Compass Community
A vibrant and growing
homeschool group
in Athens, GA
homeschool group
in Athens, GA
Brianne Baine is a California girl by heart but has been living in Georgia since moving from CA as a teenager. She is married to Michael Baine, and they have five children, three of whom attend classes here at Compass Community. Her family is very active in their church: serving in the children’s ministry and the special needs ministry.
She obtained her BSEd degree in Exercise & Sport Science as well as Health Promotion from the University of Georgia before going on to get certified as a school teacher. She taught for many years in the public school system before she began homeschooling her children and teaching at Compass. This will be her 6th year as a Compass Community teacher, and she has enjoyed every year! She loves to make learning fun by creating an environment that gets her students excited and reaching their full potential before they even realize they are working hard. She is excited about the classes she is teaching this year and looks forward to another great year at Compass.
Contact Brianne at briannebaine (at) gmail.com
NeeCee Delk
NeeCee Delk, a Summa cum Laude graduate of the University of Georgia, spent the first 15 years of her career as a public school educator, with the majority of those years as a reading/language arts specialist in K-5 classrooms. As a second career professional musician, Mrs Delk has over 15 years of experience in the fields of music and music education. Along with teaching, she spends much of her time working with local theatre companies and schools as music director for musical productions. Mrs. Delk is an accomplished pianist, performing often for weddings, parties, etc. and in pit orchestras. She has also performed in several piano concerts in the Athens area. Mrs. Delk is currently Organist at Bethlehem First UMC. She lives in Athens with her husband, Steve Hulsey and their homeschooled daughter, Abbey. For more information about Mrs. Delk's music or educational services, please contact her at delkpiano@gmail.com
2018-2019 Classes: Music for Little Mozarts, Analytical Grammar Jr., Musical Theatre, and Community Helpers
Contact NeeCee at delkpiano (at) gmail.com
Kristy Dennis earned a B.A. in English and Secondary Education from Stetson University in DeLand, FL. and taught middle and high school English in the public school system. Kristy also served as the Children's Ministry Director for six years at Calvary Chapel Tampa, overseeing and organizing classes and a team of 25 volunteer teachers.
Kristy has three children, ages 9, 12, and 14, and has been homeschooling since 2007. She is very passionate about homeschooling and so thankful that she has the opportunity to teach her kids! She and her family have been involved in co-ops in Florida and Georgia, and Kristy enjoys teaching English, logic, art, and music to homeschooled students. She assumed the role of Director at Compass Community in Fall 2015.
After living in Florida for over 30 years, Kristy and her husband decided that the joys of the sunshine state were lost on them, and they moved to Athens, GA in 2012. The family attends Oconee Heights Baptist Church and is actively involved in several areas of ministry.
2018-2019 Classes: MAP Writing grades 6-7 & 8-9, 10-11
2018-2019 Classes: Wednesday - Fiber Arts, Leadership
Contact Kristy at dennisfam2000 (at) gmail.com
Jessica Ham was born and raised in the Athens/Oconee area, but when she married her husband, Dave, she moved to North Carolina where both their children were born at Fort Bragg/Pope AFB. Then they moved on to San Antonio, Texas for ten years with the United States Air Force. Although Texas still has her heart, Georgia is her home, and they decided to move back to the area four years ago.
2018-2019 MAP Classes: History Grades 8-9 and 10-11, Science grades 2-3 and 4-6
2018-2019 Classes: Heroes of the Faith, Science All Around Us
Nanette Heckler
Nanette is a local and prolific artist whose work is colorful and intense. She continually pushes her boundaries, creates works that are dynamic and alive, and strives to overturn fresh perspectives. She has recently delivered her art into God's hands, which has opened up her art to new and interesting expressions with all manner of mediums. Her work may be found on Facebook, Instagram and her website, http://www.nanetteheckler.com. She has collectors all over the country and in England and Canada.
