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Beth Bacon has taught life science and biology for over twenty years. She currently teaches at Metro Academic Studies. Beth was Teacher of the Year for Daniell Middle School, Marietta, Georgia in 1999. She was listed in Who’s Who Among Teachers 2002. Beth graduated with a degree in Education with concentrations in math and science from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, 1990. Beth has a Master’s Degree in Education with concentrations in math and science from Georgia State University, 1998. She attended the Institute for Chemical Education at the University of Wisconsin the summer of 1991. Beth has been a presenter at National Science Teacher Association Conferences, Georgia Science Teacher Association Conferences, and many local schools. She has completed over 500 hours of biblical training and received a Certificate of Completion from the BTCP (Bible Training for Church Leaders). Beth and her husband Kevin and their three children Kate, Olivia, and Jackson attend Genesis Bible Church of Dunwoody. Beth teaches Sunday School there and is on the Children’s Ministry Team.
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Noelle Bandy has been teaching and tutoring high school and college level math for over 25 years since she moved to the Atlanta area to attend Agnes Scott College and later Georgia Tech where she earned her Masters degree. She taught one year in public school and then several years of freshman and sophomore level classes at Georgia Tech and Agnes Scott. Since 1997 she has also been homeschooling her own five children and has successfully launched all of them into college and beyond. She has been teaching math to other people’s homeschool kids for the last several years. What she loves best about teaching mathematics is the opportunity to share the never-changing, easily accessible yet infinitely complex aspects of God’s creation. Did she mention she loves math?
Noelle and her family attend St. Elias Antiochian Orthodox Church where they are involved in pretty much everything. She loves to cook and knit and read and drink coffee. She is married to a structural engineer named Brent.
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Dr. Maya Corneille has a Master’s degree in child clinical
psychology and a Ph.D. in social psychology from Virginia Commonwealth
University and a certificate in education from Duke University. During her
graduate education, she trained at the renowned Virginia Commonwealth
University Autism Center for Education. She has more than 20 years of
experience teaching college, elementary school, and middle school learners. As
a tenured faculty member at North Carolina A&T State University and the
Associate Director of Experiential Education at the Andrew Young Center for
Global Leadership at Morehouse College, she gained considerable leadership
experience and skills in mentoring young people to support the learning of
children with disabilities.
Dr. Corneille specializes in parent and community education
and is a sought after subject matter expert in autism education and
neurodiversity. She has presented for the Duke Center for Autism and Brain
Research, VCU Autism Center for Excellence, Duke Psychiatry and Behavioral
Sciences, the Association of Black Psychologists, the American Psychological
Association, Black Microschools ATL, and the Flourish Family Homeschool Conference
among many others.
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Nicole Doyle is an Atlanta native and homeschool advocate dedicated to ensuring under-resourced families have access to academic and extracurricular opportunities. Currently, she serves her community as a grant strategist and connects homeschoolers to career exploration and workforce readiness pathways.
A frequent speaker on multigenerational and collaborative homeschool models, Nicole has presented at SXSW EDU, the Harvard Emerging School Models Conference, and local homeschool events. Above all, Nicole and her husband, Willie, consider their greatest accomplishment to be homeschooling their four children—one college graduate, two sons currently in college, and one high school daughter. Nicole and her family attend New Life Church in Decatur, GA.
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Katy Felker earned a degree in Creative Technologies with a minor in Communications and Multimedia from Berry College. She is an experienced UX designer, project manager, and teacher. Driven by empathy and a natural curiosity about others, Katy’s secret weapon is her ability to slow down, lean in, and focus on the person in front of her to understand and empathize with their needs, finding the right solution. In teaching, this means helping students feel seen, heard, and understood. It means equipping and empowering students with skills to turn the daunting into the doable. With teaching experiences ranging from summer camps and overseas children’s conferences to challenge courses, and even co-teaching a freshman seminar course during undergrad, Katy’s ability to listen and connect with others has been a cornerstone of her success. Katy attends Gospel Hope Church in Avondale Estates.
Would you like to meet up and talk about this class? Contact Katy at felkerhw@gmail.com. We can meet for a walk or for coffee/tea at a location that works for us both!
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Audrey Gleason is a former Eastside
Academic Studies (then, LAC) student. Audrey graduated from the University of
North Georgia with a bachelor's degree in English Writing and
Publication and double-minors in Kinesiology and German language. While at UNG, she was a student-athlete involved with FCA and athletic mentorship programs, serving as a mentor for incoming freshmen.
