japan to visit with my dad. While I was waiting for my plane, a cute little girl was playing near me. I told her father how cute I thought she was. To my surprise the man took my hand in his and kissed it. He was blind and it was his way of telling me thank you.”
Jana Coffey
Who is she? Coffey is a staff member of the Bridge Department. Though she teaches English, music also strikes a chord with her.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “I look forward to supporting my students in their search for self as they read and analyze literature.”
Favorite food? Chocolate, preferably dark.
Her craziest experience? “I walked the stage to receive my college diploma and five hours later walked down the aisle for my marriage ceremony. About 36 hours later, my new husband and I left the USA to work with a group of other college students in New Zealand for six weeks.”
Kevin Nguyen
Who is he? Nguyen is a staff member of the Science and Bridge department who loves science and history.
What is he excited about for this upcoming year? “Lots of fun activities: plant growth e-lab, food web posters, nucleotide arts and crafts day, do-it-yourself family tree genetics.”
Favorite food? “Pizza! Any kind!”
His craziest experience? “I once rode a bicycle from Wisconsin to El Salvador. About 3,700 miles.”
Dana Seifert
Who is she? Seifert formerly taught for 20 years at an SED school. She now works for the Bridge department.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “I look forward to taking the experiences that I have had and applying them to this new and bigger environment. Because the SED structure was more closed off, it is very interesting to see how a regular high school operates, all the opportunities that are available for students.”
Favorite food? Anything with tomatoes or chocolate.
Her craziest experience? “We made a meal for over 80 homeless men. Since the school did not have cooking facilities, staff brought in crock pots and we made 13 lasagnas, provided salad and cookies. It took over a week to get the meal made.”
Marcia Johnson
Who is she? Johnson is a school counselor who has previously worked at Montgomery Blair High School and in Prince George’s County Schools.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “I am excited about being able to work with the students. I am also excited about getting to know a new Counseling Department and new staff. I think I will learn a lot of new things from them.”
Favorite food? Chicken and rice. For snacking, goldfish crackers.
Her craziest experience? “The craziest experience I ever had was when I was working late after school and got locked out of the Counseling Office and my office. My purse was in my office, so I could not go home until I got back in my office. I finally found someone [to let me in], but this reminded me to keep my key with me, especially after school.”
Jeff McGowan
Who is he? McGowan was a security guard in his past years at CHS, and he is now a new technology teacher in the Technology Education department.
What is he excited about for this upcoming year? “For the students to actually want to be engaged in the technology that makes up their world.”
Favorite food? Sushi.
His craziest experience? “Riding a motorcycle at 127 miles per hour.”
Adam Fugal
Who is he? Fugal is a staff member of the Science department. He is from Texas and can be easily picked out from a crowd as he is nearly 7 feet tall.
What is he excited about this upcoming year? “A successful year for boys soccer, junior varsity and varsity.”
Favorite food? Pancakes.
His craziest experience? “I was walking down the street in Shanghai, when I saw a lady that was taller than me. I am 6 foot 9, so I was shocked that I found someone taller than me.”
Salcion Riley
Who is he? Riley is a staff member of the Security team. He previously worked at Montgomery Village Middle School.
What is he excited about for this upcoming year? “A new start.”
Favorite food? Mac and Cheese
His craziest experience? “Seeing my children be born.”
Lois Laclef
Who is she? Laclef is the new head of the World Languages department and has been teaching for 21 years and counting.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “A new curriculum to start with. MCPS is rolling out a new French 3 curriculum this year with updated materials and many interesting topics to discuss.”
Favorite food? Dark chocolate.
Her craziest experience? “Possibly paragliding in the French Alps. Looking back on it, literally running off a mountain, a very tall, steep mountain, and gliding down to Val d’lsère may have been a bit crazy. But it was so amazing!”
Tamara Woolfe
Who is she? Woolfe is a staff member in the World Languages department and teaches the new course Russian.
What is she excited about for this upcoming year? “I hope to open the world of the Russian language and culture to our students–the world that extends far beyond the sound bites of politics and stereotypes.”
Favorite food? Grilled vegetables.
Her craziest experience? “Flying on an 8 seat, tiny plane over Alaska’s mountains and landing in the middle of a lake.”
Tony Wong
Who is he? Wong is a staff member in the Bridge department. However, during his prior 8 years of teaching, he taught math ranging from pre-Algebra to Honors Pre-Calculus.
What is he excited about for this upcoming year? “I know CHS is a good school, and it tends to perform the best in the county, and even the state, and I was excited to come here and be a part of the success. I am anxious to add to Churchill’s success in any way I can.”
Favorite food? Pho, a Vietnamese beef noodle soup.
His craziest experience? “I live a pretty uneventful life, and I like to keep it that way.”
