Faculty and Staff Directory

Faculty & Staff Department Directory

Department

Last Name

Ted Barker-Hook

Humanities Teacher

617-278-2357

Hobart College - B.A.

Bio

Ted believes that the best learning comes from collaboration and conversation, and builds his classroom experience to fit that belief. He uses his education geopolitics and the development of modern capitalism to delve into questions of power and justice in a global arena. He says his most successful classes are those where he talks the least, because students are driving the discussion, challenging each other, and asking questions for further exploration. Having traveled to 46 states and 24 countries in the Americas, Europe, and Oceania, Ted often weaves his own cross-cultural experiences into his students’ learning experience. His biggest goal is to help students engage their curiosities while looking at the world through a critical lens and presenting clear arguments supported by convincing evidence.

Since starting at Brimmer in 1998, Ted has contributed outside the classroom by coaching varsity softball, golf, and cross country, serving on the Brimmer Global Studies team, and leading many student trips for service learning projects in Alabama, New Orleans, and the Dominican Republic. He enjoys the enthusiasm of Brimmer students, values the collegiality of its faculty and staff, and takes opportunities to form close relationships with students, advisees, and the runners on the cross country team.
Andrew Beal

Director of Middle School Student Life and Learning Center, Middle School Math Teacher

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Georgetown University - B.S.
Thunderbird School of Global Management - M.B.A.
Smith College - Ed.M.

Bio

Andrew has been teaching at Brimmer since 2008. In addition to teaching math, he uses his love of the outdoors to help run Brimmer’s summer adventure camp. Driven by the belief that all students bring strengths and challenges with them to the math classroom, he regularly explores the ideas of self-awareness and metacognition in his classes, which he feels play a vital role in student success.

Andrew’s entire professional career has been dedicated to global education. He served in the Ukraine as an educator in the Peace Corps from 1996 to 1998, conducted trainings for Intel Corporation in Costa Rica and Israel, and regularly facilitates conversations in his classroom about current events around the world. His favorite part about working at Brimmer is the unique opportunity to develop global citizens.
Brian Beale

Director of Enrollment Management

617-278-2323

Bates College - B.A.

Bio

Though Brian hails from the Philadelphia suburbs, he considers himself a New Englander at heart. After attending Bates College in Maine, Brian spent two years working in outdoor education at YMCA Camp Coniston before starting his career in Admissions at Dublin School in Dublin, NH. Brian then went on to work in admissions and financial aid at both Princeton Day School and Cardigan Mountain School before joining the Brimmer and May community in 2012. At Brimmer, Brian oversees Admissions and financial aid, is a member of the Advancement team, and serves as an Upper School advisor.

Brian is an active member of the Enrollment Management Association, the Clarity community, and local and regional collaboratives. When not at Brimmer, Brian enjoys spending time with his family in the outdoors, long-distance running, spinning, and skiing.
Karen Bernanke

Middle & Upper School Director of Academic Services

617-278-2337

Boston University - B.A.
Lesley University - M.Ed.

Bio

As a child centered educator with vast experience as a classroom teacher and educational leader, Karen believes that it is essential to facilitate student intellectual and emotional growth through individualized resources and attention to personal goals. Karen provides a positive student-centered approach to learning through collaboration with teachers and families, student engagement, and a commitment to following students as they grow to become more self aware, independent, and successful.

After graduating with a degree in Psychology from Boston University, Karen found her passion for teaching children and inspiring a love of learning in the early grades. She was a classroom teacher in grades K-8 at a variety of independent schools across New England with a degree in Education from Lesley University. After teaching for many years, she wanted to have a positive impact on teachers and families and completed a degree in Educational Leadership, also through Lesley University. Her educational journey has taken her from the classroom to coaching teachers and leading department teams.

Karen grew up outside of Washington, DC, where she developed a passion for theater and history. She currently lives in Sharon with her son and daughter, both young adults. In her spare time, Karen enjoys listening to live music, exploring New England, Yoga at any time of the day, and reading historical fiction.
Brian Binkowski

Grade 5 Teacher

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Boston College - B.A.

Bio

Brian strives to help students see themselves as part of an interconnected community—this applies not just to their classroom or school, but also to those living in the same town, as well as people across the country, and around the world.

This sense of global-citizenship was instilled by Brian’s own experiences of teaching, and learning, in different cultures. He has taught in Jamaica, Belize, Egypt, and The Cheyenne River Reservation in South Dakota.

Brian attended Boston College (directly down the road from Brimmer) and has over twenty years of teaching experience. Outside of school, he enjoys spending time with his children Jacob and Katie Rose, playing and coaching basketball, and playing the drums in a rock band.

Brian grew up in Connecticut, but fortunately it was on the Sox/Pats half (not Yankees/Giants). Most importantly Brian’s middle name is Norbert, just like the dragon from Harry Potter.
Dan Birdsall

Associate Director of College Counseling, Director of US Leadership Program

617-278-2322

Wesleyan University - B.A.
The Fletcher Graduate School of Global Affairs - M.A.

Bio

Raised in Pennsylvania but a New Englander for 25 years, Dan joined Brimmer in July 2023 as Associate Director of College Counseling and Director of Upper School Leadership Programs. Accustomed to travel from an early age, he has consistently combined international education and youth work in a variety of professional roles.

After graduating from Wesleyan University with a B.A. in government, Dan worked several years in a Boston-area residential children’s home, and later administering high school foreign exchange programs with CIEE. He spent 2+ years in Ecuador as a Peace Corps Volunteer working in adolescent public health education, and afterward was a Peace Corps recruiter in the New England region. He earned a Master of Arts in Law & Diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University, and subsequently spent 12 years in university admissions at Fletcher, recruiting domestically and internationally, administering scholarship aid, and managing experiential learning programs. He is excited to work with students at the beginning of their college journeys in a vibrant and supportive school community.