After college, she taught English at a secondary school in Bavaria, Germany (grades 5th through
12th) through the U.S. Fulbright Program. This experience confirmed her passion for teaching youth and breaking down barriers in learning and communication.
With experience in experiential learning facilitation, coaching, tutoring, and teaching, Audrey finds joy in helping others reach their learning goals. She has led multiple college-level writing courses and workshops, including
through her alma mater's Writing Center and Summer Honors, an academic leadership camp in North Georgia. In addition to teaching, she works as a challenge course facilitator and as an outdoor science instructor with elementary schools.
She believes productive
learning has endless potential connections across subjects and everyday
implications. When working with varied groups, she makes it a priority to
foster adaptive and open environments in which objectives are meaningful and
lastingly applicable for all.
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Teresa Hatten is a graduate of Fisk University with a BA degree in Applied Mathematics. For more than 26 years she worked in the corporate sector in various assignments and Management positions including Engineering, Planning and Analysis, Human Performance Technology, Course Development and Instruction. She became interested in learning sign language in the 1980's after seeing it expressed during church worship services. Her journey into the Deaf world began through a small sign language class offered by the church. In 2004, after completing and accomplishing ASL skills training courses in the Sign Language Interpreter Program at Georgia Perimeter College (now, Georgia State University), she transferred to Gupton-Jones College of Funeral Services. She received a degree in Mortuary Science, became a licensed Mortician and took the helm as General Manager of her parent's funeral services establishment in the state of Tennessee after the passing of her mother. Teresa is an ordained Minister; Served as an Assistant Pastor in Louisville, KY, Associate Minister in Birmingham, AL and Atlanta, GA. She served at the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf (AASD) as Assistant Librarian three days a week. She also provided a service through WOHL Communications Services as a Reader, Scribe and Proctor for candidates with disabilities who are required to take national, state and local examinations and certifications. Teresa has completed continuing education courses in American Sign Language (Basic and Advanced) at the University of Georgia. She and her husband Jiendesha "JD" Hatten have been married 45 years. They have two children, three grandchildren and a great-grandson. Teresa and "JD" worship and fellowship at Grace Community Fellowship Church.
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Tim brings extensive business, corporate and entrepreneurial experience to
our staff. He has a strong background in
leading training, sales, marketing and operations organizations, as well as
founding his own training and consulting firm.
Tim graduated with High Honors from the University of Tennessee with a
BS in Business Administration. Tim’s
love for teaching began when he taught navigation systems while serving in the
US Air Force. Later he managed
AT&T’s Sales Leadership Training Center where he oversaw the development
and delivery of training courses to their Business Sales Division across the
Country. After AT&T Tim
founded his own company which provided Corporate Training Programs and business
consulting. He later taught in a small
Christian school and at a Gwinnett County public school. Tim’s unique
background as a veteran, corporate executive, business consultant, and entrepreneur
enable him to leverage his vast array of experiences to provide depth, context,
relevance and real-life application to the learning environment.
This will be Tim's 7th consecutive year teaching at both Eastside and Metro Academic Studies. He has been selected from Economics teachers across the nation to attend the prestigious CASET Economics for Empowerment Seminar at Pepperdine University during the Summer of 2026. Tim and his wife Laura worship at Decatur City Church. They have two children, Andrew and Elaine,
both of whom were homeschooled before going on to graduate from the University
of Georgia and UCLA. Go Dawgs!
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Maren Katz is a native German and
moved with her family from Germany to the US in 2007, after living 1.5 years in
the Netherlands. With the birth of her first son in 1999, she left the
corporate world (pharmacy and pharmacy IT) and became a stay-at-home mom for
her 3 children. Always interested in foreign languages and being fluent in
English, French and Dutch, she successfully started a kids’ English club for
her children and their friends in 2002. Since in Germany it is illegal to
homeschool, Maren and her family took her husband’s job opportunity to move to
the US with a stopover in The Netherlands to be able to homeschool. She’s
excited to share her joy of learning different topics and opening the door to
understanding another culture through sharing her German roots, also by teaching German and Latin through the DeKalb library system. Looking at
science from a Christian perspective is a different way to worship the
Creator! Maren enjoys reading and sewing
to relax. Being able to create with a sewing machine is so much fun, that she
can't keep it to herself but loves to inspire others in different age groups to
get started, too, with her either individual or group classes. She has also
supported her daughter’s love for animals by helping her raise a Canine
Companion for Independence guide dog puppy, who is now a skilled helper to a
former police officer. She loves to worship at Northlands Church.
