Educator Advisory Group
We are working with a fabulous group of Charlotte educators to reimagine our work with schools. This year, we are focusing on designing resources and experiences for the 8th grade US/NC History course.
Read more about our educator collaborators below.
Kiara Eden
Mallard Creek High School
Kiara Eden is a native of Fayetteville, NC, turned proud Charlottean of 13 years. She attended UNC Charlotte for her Bachelors of Arts in History and Political Science and Masters of Arts in Teaching for Middle Grades Social Studies. She’s a licensed Middle Grades Social Studies and English as a Second Language (ESL) educator of 8 years for Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools. She loves traveling, all things history, Harry Potter, and Hamilton.
Stephanie Griffin
Trinity Episcopal School
Stephanie is the Middle School Academic Dean at Trinity Episcopal School, where she also teaches Social Studies and Social Action Seminar. She has spent the last thirteen years doing what educators do best: wearing multiple hats! In addition to teaching Social Studies and English-Language Arts, she has directed service-learning programs, served as a grade-level dean, spearheaded interdisciplinary planning initiatives, coached lacrosse, and served as a MS athletic director. She is thrilled to be a part of Trinity’s MS administrative team, where she works daily to answer the question, “What’s best for teachers and learners?”
Martha Gwinn
Former teacher at Harding University High School
Martha graduated from UNC Charlotte and the NC Teaching Fellows Program with a History Degree in 2012. She was a public school teacher from 2012 to 2022 and has taught at two different schools. She loves traveling and learning the history about different places and cultures.
Ben Runkel
Jay M. Robinson Middle School
Ben is an 8th Grade Social Studies Teacher at Jay M. Robinson Middle School. He is originally from Waxhaw, North Carolina and graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with degrees in American History and Global Studies. His favorite historical eras to teach are the American Revolution and Reconstruction.
Kathleen McMillan
Community School of Davidson
Kathleen is the 8th grade Social Studies teacher at the Community School of Davidson. She earned her Bachelors and Masters of Education Administration degrees from UNC Charlotte. For the past 25 years as an educator, Kathleen's passion involves integrating the arts in the curriculum. She enjoys spending time outdoors with her husband, three teenagers and many animals.
Amanda Styles
Piedmont Open IB Middle School
Amanda has a B.A. in History with a minor in secondary education at UNC Charlotte where she is finishing up a Master's Degree in Academically Gifted Education this coming spring semester. She has been teaching 8th-grade social studies at Piedmont Open IB Middle for the past ten years and loves her job. She is a NC native and happily married with two cats.
Katie Willett
Myers Park High School
Katie is an experienced secondary educator and has spent the majority of her 17-year career with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. She's passionate about Social Studies education and seeks opportunities to develop opportunities for students to build historical thinking skills and knowledge to make connections from local to global. She's a National Board Certified teacher with a B.S. in History and English from Northern Michigan University, a Graduate Certificate in Academically and Gifted Education from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and is pursuing a M.Ed in TESOL from the University of Michigan.
Yvonne Wolf
James Martin Middle School
Since middle school, Yvonne knew she wanted to be a history teacher. She has been teaching social studies for 10 years in North Carolina, all at James Martin Middle School. Teaching and learning about history is her passion.