Nanette is a formal trial attorney. She has been a lobbyist to the US Congress, a lawyer for the Nevada Legislature and has won moot court competitions. She earned her law degree from Washington and Lee University and her BA in political science from the University of Nevada-Reno. She has edited a novel, has worked as a news reporter, and has been an editor of a Sunday newspaper supplement.
Nanette has been a homeschooling mom and a teacher to homeschoolers
for 15 years. She has been teaching at Compass since its inception.
She has taught bible studies in churches and courses in community
colleges.
Nanette has been homeschooling her children for 14 years. Contact Nanette at nanuart (at) aol.com
Alicia Holman is a Georgia native who currently resides in Loganville, GA with her husband and three children. She has a BA in Sociology with a minor in Women's Studies. Alicia is a self-taught artist and photographer. In addition to owning her own photography business, she also paints and draws. Community projects and volunteerism are extremely important to Alicia as she actively supports the local arts and sports programs in her community. When given free time, Alicia enjoys a good baseball game, dark chocolate, and lots of snuggles with her kiddos.
Contact Alicia at wintergroveacademy (at) gmail.com
2018-2019 Classes: History Through Literature, Fun Phonics, Directed Drawing, Creative Learning, Mind Benders, Forensic Science
Even at the young age of 18, Abbey has accomplished so much as a dancer. She began her training at DanceFX Athens, under the tutelage of Allison Hayn. She was a founding member of the DanceFX Xcel Elite Competition team and has performed around the south as a member of that team. As she grew, she was selected to perform with the Senior Edge Elite Dance Team at Rhythm Dance Center in Marietta, under the direction of Dani Rosenberg and Becca Moore. With Sr. Edge, Abbey performed around the southern US at many dance conventions with a team that took top honors at every event. She has studied closely under some of the most sought-after national choreographers such as Twitch, Chebar Williams, Kevin Maher, Andrew Winghart, Jaci Royal and many more.
Contact Abbey at abbeyhulsey (at) gmail.com
Blake Ivey
Blake Ivey is the worship pastor at Oconee Heights. His passion is to lead the people of God in passionate and authentic worship. He received his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication from Kennesaw State University in 2013. Outside of music, Blake is passionate about discipleship and the study of scripture.
Blake met his wife Maddi in Rome, GA where she attended Berry College. They welcomed their first son, Ezekiel in August of 2017. They also have two dogs, Hope and Chewbacca. They love the Atlanta Falcons, Hawks, Texas Rangers and they’re learning to cheer for the Bulldogs (it’s a process). Additionally, Blake enjoy video games, movies, and music (obviously)!
2018-2019 Classes: Guitar
Contact Blake at blakeivey1(at) gmail.com
Renée Jackson
Renée earned her Bachelor of Science in Environmental Health from the University of Georgia and her Masters of Public Health from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. While at UGA, she met her husband Doug, who is now a chemistry professor at UGA. She spent six years at Prince Avenue Christian School in Athens, teaching high school chemistry as well as middle school earth science and physical science. She also taught keyboarding and Microsoft Office skills. For the past two years, Renee has spent most of her time at home with her two-year-old daughter, Hannah, but she has also worked part-time as a chemistry tutor. In her spare time, Renee enjoys traveling, baking and running.
2018-2019 Classes: Computer Microsoft Office Skills and Intro to Baking
Contact Renee at reneejackson2 (at) gmail.com
Brenda Kaes was born and raised in Northern CA and graduated from CSU Chico with a BA in Physical Education. After marrying Ron, a naval officer, in 1991 they relocated to Athens Ga, where Ron was an instructor at the Navy Supply Corps School. They liked the area so much that Ron resigned at the end of his tour and they opened a pizza shop in Madison County. She has now lived half of her life in each state.
2018-2019 Classes: MAP History grades 5-8, Integrated History, Writing, and Literature Grades 2-4
Contact Brenda at brendakaes (at) windstream.net
My name is Carolyn Kaes. I am a native Athenian with a BS degree in Early Childhood Education and a minor in International
Studies.
