Salisbury Academy

SALISBURY — Faculty, staff and students returning to Salisbury Academy this fall will welcome several new faces.

Elizabeth Anderson joins Salisbury Academy as lower-school division director and a middle school teacher.

Anderson earned a bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a master of education degree from Cambridge College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and her AIG license from UNC-Charlotte. Over the past 12 years, Anderson has held lower-school teaching and AIG positions in addition to serving as School Improvement Team chairwoman, grade team leader and supervisor of various academic programs.

Anderson and her husband, Forrest, have two boys ages 8 and 4. Anderson said she is excited to join Salisbury Academy’s innovative family, and that she loves to see a child’s joy in learning something new.

Lisa Davenport will serve as the school’s kindergarten assistant teacher.

With 20 years of experience as a teacher assistant and co-teacher, Davenport has taught at three schools over the course of her career. She also serves as a summer camp teacher for Salisbury Academy and has two grandchildren at the school. She enjoys working in the yard, listening to music and reading.

Davenport said she gets great joy from teaching and looks forward to daily hugs from the junior kindergarten and kindergarten students.

Salisbury Academy’s new part-time guidance counselor and third-grade teaching assistant is Melanie Deal. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in elementary education from Pfeiffer University and a master’s degree in school counseling from UNC-Charlotte. Deal has 32 years of experience in education as a teacher, counselor and student services coordinator.

Deal most enjoys working with children, teachers, parents and administrators to create the best possible growing environment. For fun, Deal enjoys traveling, reading, sailing with her husband on Lake Norman, and spending time with friends and family.

With 39 years of experience in education, Karen Isenhour joins Salisbury Academy as media specialist. Isenhour holds a bachelor of arts degree in childhood education and a master’s degree in library and information studies from UNC-Greensboro.

Over the course of her career, she has been a teacher, media coordinator and Title I tutor.

Isenhour enjoys reading, camping, gardening and hiking. She most enjoys seeing children get excited about reading. She is energized by the children she teaches and wants students to remember that they are loved and that they are important.

The academy’s new art teacher, Molly Shelton, earned a bachelor of science degree in art education from Appalachian State University and was honored as a North Carolina Teaching Fellow. She has taught art in public schools in three North Carolina regions over the course of her career.

Teaching and working with kids has always been her passion, Shelton said.

“I love to see kids create, discover, imagine and be a little messy,” said Shelton.

She and her husband, Chris, have four children. Shelton enjoys creating artwork, serving as a doula and birth photographer, cooking and devoting time to Life Church where her husband is lead pastor.

Heidi Tringali will be a part-time academic resource specialist. Tringali holds bachelor of arts degrees in special education and psychology from Hastings College and a master of science degree in occupational therapy from Tufts University.

She has practiced occupational therapy for more than 20 years and is a specialist in pediatric, school-based occupational therapy services. Tringali is certified in Handwriting Without Tears and trained in sensory processing disorders, visual motor deficit treatment and handwriting.

Tringali said her goal is to ensure that each child’s fullest potential is realized. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, Tony, and their two children, Sedonia and Thomas.

Nathan Wyatt joins Salisbury Academy as third-grade teacher. A recent Catawba College graduate with dual bachelor of arts degrees in elementary education and special education, Wyatt has four years of field experience teaching in Rowan-Salisbury Schools.

For his senior year, Wyatt student-taught fourth grade at Morgan Elementary School.

Wyatt is a Salisbury Academy alumnus and said he is excited to give students the same positive experiences that he had in his time at the school. Wyatt is newly married and in his spare time enjoys directing his church’s vacation Bible school, watching sports, and relaxing with friends and family.

Salisbury Academy also welcomes two new members to its board of trustees:

George Kluttz has 50 years of experience in the finance and banking industry. A University of North Carolina graduate with a master’s of business administration degree from Wake Forest, he has worked at First Union Bank and Kern Rubber Co. and most recently retired from F&M Bank after serving as a commercial loan officer for 18 years.

Kluttz is the current vice president and a past president of the Salisbury Rotary Club, a past treasurer of the Rowan Museum, a board member of the Home Mission Foundation and a member of the finance committee at St. John’s Lutheran Church. In his spare time, Kluttz enjoys woodworking, fixing up old boats and spending time with his family, including his four grandchildren and his wife of 50 years, Margaret Harry Kluttz.

“I look forward to serving Salisbury Academy and to giving back to a school that is such an important part of our community,” said Kluttz.

Jon Palmer is the owner and principal architect of the architectural firm JP+A Architect PLLC. Palmer graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design with a bachelor of fine arts degree and bachelor’s degree in architecture. He worked with Tennent & Tennent Architects and KKA Architecture in Salisbury before opening his own firm in 2008.

Most recently, Palmer received awards for his work at projects including Lee Street Theatre, the Blackmer-Dixon House and City Tavern. Palmer is a member of the American Institute of Architects and National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. His community involvement includes Communities in Schools and the Spencer Historic Preservation Commission, among others, along with participation on the Salisbury Academy Project Green Space and buildings committees.

Palmer is married to artist Cara Reische and has a daughter, Camille, who is a rising eighth-grader at Salisbury Academy. In his free time, he enjoys travel, camping, the outdoors, music and spending time with friends and family.