Our Teachers

Prior to coming to Giddens, Bob was an AmeriCorps Volunteer, providing Environmental Education to Seattle Public School students. He appreciates the value that Giddens has for community and teacher creativity. Bob’s alter ego is Enviro Man, most noted for composting, recycling, and planting good will in schools across the Pacific Northwest. He also enjoys Ultimate Frisbee.  

 Brenda has experience in both public and private schools that ranges from Specialist Teacher, to Classroom Teacher, to Director of Diversity, to Assistant Head of School. She is thrilled to be at Giddens School because it provides a new path of instruction, in a school with true “heart”.

Before joining Giddens in March 2010, Colleen trained as an archaeologist in Canada and the UK, and briefly taught university courses at Oregon State University. Colleen is excited about education at all levels, and is delighted to be a part of Giddens School, where she can connect with much younger students and inspire love of learning and critical thinking skills in children. She is continuously surprised by the inventiveness and creativity of the Giddens kids. Outside of school, Colleen also teaches online community college courses and enjoys cooking, knitting, gardening, and spending time with family and friends

Daniel has taught elementary school for the past several years, as well as piano, martial arts, and mountaineering. His favorite thing about Giddens so far is the enthusiasm, kindness, and curiosity of the children. He also loves the school's mission of social justice.  In his spare time, he enjoys reading, playing basketball, and playing piano.

 Ellie joined the Giddens Extended Day team as a Summer Camp teacher in 2011 as a day-camp teacher. She loves Giddens' focus on social justice and peaceful communication, and finds every opportunity to practice art with kids. Before coming to Giddens, Ellie coordinated an after-school program in Seatac, WA. She is a passionate artist, and is taking studio and psychology classes to prepare for a later career in art therapy.

 Prior to coming to Giddens, Hanae worked with the Seattle Audubon Society as a naturalist for their summer Nature Camp. She also spent one year living and teaching at IslandWood, leading groups of 4th and 5th graders through the forest, teaching them about loving the great outdoors. She loves working at Giddens and is excited to inspire Extended Day students to be great scientists!

Julia received her degree and teaching license in Music Education from the University of Oregon (Go Ducks!). Her primary instrument is voice and she has sung in various choirs and bands. Julia played djembe for Dance Africa, an African Dance group in Eugene, for many years and continues to play in the Seattle area. It is incredibly exciting for her to work at Giddens because the students are highly intuitive and creative - which makes them amazing musicians!

Before coming to Seattle, Karina was a third grade teacher in Guatemala. She became a Classroom Assistant in one of Giddens School's Preschool classes until we began a Spanish program. Karina stepped into that role and now works with all of our students.  Karina appreciates the diversity she’s found at Giddens as well as how the community nourishes and respects every child’s values and ideas while providing a high quality education. 

 Lin is a visual artist, storyteller, performer, and educator. He has a BA in Education from Western Washington University and has taught visual art to students in grades K-12 since 1992 and is passionate about arts as an integrated part of the learning experience. Lin served on the faculty of The Northwest School from 1997 to 2010.

Portia worked as an elementary school teacher in Guam for three years before moving to Seattle.  She loves the school’s commitment to social justice and anti-bias and the collaboration and support that teachers offer each other.  Giddens School is her family. Portia is a kid at heart!  She’s the kind of person that will jump in a pile of leaves in the fall, sled down a hill using a cardboard box in the winter, climb a tree to pick a flower in the spring and build sandcastles in the beach during the summer.

This is Reba's seventh year teaching at Giddens and her tenth year working as a teacher.  Her focus on education came during her years as a co-op preschool parent where she learned about anti-bias and social justice curriculum, and served on the board.  Giddens continues to inspire her to continue learn about, practice, and teach from a social justice perspective.

Samara has ten years of Early Childhood Education experience.  She chose Giddens because of the school’s commitment to children: at Giddens children are encouraged to be who they are and to make a positive impact on their community.  In her spare time she enjoys doing yoga and experimenting with vegan cooking.

Steve has been teaching at Giddens School for over 16 years and has worked with a variety of ages ranging from pre-K to 5th grade.  He has stayed at Giddens because of the mission of the school, the nurturing sense of community, and because it has provided the opportunity to work with a wealth of interesting and wonderful families.  When not changing diapers and crawling on the floor with his baby daughter, he tries to find time to create paintings with acrylics, oils and wax.

Taryn has been at Giddens since her senior year of high school, thirteen years ago. She came to Giddens because she loves children and wanted to learn how to teach. She stays because of the community, and especially the way that teachers and staff support each other and show their passion for teaching. Taryn now has a son who goes to Giddens too!