Growing up, I attended Master’s Academy, a fine arts
school for homeschoolers, where I took piano and violin lessons and participated in the drama company, show choir, and various musical theatre
productions. I have 10 years of piano training and currently play piano in the worship team at Living Hope Church.
Post high school, I attended Liberty University and have enjoyed teaching children in a variety of settings including music and piano lessons, Compass classes, and horse back riding camps.
2018-2019 Classes: Piano all levels, World Culture and Geography, Health and Fitness, Missions, Music and Chorus
Contact Carolyn at ckaes93 (at) gmail.com
2018-2019: MAP Writing and Literature for grades 4-5, Literature for grades 6-7
Jenny Liedberg is a wife and mother of 3 and lives on a farm in Oglethorpe County. She has a true passion for working with children and helping them become the best version of themselves both in her class and outside of it. She has been a horseback riding instructor for 17 years and archery instructor for 3 years.
2018-2019 Classes: Archery
Contact Jenny at gunsmokesfancy (at) yahoo.com
Danielle is a local theatre professional and teacher. She taught Drama with Masters Academy of Fine Arts for five years. In addition to teaching, Danielle is the Artistic Director of Rose of Athens Theatre and the Director of Rose of Athens Theatre Academy. She received her B.A. in theater from Piedmont College in Demorest, GA in 2007. Danielle has participated in many theatrical ventures and has worked every job from backstage to onstage, including several years of experience at Highlands Playhouse in Highlands, NC. She has performed at the South Eastern Theatre Conference in the Fringe Festival and in the 10-Minute Play Festival and was recently invited to perform in the Georgia Presenters Showcase hosted by the Fox Theatre Institute. Danielle is a three-time Irene Ryan Award nominee, an honor presented by the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.
2018-2019 Classes: Drama for grades K-3, Drama for grades 4-6, Theatrical Production for grades 7-12
Contact Danielle at jdaniellebm (at) yahoo.com
Sherri Michelle learned to sign in her freshman year of high school. She made a deaf friend who taught her sign language.
She has earned a BA in American Sign Language and Interpreting for the Deaf from Maryville College in Maryville, Tennessee. She has worked as a freelance interpreter for the deaf as well as an educational interpreter in public schools in Texas, Georgia, Alabama, and North Carolina.
Sherri Michelle is married to David Mills, pastor of Beech Haven Baptist Church. She is the mother of four children.
Contact Sherri Michelle at smmills6 (at) sbcglobal.net
Rebekah Nunez
Rebekah Nunez
grew up in Lawrenceville, GA, where she was homeschooled all the way
through high school. She attended Georgia College & State
University, where she earned her B.A. in Spanish and Master of Arts in
Teaching. Rebekah has spent time in Spain & Mexico, where she
developed her love of Spanish language and culture. She enjoys bringing
Hispanic culture into the classroom, from making the best guacamole to
celebrating birthdays with cascarones (confetti eggs) to making piñatas.
Rebekah taught high school Spanish for six years before teaching at
Compass. She lives in Athens with her husband Alex, two year-old
Kendrick, orange tail-less cat Murray, and will be welcoming baby Darcy
to the family in May 2018. She attends Redeemer Presbyterian Church with
her family and enjoys cooking, hiking, and watching Star Trek.
2018-2019 Classes: (MAP) Spanish all levels
2018-2019 Classes Wednesdays: Painting and Crafting Stories
Contact Rebekah at rebekah.c.nunez (at) gmail.com
Jeni Pittard is mom to four children ranging from preschool to high school. Born in Germany to a military family, she considers Georgia home. After college at Augusta State University, Jeni and her husband Jeff ended up in the Athens area about 15 years ago. She loves reading a good mystery, traveling whenever possible, developing new recipes, and incorporating coffee into all of those things. She and her family are members at Beech Haven Baptist Church.
