Jean A. Mantzaris,
Director
Jean (A.B. Psychology, M. Ed. Counseling, Sixth Year, Administration) is a seasoned educator having spent many years as a Guidance Counselor at the Community College level before coming to Wallingford Adult Education in 1991 as a Career and Guidance Counselor. She became Director in 1999.
She has written several grants and is especially proud of the Family Literacy Program where parents and children learn together. She is privileged to have worked on an Adult Multiple Intelligences Project and is featured on a Multiple Intelligences (MI) website and has published her MI research in the area of career awareness.
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Carol Harkawik,
Guidance
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Eugene Thorpe,
Guidance
Mr. Thorpe has a Master's Degree in Counseling and Guidance Services, a sixth year in Administration and a Certificate of Advance Graduate Study in General Education.
He retired from the Wallingford School systen as a guidance counselor at both Mark T. Sheehan and Lyman Hall High Schools.
He is presently working with ABE and GED students on Tuesday and Thursday evenings.
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Diana Yates-Toman,
Guidance
Diana (M.Ed.; G.D. Ed.) is a newcomer to Wallingford Adult Education. She became the full time counselor in September 2000. Diana assists students with program selection for high school completion, career counseling interests, preparation and application for college admissions, and job exploration. She also helps manage the High School Credit Diploma and Alternative High School Programs. In addition she teaches a parenting program to young parents who are affiliated with Wallingford Adult Education.
Diana originates from Canada where she worked in the field of education for 25 years. Her past experiences includes teaching young children and counseling teenagers and families. She worked as coordinator for Special Services and Psychologist for a school system in Newfoundland, Canada for twelve years. During this time she also owned a private counseling business which provided counseling services to corporations and Social Services for their employees.
In 1973, Diana was awarded a Canadian government grant for designing a sixth grade health and social studies program. In 1994, she was awarded a grant to improve programming needs of students with learning disabilities as well as a grant to implement a parenting program for single mothers within the local school district.
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Barbara Comstock,
Secretary
Barbara has worked for Adult Education at Sheehan for 27 years. She handles all of the finances including numerous grants, Board of Ed for Adult Ed and the Alternative High School budget. Also, she does all of the purchase orders and works closely with the Business Office. Barbara does the payroll for the entire staff. She works with the staff on the registration of students in the General Adult Education Program. Over see all of the part time clerical staff in the adult education office at Sheehan.
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Barbara Kish,
Secretary
Barbara has been managing the Learning Center office at Wallingford Adult Education for seven years. She works closely with the Director and the printers to put together the Spring and Fall catalogs each year. In addition, she has numerous other duties involved in the day-to-day running of the program.
Barbara resides in Wallingford with her husband and two children.
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Alice Domingos,
Office staff
Alice, was an External Diploma Program graduate in 1997. She now assists ABE teachers in the classroom and support of all types to students and staff alike.
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Bette Bertier,
Counselor
Bette holds an M.S. degree in Psychology/Counseling and is a licensed professional counselor. She has been at Wallingford Adult Education for five years, where she teaches employability classes. She is also available for personal counseling for all students at the Learning Center.
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Carol Berube,
Medical Programs Coordinator
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Carol Halstead,
Coordinator, English As A Second Language
Carol has worked for Wallingford Adult Education since 1976 as an ESL teacher and coordinator of the ESL program. In 1992 she received and Adult Educator Award from CAACE for outstanding achievement in adult education programs.
In addition to teaching and coordinating the ESL program, Carol is also a Program Facilitator. In that capacity she is responsible for all ESL student achievement testing and its inclusion in the state's database management system.
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Jo Rossomando,
Coordinator, GED Program and Adult Basic Education Instructor
Jo began working at the Wallingford Adult Education in 1995. She has a B.S. in Education and is currently working towards a B.A. in Fine Arts at Southern Connecticut State University.
Jo is an ABE/GED teacher and co-coordinator for the GED program. In addition to pursuing her degree, she also works as a university assistant in the ceramics department at Southern Connecticut State University.
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John Popolizio,
Instructor
John Popolizio (B.S. Business Communications, M.S. Education, pending) is state-certified to teach ESL, ABE, GED and Social Studies, grades 7-12. He has worked for Wallingford Adult Education since 1987. He taught public speaking and communication courses evenings at Lyman Hall from 1987-1992. In 1993, he joined the Adult Education Learning Center as teacher of the Citizenship course. In this position, John teaches U.S. History and U.S. Government, preparing his students to become American Citizens and take the Immigration and Naturalization test at INS headquarters in Hartford.
John brings to his classroom experience in both government and media. He has worked as a news reporter/news anchor for several Connecticut radio stations over the past two decades including WELI 960 AM and WQUN 1220AM. John has served as Chief of Staff/Public Information Officer for Hamden Mayor Barbara A. DeNicola (1997-1999) and as a Legislative Aide in the Connecticut General Assembly (1995-1997). John is a Social Studies teacher at Lyman Hall High School, teaching Civics and Psychology.
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Karen Riccitelli,
Instructor
Karen joined Wallingford Adult Education in 1993 first as an instructor for ABE, GED, and Credit Diploma in the evening division, eventually transferring into the morning program.
Karen has over 30 years experience teaching math from Grade 5 through 12 in Connecticut public schools as well as Southern Connecticut State University where she has taught since 1970 as an adjunct professor in the math department. She also works part time tutoring at Sylvan Learning Center and is a homebound tutor for both Lyman Hall and Sheehan High School.
