Meet the Faculty: New Faces, Fresh Perspectives at Gould.

Guest post by Dean of Academics, Ben Kamilewicz

We have amazing teachers here at Gould. They—like the coaches and other staff who are guiding your kids day after day—are the life blood of this amazing institution. With hundreds of years of teaching experience combined on staff, much of that time spent here at Gould, we don’t often have the chance to welcome new teachers.

However, it’s always exciting for me, as the Dean of Academics, to welcome new teachers to Gould when we have the chance. We have an amazing new cohort of teachers who are already making a positive impact on your students' education—and they have fun stories of their own to share!

Dr. Daniel McDermott

An avid soccer fan and amazing soccer coach at both club and college level, it makes sense that Dr. Daniel McDermott leads the boys soccer squad as their head coach. But did you know, his forays into the life of the mind have taken him as far as the University of Göttingen, where he was a researcher sponsored by the German government to investigate forestry during the Cold War and German Unification, which was the focus of his dissertation. And it seems his joys of nature and the “trees” take him on adventures throughout the wilderness whether it be canoeing, hiking, camping, or even birding. He even spent a number of summers as a Park Ranger in our own Acadia National Park. His love of nature and Maine has brought him back to us after finishing his BA in History & Environmental Studies at UMass Lowell, and his PhD History at the University of Rochester. His wife, Liz, a brilliant mind herself, will be joining him shortly. We couldn’t be prouder to have Dr. McDermott teaching Human Geography to our 9th graders—they are definitely in for an eye-opening learning experience.

 

Adrian Lyne

While not new to Gould, Adrian Lyne is joining our full-time English faculty as our AP Language & Composition teacher, as well as one of our 10th grade English teachers, after serving in our fellowship program for the last three years. Fresh off of finishing his Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Stonecoast at University of Southern Maine and previously receiving his Bachelor of Arts in Human Ecology from College of the Atlantic, he’s a Mainer at heart and has deep roots at the Academy—his great-grandmother worked as a dorm parent in Gehring after immigrating from Finland as a child. While not reading, writing, hanging out with his partner Madi (also new in her role as a Holden dorm parent) and their new pup, Picnic, you might find him river snorkeling up local waterways or working away to finish his novel, Paddling the Dawnland. We, and our returning and new students alike, are so excited to have him on board, and he can’t wait to help guide your students to be their best in the art of reading, writing, thinking, speaking, and listening!

 

Matt Slipp

Last but not least, we welcome Matt Slipp to the role of Music Teacher at the academy. An accomplished vocalist, he holds a BA from Gordon College and a Masters Degree from Bard College, both in voice performance, and also attended the Juilliard School. A consummate foodie and chef, he has been known to whip up his own exotic recipes including chocolate chip cookies with miso, 8-hour braised short ribs using a whole bottle of wine and a healthy dose of soy sauce, and roasted duck breast with an apricot and cherry compote. This is also probably why he is a big fan of Zu Bakery’s croissants in Portland, YUM!!! I imagine your students will want to be the first to join a food and music tour in Portland with him. His fascinating variety of fun facts continues with his favorite book being A Little Life by Hanya Yanigihara, his favorite flower being the peony, and a strong belief that higher thread counts on sheets are a scam, kind of with him on that one. Kind, caring, eager to help and with an eye for detail, we’re excited to see him bring his energy to our strong and growing music program.

 

We have an amazing new cohort of teachers who are already making a positive impact on your students' education—and they have fun stories of their own to share!

So I encourage you to meet these new faculty and all our fantastic teachers at our Fall Family Weekend. Parent/teacher/coach signups will be coming out soon, so don’t miss it. As always, we love our Gould parents and your kids—they are our mission and they’re in good hands with our faculty who care deeply about them and are driven to know them and help them be their best selves.

 

Reach out at any time and see you soon,

Ben

Dean of Academics