This year, we have five new faculty members joining us from all over—and we are super pumped to welcome them.
True Pham – Upper School Math Fellow
Strange food combo: Fries & milkshakes
Hailing from Austin, Texas, True Pham grew up with his two parents and an older brother. He majored in Political Economy at Williams College and spent last year teaching English as a Fullbrighter in Vietnam—how cool! He came to GA from Vietnam through the recommendation of Grace Kim, a fellow in the Lower School, and after falling in love with GA during his interview, he is now a UPenn Math teaching fellow! You can hope to have him as your teacher for Algebra II regular or Accel this year (:
Will Pfadenhauer – Upper School Science
Strange Food Combo: Buffalo wings & ranch
Dr. Pfadenhauer (fay – den – how – er) grew up in McLean, Virginia, just outside of DC. Although not a particularly strong science student, he has always been interested in science, especially conservation biology, ecology, and invasive species. As an undergraduate, he was a TA for a geology course and had a summer internship that involved designing earth systems lessons for middle school audiences. More recently, he taught a variety of science and tech subjects both formally and informally at UMass Amherst… and now onto GA! After first walking on campus, he says “I was really struck by the network of amazing relationships that exist among the students, staff, faculty, and parents, and I wanted to be a part of that!” We are lucky to have him teach AP Environmental Science and Biology this year.
Allison Patterson – History fellow
Food that describes her: Chocolate chip cookie—consistent and comforting
Coming all the way from sunny San Diego, CA, Ms. Patterson is joining us for her first year of teaching—starting off strong with Modern World History. She says that history can get a bad rep for being too focused on names, dates, etc., but there are so many different types of history and ways to approach it that she feels as though there’s something in it for everyone! With history, you can really allow students to follow their own interests: “I find encouraging students to explore their own interests usually does a pretty good job of getting them engaged in the material and helps them feel like their interests and experiences matter,” she says.
Victoria Corbalis – New PAC manager
Food-related fun fact: she’s 100% gluten free because of celiac disease
Ms. Corbalis grew up much closer to us in White Plains, NY, and now lives with her husband, Casey, and two cats, Luna and Oliver. After freelancing in NYC for the majority of her career, she found herself longing for a more permanent sense of home and community—that’s how she found herself here at GA!
Although her main love is theater, she also has a lot of television experience, being fortunate enough to work on different shows such as the Super Bowl halftime show with Justin Timberlake, the MTV Video Music Awards, So You Think You Can Dance, and the one closest to her heart, The Drew Barrymore Show (how cool!!!).
Victoria Bono – US Computer Science
Strange food combo: Triscuit cracker, cream cheese, and pepperoni OR a blueberry muffin, cut in half, toasted, and a spritz of lemon juice on every bite.
Ms. Bono comes from Bethel, CT, where she grew up with her parents and older brother. She will be our second new teacher Victoria this year and this summer she took on Canada, for the first time, with her family: “One of the most notable experiences I walked away from after this trip is yes, the Canada Dry ginger ale is actually better in Canada!” This year will be her first time teaching. She loves sports, cooking/baking, geography, reading, history, being active, going to the beach and lake, and trying new things.
