FACULTY
Little Acorns Preschool
Marissa Davis is the MLA Little Acorns teacher this year. She graduated from WVU with a Bachelor's Degree in History, and, as an AmeriCorps alum, has volunteered with children for years. She's excited to join the MLA team and help prepare the Little Acorns for their future at MLA! A Morgantown native, she loves West Virginia and exploring all it has to offer, including little-known festivals and well-known mountains.
Kindergarten
Corinne Seese is our Kindergarten teacher. She graduated from WVU in 1993 with a Bachelor's Degree Elementary Education. Corinne started teaching preschool at MLA when it opened in 1995 and is very excited to be currently teaching kindergarten! She believes that it is important to build a family of learners in her classroom and encourages the children to care for and help each other. She often teaches summer workshops at MLA and tutors during the summer and school year. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her three kiddos.
Early Elementary 1
Amanda Cain is our Early Elementary teacher. She was born and raised in Morgantown. She received her Bachelor's degree in Social Work from WVU as well as her Master of Arts in Elementary Education. In her spare time she enjoys being with her family, friends, dogs and cats. She enjoys traveling but is mostly a homebody who can be found relaxing with her dogs and reading a book!
Middle Elementary
Alexa Spangler-Davis is our Middle Elementary teacher. She graduated from West Virginia University with a Masters degree in Elementary Education and a Bachelors degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology. Alexa is a Morgantown native and has worked with our summer program for two years. She loves teaching math and problem solving skills. Alexa enjoys spending time with her husband, family, and four cats.
Upper Elementary
Paula Taylor is our Upper Elementary teacher. She graduated from West Virginia University with a Master's Degree in Elementary Education and a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. She has been with MLA since 2003, and has taught classes from Early Elementary to Middle School. Ms. Taylor works closely with the Mountain SOL school and is involved with their in-school, after-school, and summer programs. Originally from Charleston, she enjoys spending time with her pets and gardening.
Middle School
Claire Doemland is our Middle School teacher at MLA. Originally from New Jersey, Claire moved to West Virginia to work as an AmeriCorps VISTA at the Katherine Johnson NASA IV&V Center in Fairmont where she worked to develop and support K-12 educational robotics programs throughout the state. Claire earned her B.A. in Environmental Education from Warren Wilson College and her M.Ed in Curriculum and Teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In her free time, Claire enjoys playing ultimate frisbee, exploring national parks, and skiing as often as possible.
Ancillary Teacher: Geography, WV History, and Outdoor Education
"Senora Jen" is currently MLA's Geography and Middle School WV History teacher and Director of the Mountain Stewardship and Outdoor Leadership Program (Mountain SOL) which provides in school outdoor programming every Thursday for our students. After over a decade teaching either Spanish or music or both, this year she is a fellow at the WVU Center for Resilient Communities and is working to provide Mountain SOL programming to more WV kids with the continual support of MLA. Although her focus this year is different, the kids still call her Senora and that is perfect and makes her happy.
Jen has also taught at the Human Path, the West Virginia Scholars Academy, Yale University, the New Jersey School of Conservation, Salem International University, in the geography department at West Virginia University, and at Escuela Superior Politécnica de Chimborazo. Jen received her BA in English from the University of Virginia, her Masters in Forestry from Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and her PhD in Geography from West Virginia University. She is a National Geographic Certified Educator and serves on the National Geographic Advisory Committee for West Virginia. She recently achieved her goal of becoming a Wilderness First Aid teacher. She is a Wilderness First Responder. Jen lives outside Morgantown with her husband, two sons, and many four legged animals.
Ancillary Teacher: Art
Jeff Ryan is the Art teacher at MLA. He received his B.F.A in Ceramics (with K-12 Certification) from West Virginia University in 1996. He has been teaching pottery, handbuilding, and sculpture in many community based arts organizations for over 20 years. In 2006 he traveled to China to study porcelain production and ceramic history. In addition to ceramics, he loves paper maché and mask making. Jeff received his Master Gardening certification in 2018 and has since lead the MLA 4-H club and our school’s vegetable garden.
Ancillary Teacher: Spanish
Amber is our Spanish teacher. She holds a BA in Spanish and an MAT in Elementary Education from the University of South Carolina - Columbia as well as an MA in Hispanic Literature from Indiana University - Bloomington. She has taught second grade, a 2 and 3 year-old daycare class, and as a reading teacher. Amber has also been a kindergarten classroom aide. She was an undergraduate classroom instructor where she taught beginner and intermediate Spanish to college undergraduates. She also facilitates online professional development courses for West Virginia teachers for WVLearns. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, and enjoying the outdoors.
