Archmere Welcomes New Faculty Members

Alima Bucciantini grew up in small-town Maine. She attended Mount Holyoke College, then went off to graduate school at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. After some time teaching there and working with the National Museum of Scotland, she returned to the U.S. to take jobs first as an Assistant Professor of Museum Studies at Appalachian State University in North Carolina, then at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. However, she wanted to connect to students’ academic journey—and a few fewer meetings to attend—so she switched over to high school teaching in 2019. After a few years at The Tatnall School, Dr. Bucciantini is very excited to bring her passion for European History, the weird stories of museum objects, and how to be well prepared for college to Archmere. 

Catie Chinn is a lifelong Delawarean who grew up in Newark and received her Bachelor of Arts in Secondary Mathematics Education with a minor in Educational Studies from the University of Delaware. She has a deep appreciation for Catholic schooling, having attended Holy Angels and Saint Mark’s. Catholic education made her fall in love with learning and wants to share that love with her students. Mrs. Chinn is so excited to teach at Archmere because of the school’s commitment to focusing on academic excellence and cultivating a caring and welcoming environment for both students and faculty. She looks forward to sharing her passion for mathematics with her students. 

James Clark III grew up in Randallstown, Maryland, and attended Kenwood High School, where he was a member of the Sports Science Academy Magnet Program. He learned about various sports medicine-related careers, including athletic training. Mr. Clark also played football and lacrosse at Kenwood, developing a growing interest in helping athletes perform at their best. James then attended Neumann University in Aston, Pennsylvania to major in Athletic Training while playing lacrosse. Archmere was the last clinical rotation site of his senior spring semester in 2020 but was cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Following this, James graduated and returned home to work as an athletic trainer in Baltimore county, but is now elated to be back a year later to be an official member of the Archmere community.

Lisa Goldstein grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and earned her Bachelor’s Degrees in Political Science and Philosophy, and minored in Theology with a Secondary Education emphasis in Religion at Mount Saint Mary’s University in Emmitsburg. From there, she earned her Master’s Degree at Catholic University of America. During graduate school, Lisa worked for Catholic Charities, interned on Capitol Hill, and coordinated a child abuse prevention program. Next, she began teaching for Huntington Learning Center, eventually becoming the Education Director, which led her to pursue Maryland State Teacher Certification in Special Education. She currently lives with her husband, two sons, parrot, and dog in Landenberg, PA. She is very active in parish life and ministry at her church and is enjoying the opportunity to teach Theology here in the wonderful community of Archmere.  

Frederick Okocha was born in Lagos, Nigeria, the youngest of four siblings. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Physics from Delta State University, Nigeria, and his Master’s Degree in Petroleum Geophysics from Imperial College, London. Mr. Okocha did not start his professional career as a teacher. He worked in the oil energy industry for eight years before transitioning to teaching. He taught Physics at College in Nigeria and was a Math and Physics teacher at Padua Academy. Mr. Okocha loves to travel and enjoy the uniqueness of every culture. He also plays chess, although with the pandemic, has gotten used to playing online now. Also, as a soccer fan, he loves to watch the English Premier League and other European leagues.

Nick Sanna is happy to return to the school that helped shaped the person he is today. He received his undergrad from LaSalle University, where he double-majored in secondary education and Spanish with a minor in history and earned his Master’s degree from Wilmington University in educational leadership. For the last 19 years, Mr. Sanna taught at St. Mark’s High School, coaching basketball and baseball. He was inducted into the Archmere Sports Hall Of Fame in 2016 and was named the Delaware State Basketball Coach of the Year in 2018. In addition to serving as Assistant Athletic Director, Mr. Sanna will be teaching Spanish and helping with alumni relations. He is also the varsity baseball coach and will be helping out in the basketball program as well.

Rachel Van Wylen comes to Archmere from The White Mountain School in New Hampshire where she was the Chair of the Fine and Performing Arts. She will be teaching Introduction to Drawing, Mixed Media, and Illustration, and is delighted to be joining a collaborative, award-winning department. A graduate of Gordon College and The New York Academy of Art, Rachel is a practicing artist who regularly exhibits her work in galleries and museums. However, her true home is the classroom, and she looks forward to sharing her love of drawing, painting, and the creative process with a new group of students. 

After earning a degree in Business Administration from SUNY Geneseo, Lauren began her career in business. Although she spent four rewarding years working in Fortune 500 companies, she decided to be adventurous and indulge an interest in international travel that had blossomed when she studied abroad at Oxford University as an undergraduate. Lauren bought a one-way ticket to Greece in 2007, where she earned a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certificate to teach English overseas. Lauren taught in China and South Korea for several years before returning to the U.S. to earn a graduate degree in education from The University of Pennsylvania. She has been an ESL (English as a Second Language) Director, AP teacher, Director of College Counseling, and Reading/Learning Specialist at independent and charter schools in Buffalo, NY, and the greater Philadelphia area for over a decade. Ms. Walton developed an interest in MBE (Mind, Brain, Education) science and will delightedly talk your ear off about educational neuroscience and social-emotional learning. She is thrilled to be joining the Archmere community and bringing a wealth of knowledge and curiosity about research-based, innovative educational practices to empower students with effective learning strategies that help them develop self-efficacy.