Meet The Staff
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Madeline has been a leader in blended and project based learning since 2008. She provides our partnerships with experience gained from years in education serving as a classroom teacher, building leader, community outreach and quality assurance director. She is a mentor for students, teachers and administrators.
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James is one of two WAY Michigan team leaders. He holds a Bachelor's degree from Eastern Michigan University in Secondary Education Social Studies and a Master's degree from Eastern Michigan University in History. He began as a social studies teacher at WAY West in Fall of 2016. While working at WAY he has had the pleasure of working one on one with students to make Graduation Plans to help them create a path for graduation. James says he tries to challenge the students he works with to get better and learn about something new everyday. James was brought on board with WAY Michigan in September 2017, and has enjoyed the challenges that stem from the online community.
In his free time James enjoys spending time with his three-year-old son and planning for his family’s new addition!
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Katey is our main mentor who is responsible for the education of several of our researchers. She states that she loves to teach since she was a young child. Growing up she often “tortured” her brother with extra school time at home, and when he wasn’t available, she claims she taught her stuffed animals. She earned her degree in Special Education and Elementary Education with an emphasis in English from Western Michigan University. After marrying and having four beautiful children, she chose to homeschool them. Now she teaches Public Speaking, K’nex education, and Lego robotics for a homeschool partnership as well as working with students enrolled in WAY Michigan. She loves seeing kids succeed and understand concepts!
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Erica Breshgold graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2009, where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Special Education. She earned her teaching certificate in teaching students with Emotional Impairments. She has taught in various special education settings throughout Oakland County, Detroit and Ann Arbor. In 2011, Erica helped create a Day Treatment Center in Oak Park for severely Emotionally Impaired students living throughout Oakland County. This program was very successful, and she worked there until coming to WAY in 2016. In 2016, Erica began working at the WAY program in Washtenaw. She was instantly drawn to the WAY program because of the creativity of lessons involved, the individualization it offered, and the peaceful atmosphere it provided for all of its students. Erica's main teaching objective is to motivate and inspire students, as well as help them gain confidence and self-esteem so they can lead successful and productive lives.
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Kimberly graduated in 2009 from the University of Michigan Dearborn with a Master of Arts in History (minor in English) and a Secondary Teaching Certificate in Social Studies and English. She is currently attending Central Michigan University Online and working on her Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction, with a focus on literacy. She arrived on the education scene very traditionalist and idealist, but once she started teaching with WAY in 2010 and with WAY Michigan in particular in 2015, she quickly learned to value and appreciate the uniqueness of each and every student and their individual path to a high school diploma and beyond. She loves working with each student within their unique circumstances and working with them to figure out the best way to complete their school work and earn their diploma. She believes with the proper support and encouragement, every student can earn an education that will help them succeed on their path in life.
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Mark's nineteen year career in Information Technology experience includes, but not limited to, Network LAN WAN implementation, Management of technical department personnel. Technical Lead for the installation of a multi campus Windows and Apple server farm. The development Lead of new data center operations and security procedures.
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Kimberly graduated in 2009 from the University of Michigan Dearborn with a Master of Arts in History (minor in English) and a Secondary Teaching Certificate in Social Studies and English. She is currently attending Central Michigan University Online and working on her Master of Education degree in Curriculum and Instruction, with a focus on literacy. She arrived on the education scene very traditionalist and idealist, but once she started teaching with WAY in 2010 and with WAY Michigan in particular in 2015, she quickly learned to value and appreciate the uniqueness of each and every student and their individual path to a high school diploma and beyond. She loves working with each student within their unique circumstances and working with them to figure out the best way to complete their school work and earn their diploma. She believes with the proper support and encouragement, every student can earn an education that will help them succeed on their path in life.
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Joy has been with WAY since November 2014, she is the, District Site Technician, mainly for our Southwest and West WAY Academies, but focuses on other school locations when needed. Her technology focus consists of but is not limited to, providing desktop support, printer support, HERO support, application support, networking support, researcher home computer imaging, lab computer imaging, and general technical support for the school. She does school wide hardware repairs and computer imaging for re-distribution, and she manages school wide researcher Internet connectivity. She also assists in the school where needed to ensure a smooth operating environment for both staff and researchers.
When it comes to WAY, Joy is very passionate about watching all of the researchers succeeding. She loves talking to them on a daily basis, empowering them, and motivating them to do better. She loves to make an impact in their lives with sometimes just a simple “hello,” and smile. She reminds the researchers that they all have the potential to do great and positive things throughout their lives. On Joy’s free time, she enjoys spending quality time with her teenage daughter, family, and friends.