Outside of work, Dan enjoys playing tennis (or any racquet sport), abusing guitars in attempts to play them, traveling, reading, writing and answering trivia questions, and spending time with his wife, son, and dog.
Jason Bock

Director of Technology Infrastructure

La Salle University - B.S.
University of San Francisco - M.A.

Bio

A Cape Cod native, Jason grew up with two parents as educators, but didn’t initially consider a teaching career. A summer job at a local high school changed that perspective. Before starting at Brimmer in 2008, Jason taught at the Forman School in Litchfield, Conn., and at the Katherine Delmar Burke School in San Francisco, Calif. He spent five years as a math teacher before transitioning to IT and computer science.

According to Jason, his courses adhere to a “guide to the side” teaching philosophy. If a student asks how to accomplish something, he would respond with “How can you research the answer to that?” Jason believes that through global education, students can use technology to make the world smaller. Students have a better opportunity to explore their local, national, and global communities than ever before and as a result have to learn on those levels as well. Jason enjoys working with Brimmer’s student body, which he describes as relentlessly curious. The students help him come up with ideas on how to better teach and learn content and bring new and relevant topics to the discussion table. At Brimmer, he sees that every student and faculty member has the opportunity to be their very best; whether it’s an opportunity to excel in the dramatic arts or build robots, there’s a place for everyone.

Jason is a member of the International Society for Technology in Education and the Computer Science Teachers Association. In 2014, he was awarded an Innovation Grant for developing coursework and leveraging emerging 3D design and printing technologies.
Jonny Bonner

Athletic Coordinator for Gr. 4/5, LS PE Teacher

Institute of Technology, Ireland - B.A.

Bio

Jonny Bonner joined us initially as the after-school PK soccer coach and is now the Grade 4/5 Athletics Program Coordinator and a Lower School physical education teacher. Mr. Bonner has a B.A. in Sports Coaching and Business Management from the Institute of Technology, Carlow, Ireland and works for New England Surf, a club soccer organization. Mr. Bonner was a Division I soccer player for the University of Vermont, he represented the Republic of Ireland at the U16, U17, U18 levels, and he was selected for the World University Games in South Korea.
Eve Bould

Lower School Reading Specialist

Duke University - B.A.
Harvard Business School - M.B.A

Bio

Eve is passionate about helping students thrive by meeting them where they are, with a focus on instruction that’s both academically rigorous and emotionally sound. She enjoys partnering with fellow educators and families to provide individualized attention to help each child reach their goals.

Eve is thrilled to be a part of the collaborative and supportive community of faculty, staff, students, and parents at Brimmer. Prior to joining the Brimmer community in a full-time role, Eve got to know the school’s special culture and ethos in her role as a Structured Literacy Tutor.

Trained in the Orton-Gillingham Approach at Carroll School’s Garside Institute for Teacher Training (GIFTT) in Waltham, Massachusetts, Eve holds her Orton-Gillingham Practitioner Certification at the Associate Level from the Orton-Gillingham Academy. She also has her Structured Literacy Classroom Teacher (C-SLCT) certification from the Center for Effective Reading Instruction (CERI), a subsidiary of the International Dyslexia Association. She has completed a variety of courses and workshops in structured literacy including Lindamood Phoneme Sequencing (LiPS), Lindamood Bell Seeing Stars, and AIM Institute’s Pathways to Proficient Reading.

Having dreamed of teaching from a young age, Eve always assumed it would be a second career for her. With a BA in Economics from Duke University and an MBA from Harvard Business School, Eve came to teaching after over a decade in the corporate world. Grateful for the meaningful work she gets to do on a daily basis, Eve finds she draws upon her analytical background frequently in her current role, whether administering diagnostic assessments or identifying targeted lessons to bolster a student’s understanding.

Born in Boston and raised in Washington, DC, Eve has spent most of her adult life in the Boston area, with stints in California and Marseille, France. She currently lives in Newton with her husband, their two teenage children, and their endlessly entertaining golden retrievers. In her free time, Eve enjoys skiing, yoga, and reading.
Nancy Bradley

Mathematics Department Chair

617-278-2345

Emmanuel College - B.S.

Bio

In Nancy’s view, everyone can enjoy a math class, even if they think the subject is not their strength. Before coming to Brimmer in 1987, Nancy taught and served as department chair at a Catholic high school in Dorchester and taught at Hull High School in Hull, Mass. She also serves as the Director of Community Service for grades 9-12 and participates in 5Ks for various charities.

A Boston native, Nancy appreciates Brimmer’s unique School colors of green and white, as two of the schools she attended and taught at had blue and gold as their colors. She loves helping students reach their potential when studying mathematics. She also loves working with the staff and students at Brimmer–all are kind and supportive and she appreciates the encouragement she receives to try new ways of teaching.

Nancy has been a member of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics since 1987. She held a Massachusetts Teaching License from 1987 to 2005.
Tom Bray

Manager of Operations and Facilities

Fitchburg State College - B.S.
University of Massachusetts - B.A.

Bio

Since joining the Brimmer team in 1996, Tom has enjoyed his role ensuring that Brimmer’s facilities are operating efficiently and effectively for the Brimmer community. Prior to joining the team, he worked as a teaching assistant in the Wellesley High School Alternative Program.

Tom became Manager of Operations and Facilities in 2018. He holds a Building Operator’s Certificate, for which he learned ways to increase energy efficiencies in facilities.
Carlton Buckley

Sous Chef

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