The transition from a school with only fifteen kids, to WA, a school with over 2000 kids is a huge change for one of WA's new teaching assistants. Sara Spaanenburg, who moved from Sweden eight years ago is still adjusting to the different environment, and is excited to figure out all the different aspects...

New staff member Katie Mantineo is starting her first year at Westford Academy as a teaching assistant. After working at three different schools within the Westford school district, she is ready to continue her role in a new environment. She hopes to work with and bring smiles to students each day.  Q:...

Zachary Sawyer is WA’s new orchestra teacher, joining the music department staff with many years of musical experience. Recently, the Ghostwriter got a chance to interview him and unlock a few deeper insights into who Sawyer is as a person and how he’s liking his job so far. Q: How are you enjoying...

After graduating from Wellesley College in May 2022 and finishing her student teaching last year, Olivia Fennell is taking over the position of teaching Latin and advising the knitting club at WA. Fennell is teaching during Mrs. Bjorkman's year away from the school. Fennell is very passionate about Latin...

After spending the past 45 years traveling around New England helping to make movies, Michael Reynolds has decided to take on a new job closer to home, working as a custodian at WA. Although he just started the job a few weeks ago, he is quickly adjusting and is looking forward to having more time to...

Christy Weller-Fahy is a student librarian trainee at WA. She got her undergrad from UMass Lowell 5 years ago and is getting a masters in library science at Salem State. She will only be here at WA for at most two weeks, as this will finish her training and she will be eligible for a masters degree in...

Dr. Shannon Taylor is a new CP chemistry teacher for 10th graders. She went to college at MIT for material process engineering and got her PhD at Northwestern. Shannon is very excited to be teaching a new set of minds and can't wait to see what this year has to offer. Q: Tell me about your previous...

Laura Sporel is a recent graduate from Mount Saint Mary College and is here to teach at Westford Academy. Being a former student of WA, she’s excited to rejoin the great community and contribute as a teacher. Q: Our source said that you are currently on the Student Support Team, however you are...

Substitute teacher Cory Brown will take on the role of former health teacher Lauren Coffey after she recently left WA. He is looking forward to being a fulltime teacher for WA as the health teacher and also being a Physical Education teacher. Prior to his career as a substitute he was a police officer...

After her first two years of teaching were overwhelmed with sudden and unexpected changes due to the pandemic, Spanish teacher Kristela Karaja is ready to settle down in WA.  Q: Where did you grow up? A: I was born in Albania, but I grew up in Windsor, Connecticut.  Q: When did you move from...

After spending the past few years observing classes and student teaching around the state of Massachusetts, math teacher Ned Greene has become one of the newest members of the Westford Academy staff. Q: How has your first month at Westford Academy been? A: It was equal parts hectic, but also thrilling....

Hanna Thieme started as an intern for the school psychology department in 2019. Since then, a global pandemic shut the world down, drastically changed the schedule of schools everywhere, and impacted countless students' mental health. Luckily, Thieme stuck with WA and is now the school's newest psychologist....