The Teachers At Kino

David Anderson
Academic Administrator
David Anderson began working at Kino in 1986 as a primary math teacher. Since then, he has taught math, history, hiking, writing, literature, and astronomy at all age levels. He has been Academic Administrator from 1992 through 2001, and again since 2002. Before he came to Kino, David taught for 11 years in the Amphi school system. David received a B.A. from the University of Arizona where he majored in English literature and philosophy, and a M.S. in Astronomy. He has written Young Astronauts curriculum and is the co-author of Mexican Americans: The Roots of Identity and Social Studies Trivial Pursuit for Junior High students. He is certified to teach kindergarten through 8th grade and also has Arizona principal's certification. This year, in addition to being administrator, he is teaching literature and history and junior high math, and exploring projects with early childhood and primary students.  His son attended Kino from the time he was three until his graduation from high school.

Mary Jane Cera
Academic Administrator 
Mary Jane Cera joined the administrative team last year, having been Kino's primary language arts coordinator and teacher for twenty-six years. She grew up in Whiting, Indiana, and is an ardent Cubs fan. Mary Jane graduated from the University of Arizona with a B.A. in Education and a Masters' Degree in Reading. She is certified to teach kindergarten through 8th grade, with a reading endorsement for kindergarten through high school. She is the author of Living with Death, Living with Stress, and Social Studies Trivial Pursuit, all for primary students. She has led numerous workshops on the use of whole language and open education, and is a volunteer for the Primavera Foundation. Mary Jane is the mother of three children, one of whom is a student at Kino. In addition to her administrative duties, she teaches language arts and social studies to junior high and high school students.

Mary Ann Higgins
Business Administrator 
Mary Ann Higgins has been at Kino since 1984, becoming Business Administrator in 1990. She has also had business management experience before coming to Kino. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of Arizona in 1975. Mary Ann is a dedicated cook. She shares her love of cooking with students of all ages, teaching basics, exploring cuisines, and helping with tea parties.  Mary Ann is the parent of a Kino student.

Sandy Smith
Administrative Assistant
When we refer to "the front office," what we mean is Sandy Smith. Sandy has been Kino's front office, or at least in Kino's front office, for 22 years. Before coming to Kino, she was a legal secretary in San Francisco and in Tucson. She attended the San Francisco College for Women. Sandy is usually the first person people meet when they are thinking about attending Kino, and she and her dachshund Molly conduct tours of the school for prospective families. Sandy's granddaughter  is both a Kino graduate and a former Kino teacher.

Libby Babow
Libby plans to spend a lot of time at Kino this year as a volunteer, providing teacher support and helping students. As Libby Hilmar Cloud, Libby was a Kino teacher for twelve years while her daughter Molly was a student here; Molly's son Eli now attends Kino. Libby grew up as an army brat on the East coast. She has a Bachelor of University Studies (Liberal Arts) from the University of New Mexico, and an MS in Contemporary Curriculum from Barry University and an MA from the University of Arizona in Library and Information Science. She's been certified to teach K-12 in library media and has secondary certification for social studies. As a Kino teacher, Libby taught nearly everything to nearly every age of student. Many grown up Kino students still treasure the trolls they made with her. Since teaching at Kino, she has been working at the University of Arizona library and recently married Rick Babow, an old friend she knew as a VISTA volunteer 35 years ago. Libby is blessed to have her parents (Eli's and Molly's "Granny and Grumpy") here in town. She enjoys reading, American history, folk music, gardening, and the outdoors.

Judy Corneveaux
Judy Corneveaux is available in the Humanities center nearly all the time for all ages of students. In addition, she teaches specific art skills and classes and frequently takes students on field trips to art museums and theatrical productions. This is Judy's 24th year as a Kino teacher. She received a B.A. in elementary education from the University of Arizona. She has also taken graduate level classes in early education and attended and taught workshops in the Rod Sharman British open education system. She continues to take studio art classes. Judy is the author of Social Studies Trivial Pursuit for intermediate level students. She has two sons, both of whom are Kino graduates. She is one of our homeroom teachers.

Ann Davis
Ann Davis began volunteering at Kino eleven years ago by writing for the Kino Connection, gradually increasing her involvement until she was teaching full time. Ann majored in comparative literature at the University of Oregon and then went to law school at New York University. She has been a member of the Arizona bar since 1980. She is the author of the Arizona Legal Services Practice Manual and co-author of Mexican-Americans: The Roots of Identity and Social Studies Trivial Pursuit for junior high students. Ann teaches history, writing, and government. One of her daughters attends Kino and the other is a Kino graduate.

