Alliance for Catholic Education
Please join us in welcoming this year's blog team! While they will be sharing insights about their school year, community life, and spirituality life throughout the year, for now, take a moment to meet each blogger below!
Christopher Pistrang
Christopher serves as a high school science teacher at West Catholic in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He studied ecology, evolution, and organismal biology as well as classical and mediterranean studies at Vanderbilt University.
What do you love most about your ACE city? While ever impressive as a city, I loved the beautiful forests that are just outside the city itself.
If you could have anyone be your co-teacher, who would it be and why? For my biology classroom, I would love to co-teach with Saint Albert the Great, who emphasized the importance of simple observations and protecting the truth.
Lizette Mendez Ramirez
Lizette is originally from Monterey, California, and studied at Notre Dame for her undergraduate where she majored in political science and psychology. She now teaches high school social studies at Presentation Academy in Louisville, Kentucky.
What song would be the soundtrack to your classroom? Never Say Never by Justin Bieber. This is the mindset I want my students to enter and leave my classroom with! They should know that they are capable of anything, and should never say they can't do something.
If you could have anyone be your co-teacher, who would it be and why? If I could have anyone be my co-teacher, I would choose Janine Teagues from Abbott Elementary. She'd bring so much energy and heart into the classroom, making learning feel fun and exciting. Her positivity would help create a warm, supportive environment where students feel excited to come to school. Plus, it'd be nice to have her use her decorating skills for my high-school classroom!
Will Garey
Will teaches 4th grade at Little Flower in Mobile, Alabama. Originally from Delaware, Ohio, Will studied marketing at Xavier University before joining ACE.
What song would be the soundtrack to your classroom? You’ve Got a Friend in Me by Randy Newman, because social emotional learning has always been a central part of my classroom, pushing students to be better friends and followers of God.
What do you love most about your ACE city? Mobile is a welcoming and beautiful ACE placement that offers so much to first and second year teachers. The community in Mobile, specifically the parishes and Notre Dame Club of Mobile, are fantastic and keep us ACE teachers involved and growing in and outside the classroom. Mobile is also centrally located to multiple Southeast ACE communities including Pensacola, New Orleans, and Baton Rouge, making fun weekend getaways easy and connections with other ACErs intentional.
Lauryn Sweeney
Lauryn Sweeney is originally from Cypress, California, and studied international political economy and theology at Fordham University. Lauryn currently teaches middle school social studies at St. Anthony in Corpus Christi, Texas.
If you could have anyone be your co-teacher, who would it be and why? If I could have anyone be my co-teacher, I would choose Sr. Thea Bowman because she inspired generations of students to pursue justice.
What do you love most about your ACE city? I love how Corpus Christi has the beach! It is a gift to spend a day outside by the water after a week of teaching.
Maria Vaquero
Originally from Richmond Hill, New York, Maria studied at Notre Dame where she studied psychology and Education, Schooling, and Society (ESS). Maria now teaches 2nd grade at St. Catherine in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
What do you love most about your ACE city? "The Tulsa Trifecta” includes: donuts, birds, and the sky! There's nothing quite like going on a walk with a bag of donut holes from Daylight Donuts and being able to see beautiful birds fly across the infinite blue sky. I love that Tulsa is about the simple joys.
What song would be the soundtrack to your classroom? I've Seen It by Olivia Dean
David Moretti
David currently teaches high school English at Central Catholic in Stockton, California, as a member of ACE 32. David is from Cranston, Rhode Island, and went to Catholic University of America where he studied English.
If you could have anyone be your co-teacher, who would it be and why? I would love to co-teach with Mr. Keating from Dead Poets Society. I think that he brings a certain passion and enthusiasm to the classroom that, yes, ignores key classroom management principles, but excites students about reading and writing. I imagine a classroom where he gets students to stand on their desks and yawp, and I get them to sit back down because it's a safety hazard. Everyone in the room will love to read and write poetry by the end, though!
What do you love most about your ACE city? I love that Stockton (which is actually Manteca) is so close to so many different beautiful parts of California. From the San Francisco Bay, to the Central Valley agriculture, to the mountains of the Sierra Nevada's, there are always new things to see and new people to meet.
Ellie Poling
Originally from Marco Island, Florida, Ellie serves as a high school math teacher at Cristo Rey Orange County in Santa Ana, California. Ellie went to Georgetown for her undergraduate degree and studied mathematics and government.
What song would be the soundtrack to your classroom? Walking on Sunshine by Katrina & the Waves!
If you could have anyone be your co-teacher, who would it be and why? If I could have anyone as my co-teacher, it would be Ms. Frizzle. She reminds us that learning should be joyful, hands-on, and full of curiosity. She isn't afraid to take risks or make learning an adventure, and I love how she encourages every student to ask questions and embrace mistakes as part of the process.