2018-2019 Classes: Cooking
Contact Jeni at jeni.pittard (at) gmail.com
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Maryanne Romano is a homeschooling mother of four and has dedicated her life to Christ and to her family. Homeschooling was always their family's intention. The privilege to teach her children has renewed her love for learning, and she tries to inspire her students to experience the same love for learning in their own lives. She enjoys creating a rich learning environment full of opportunities for hands-on activities, and she encourages active class discussions. It is her desire to infuse life and joy into what might otherwise be considered dull and dry academics.
2018-2019 classes: Weird Science, Apologia General Science, Apologia Physical Science
Contact Maryanne at 4maryanneromano (at) gmail.com
Laura Rupers
2018-2019 Classes: Arts & Crafts, Ukulele
Contact Laura Rupers at (remove spaces and use "@" and ".") rupers family at gmail dot com
Rhonda Smith
After growing up in central Kentucky, Rhonda earned a BS in Wildlife Biology from Murray State University and an MS in Raptor Biology from Boise State University. She has taught science in a variety of settings including 3 years as an outdoor education instructor for elementary and middle school aged students and 3 years teaching college-level biology labs. She volunteers for church ministry in several positions with youth and children including camp counselor, nursery volunteer, preschool teacher and VBS leader. She and her family moved from Rhode Island to Athens in 2015. She has 3 children, ages 10, 7, and 4, and has been homeschooling for 4 years. She loves homeschooling and learning something new every day. She spends her precious free time reading C.S. Lewis, knitting legwarmers, watching Star Wars, and birding. She loves hiking, owls, mountains, cooking, and her family.
2018-2019 classes: FUNdamental Math grades 2-4 and 4-6, and Science Deconstructed
Contact Rhonda at owlbiology (at) gmail.com
Erin Steele
Erin Steele is a homeschooling mama of three kids and wife to Brian. They live in Winterville with two crazy dogs and nine crazier chickens. A native Georgian from Lilburn, Erin graduated from the University of Georgia in 2008 with a B.A. in Spanish. She taught Spanish at Tucker High School for two years post college. After the birth of her first son, Caleb, Erin began working for Parkview High School Young Life, a high school ministry aimed at reaching students with the love of Jesus. She also trained to become a birth doula, and continues that work, as she is passionate about supporting families through the journey of pregnancy, labor, and delivery.
The Steeles have a passion for travel and have visited many countries in South America, Africa, and the Middle East, including a three-month stint at mission's school in Mozambique in 2015. It was after this trip that the Steele family relocated to Athens in the summer of 2016, and they've been enjoying the amazing community and all it has to offer ever since.
2018-2019 Classes: Beginner Spanish and Dangerous Class for Kids
Contact Erin at ejeffre1 @ gmail.com
Tiena Thacker
Tiena Thacker is a homeschooling mom to four amazing children, a wife, and the Children and Youth Director at her church. Her passions in life include loving and serving the Lord, her awesome family and working with children and teens. She has been working with children for almost 30 years as a teacher, day care worker and owner, and in children, youth and family ministries. She has a B.A. in Elementary Education from Central Washington University and worked as a Head Start teacher in Colorado before moving to Georgia 20 years ago.
She considers homeschooling her children one of the best decisions she ever made! She believes it is such blessing to have the privilege of being with her children every day, to be the one that leads and guides not only their education but their character as well. In her “spare” time, she enjoys being creative, baking, singing in her praise band, and being outdoors.
Her kids have attended Compass for the last five years, and Tiena began teaching at Compass last year. She looks forward to working with your children as they create, learn, think, problem-solve, discuss, explore, laugh and just have fun!
2018-2019 Classes: Lego Building Challenge, Games! Games! Games!, Creative Craft Making, and Children Around the World.
Contact Tiena at mtthacker (at) bellsouth.net