Ed Davis
In addition to teaching science (this year, high school biology), Ed Davis assists students with video, photography, and wood and metal shop. He is also a homeroom teacher.  Ed attended the Universities of Oregon and Arizona, majoring in art and electrical engineering. He graduated from the University of Arizona and is certified to teach secondary school, with a junior high endorsement. He has been teaching at Kino for 11 years. One of his daughters attends Kino and the other is a Kino graduate.

Marielena Eyler
Marielena Eyler teaches Spanish language and culture to students of all ages at Kino. She also teaches beginning French. She has a B.A.S. from the Colegio Maria Auxiliadora Costa Rica, an A.D.S. from Pima College, and has also done graduate work in English and French at Truman University and Education at the University of Arizona. She has taught Spanish at Pima College and at the Tucson Community School and volunteered extensively at Youth on their Own and at Lulu Walker and Amphi High School. This is Marielena's sixth year at Kino.

Julie Ann Frizelle
Julie Frizelle joined Kino as a brand new teacher last year. She graduated from Bridgewater State College in Massachusetts, where she majored in fine arts and psychology. She recently also obtained an elementary education degree from Prescott College and is certified to teach kindergarten through 8th grade. Julie is a homeroom teacher. She works with early childhood, primary, and middle level students in a whole variety of exciting ways.  She has a daughter who is a Kino student.

Martha Martin
Martha Martin has been a teacher at Kino since 1990, but she took four years out after her twins were born. She teaches junior high and high school math and is also a homeroom teacher. Martha received a B.A. in Elementary Education with a minor in math, and an M.A. in Teaching and Teaching Education, both from the University of Arizona. She is the author of Logical Thinking Skills. Martha is certified to teach kindergarten through twelfth grade, with a middle level endorsement. Her oldest daughter  graduated from Kino last year; her two younger daughters are Kino students.

Nancy McCallion
This is Nancy McCallion's second year as a Kino teacher. She is the language arts teacher for children in the primary level, a homeroom teacher, and also teaches singing, songwriting, and guitar to students of all ages. She leads the Kino band and singers, which produced their first CD last year.  Nancy has a degree in Elementary Education from the University of Arizona, with a minor in Humanities. She taught for four years in the public school system in Tucson and on the Tohono O'odham reservation and then for ten years was a substitute teacher while pursuing a career as a professional musician. Nancy is songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist for The Mollys, a Tucson-based group that has produced five cds and toured internationally. Their 1997 CD, Hat Trick, was named as one of the top 10 CDs of the year by the Washington Post. Nancy has a daughter who is not yet old enough to attend Kino.

Chris Schulz
Chris Shulz joined Kino last year as a student teacher. He stayed on as a real teacher after earning his Elementary Ed degree from the University of Arizona. This year he is teaching prehensile math to middle level students, shop, gardening, junior high literature, and taking students outdoors to read and write about, draw, discuss, and enjoy nature.  Before going into teaching, Chris was a custom cabinetmaker for ten years. His two children go to Kino.

Cecelia "Ceal" Smith
Ceal is Kino's newest teacher. She will have a homeroom and will be teaching science for middle level and junior high students and anyone else who is interested. Before coming to Kino, Ceal worked as a field ecologist and consultant. She studied wild figs in Mexico and a variety of endangered species in the southwest. With her six-year-old son Gabriel, who now attends Kino, she studied howler monkeys, crocodiles, and bats in Belize. Ceal holds an M.Ed. in Education and an M.S. in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Arizona, and a B.A. in Environmental Studies with an emphasis in Ecodevelopment and Policy from UC Santa Cruz. She is certified to teach kindergarten through 8th grade, with a biology endorsement for junior high and high school.

Mary Lou Tucker
Mary Lou Tucker has been teaching at Kino for twenty-six years. She is always in the math center, for all ages of students, teaching younger children through math manipulatives and games and providing one-on-one instruction and assistance. She has participated in a wide variety of math workshops. Mary Lou also coordinates the field trips to the opera. Her youngest daughter is a Kino graduate.

Pollyanna Wikrent
Pollyanna Wikrent comes to Kino two days a week to teach advanced math, anatomy, and SAT prep. The rest of the week she teachers Chemistry at Pima Community College.  Pollyanna grew up in Wisconsin. She came to the University of Arizona on a music scholarship and played the French horn in every available ensemble, including the marching band. After receiving a B.S. from the University of Arizona and an M.S. in Chemistry from the University of Illinois (Urbana), she did research in the area of microwave microscopy and industrial research on lithium sulfide batteries. She is certified to teach at the community college level and has completed all but the student teaching requirement for secondary certification.