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Lorraine (Lori) Ouellette,
EDP Instructor
Lori holds a B.A. in History and Foreign Languages from Albertus Magnus College and an M.A. in History from Trinity College. She has been teaching since 1988. She taught History and Social Studies at St. Mary's High School and Watertown High School. Lorraine began teaching adult education in 1992 at Waterbury Adult Education where whe was an External Diploma Advisor/Assessor, an instructor in GED, Basic Skills, and English as a Second Language and the Coordinator of Enrichment Programs. She has been working at Wallingford Adult Education since 2000 in the External Diploma Program and Basic Skills Program. Lorraine also worked as a library assistant at Yale's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
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Lorraine Andersen,
Coordinator Next-Step Transition Program
Lorraine has worked for Wallingford Adult Education since 1988. She holds a B. S. degree in French, M.S. degree in ESL and a Sixth Year in Reading.
Throughout the years, she has been an ESL instructor, a supervisor and instructor for an INS Amnesty Program, and a master ESL teacher assisting AFS visiting teachers from China, Brazil and Thailand in methods of teaching English as a Second Language. Currently she is the coordinator of a grant program "Workplace Literacy" and instructs in the program.
She also teaches for the Wallingford School System as an ESL teacher servicing ESL students from elementary to high school grades. Many of her students' parents attend classes at the Adult Education Learning Center.
She is married and has two daughters.
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Mabel Massaro,
ESL Instructor
Mabel holds a Connectict RN (Registered Nurse) license, a B.S. in Spanish, and a Masters in TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.) She has worked for Wallingford Adult Education since 1983, where she has served as an instructor of ESL, Spanish GED, and Bridge to Health class. She is the ESL instructor for Wallingford's Family Literacy program and has taught at various workplace programs. She has also been a mentor for a visiting teacher from Thailand.
Mabel has also taught ESL and Spanish GED at Casa Boricua in Meriden and the ESL component of the Nursing Assistant program for Wilcox Technical School. Most recently, she has taught in the Middletown ESL and Evenstart programs and at Naugatuck Valley Community College as an ESL grammar instructor.
In 1995 she was presented with the Adult Teacher of the Year award for Wallingford, and she was one of three Adult Educators honored at the state CAACE (Connecticut Association for Adult and Continuing Education) conference.
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Mimi Holdt,
ESL Instructor
Sheila ("Mimi") Holdt has taught ESL at Wallingford Adult Education since September, 2000. A Literacy Volunteer, she recently retired from teaching Middle School English and U.S. History in Region 15. She holds a Bachelor's degree in English and History and a Masters Degree in American Literature.
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Myra Thistle,
External Diploma Coordinator and Online Mentor
Myra Thistle has been working for Wallingford Adult Education for the past ten years. She has a B.S. degree in Special Education. As a program facilitator for the GED, Spanish GED, Adult Basic Skills and the External Diploma Program, she oversees State mandated testing for our site, and generally "keeps track" of student progress.
Myra was the 2002 recipient of the National External Diploma Program Outstanding Advisor/Assessor award and in 2003 the CAACE Outstanding Educator Award.
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Nancy Wailonis,
Workforce
Nancy has two main loves in life - learning and teaching. She has studied at Duquesne University and is a graduate of SCSU with a double major in Secondary English and Psychology. Nancy has taught primary, secondary and adult education levels and is currently entering the computer classroom challenge. Her greatest hero is Helen Keller - the student she admires most.
Mrs. Wailonis lives in Wallingfordand and has been married to her husband, Don, for thirty years and is the mother of two wonderful children and the grandmother of one very "peachie" granddaughter.
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Norma Ramos,
Office Staff
Norma has worked at the Learning Center since 1988. Her responsibilities as a bilingual aide and data entry clerk with the DBMS (state data base) make her invaluable to both staff and students. Norma serves as a Spanish translator at the Center, and has provided this service to local businesses as well. She also works with the Family Literacy classes, Family Literacy Camp, and the Saturday Academy.
Norma has lived in Wallingford most of her life, and she resides here with her husband Gabe. She has two sons, Matthew and Brandon, a daughter Cynthia, and she is the proud grandmother of two-year-old Jaiden.
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Pamela Andersen,
Technology Coordinator
Before joining us at Wallingford Adult Education in 1998, Pam worked for 11 years in a human services agency supporting individuals with developmental disabilities. After earning a B.A. in English from UCONN, and a Master's of Arts and Liberal Studies from Wesleyan, Pam taught Computer courses at Gateway Community College. She offered the first computer courses designed especially for students with special needs.
Pam came toWallingford to teach general interest courses - Computer Skills For Seniors and the Unique Film Lovers Club. She is currently the Technology Coordinator for our program, assisting students and staff with computer skills and facilitating a Technology Grant from the State Department of Education. She is state certified to teach EDP and GED.
She and her husband happily live in Wallingford with their two sons.
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Phil Massaro,
Mentor for online math courses
Phil Massaro joined the Adult Education staff in 2001. He started out instructing Spanish GED students in Math and Science, and then in 2005 added mentoring and instructing of EDP students enrolled in on-line math programs. Phil has a B.S. degree in Mechanical/Metallurgical Engineering and an M.S. degree in Engineering/Industrial Management. He was retired from the Pratt and Whitney Division of United Technologies Corporation as a Manufacturing Engineering Manager, where his focus was on Computer Applications.
Although his education focused on Engineering, teaching is not new to him. In addition to working as a design engineer for jet engine parts, machines and tools, Phil’s 35-year career at UTC often included assistance with the education and training of engineers and shop personnel in the areas of math, mechanics, and computer applications.
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Theresa Waltz,
Workforce
Theresa (B.S. French) has been at Wallingford Adult Education since 1990, where she has been a basic skills, GED, and Computer Skills instructor.
As School-to-Career grant writer and Coordinator, she has helped students begin to focus on career exploration and employability skills. As part of the Technology Team, she helped create a Technology Plan for the Learning Center. As Workplace Coordinator, she helped set up and maintain worksite classes in several community businesses.
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