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Karen Kenney is a certified Math and Science teacher for middle and high school students in the state of Georgia. She graduated from the College of Charleston, where she earned a degree in Physical Education and Exercise Science. Karen taught middle and high school in Dekalb County for 9.5 years before having her own children. She has taught both Math and Science (Biology, Physical Science, Physics, and Environmental Science) as well as Reading to gifted and inclusion students. She also coached Varsity Soccer. Karen sponsored Yearbook, Newspaper, and Newscast during her tenure in Dekalb County. Karen supervised student-teachers and taught technology classes to teachers. Karen has been homeschooling her 3 children since 2014. She taught and designed science curricula for the children's co-op all 9 years she homeschooled her children. Karen's two older children attended MAS while her third is beginning this year. In her free time, Karen enjoys spending time with her children, playing tennis, exercising, and reading.
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Leah D Killings most known as
Dr. Happy has more than 25 years of experience in leadership, administration
and teaching. She has been teaching and training on many platforms on a
variety of subjects in elementary, secondary and postsecondary
education, professional and in ministry. Dr. Happy is a licensed and
ordained minister and counselor with Bachelor Degrees in Marketing and
Education, Master Degrees in Leadership & Missions and Divinity and a
Doctor Degree in Divinity. Outside of the organized classroom she loves to share her passion
and gifts for the arts through painting, drawing, photography, and
performing. She ministers weekly on an online radio show, performs in an
acting company and performs mobile art on canvas for many profit and non-profit
organizations and businesses.
Dr. Happy has two beautiful daughters and more than 50 indoor
plants that she calls her babies. Her God given gift is to encourage,
educate and empower on every platform HE provides.
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Derek Owens graduated from Duke University in 1988 with a degree in mechanical engineering and physics. He taught physics, honors physics, AP Physics, and AP computer science at The Westminster Schools in Atlanta, GA from 1988-2000. He worked at the TIP program at Duke for two years, teaching physics and heading the Satellite Science Program. He received a National Science Foundation scholarship and studied history and philosophy of science at L'Abri Fellowship in England. He worked as a software developer for six years before returning to teaching. Since 2006, he has been a full time teacher for homeschoolers in the Atlanta area. He and his wife Amor and their two children Claire and David attend Dunwoody Community Church.
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Eastside DirectorMichelle Shaw received her B.A. in Economics from Harvard College in 1985 and her J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1989. She practiced law in Massachusetts for six years before she chose to focus on homeschooling her five children. Three of her children have graduated from college and the last two are currently attending college. Michelle has taught teenagers in various capacities for over 20 years. She has taught at Eastside for nine years and has been the director since 2016. She is married to Dr. Alan Shaw, a tenured Professor in Computer Science at Kennesaw State University and the pastor of Christ First Community Church in Snellville.
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Margaret Shuman earned a secondary English education/German double major and a renewable, 7-12 GA teaching certificate at Berry College. She went on to get a master's degree from Bowling Green State University, OH, in speech and theatre, where she also took graduate level courses in literature and theories of teaching writing. Since graduation, she has taught in two public schools, two private schools, and the home education world. The College Board has officially approved Margaret to teach both AP Literature and AP Language, and has hired her to score SAT essays. She has also led seminars in drama, AP English, speech, and writing at professional development conferences. Margaret and her family worship at Passion City Church. You can find out more about Margaret at www.MargaretShuman.com.
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Email: valzpalz@yahoo.com or allwriteacademy@gmail.com Valerie Vaughan is the instructor for Get It Write, a composition writing course designed to help students explore diverse modes and genres of writing. By analyzing mentor texts and focusing on key components such as organization, style, diction, and mechanics, Valerie helps students improve their writing proficiency so they can communicate effectively and independently. She believes in sharing knowledge and inspiring others. In 2016, she founded the All-Write Academy, blending her professional writing expertise with her passion for education. Originally from Chicago, Illinois, Valerie, her husband, and adult daughter live in Snellville, Georgia. She is excited to bring her expanding program to Eastside students.
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