At Scholars Academy, we entrust our teachers with being the facilitators of learning and the masters of making magic in the classroom. Our qualified and exceptional teachers are passionate about making a positive and far-reaching impact on the lives of their students.
DR. LAURA LOWDER
Elementary, Middle, & High School
ELA and history faculty
Elementary & Middle Grades Science
Social Studies
Reading Anthology
Writing, & Math Faculty
Morning Meeting Facilitator
Academy Learn-to-Read Instructor
Academy Director & Curriculum Coordinator
Doctorate K-12 Curriculum & Instruction
Online Teaching and Learning (University of Florida)
Masters K-12 Curricuum & Instruction
Bachelor’s K-6 Elementary Education
K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure
K-12 Special Education Licensure (in progress)
24+ years K-12 Teaching Experience
14 years full-time University Faculty Experience (Full Professor of Education)
Elementary and Middle Grades Faculty
Dr. Laura Lowder
Elementary, Middle, & High School
ELA and history faculty
Elementary & Middle Grades Science
Social Studies
Reading Anthology
Writing, & Math Faculty
Morning Meeting Facilitator
Academy Learn-to-Read Instructor
Academy Director & Curriculum Coordinator
Doctorate K-12 Curriculum & Instruction
Online Teaching and Learning (University of Florida)
Masters K-12 Curricuum & Instruction
Bachelor’s K-6 Elementary Education
K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure
K-12 Special Education Licensure (in progress)
24+ years K-12 Teaching Experience
14 years full-time University Faculty Experience (Full Professor of Education)
Artistic Faculty
Mrs. Kris McConnell
Music & Choir Faculty
Newspaper Club Faculty Mentor
Story Club Faculty Mentor
B.A. Music & Leaders
Upper Academy English Language Arts & History Faculty
Dr. Laura Lowder
Elementary, Middle, & High School
ELA and history faculty
Elementary & Middle Grades Science
Social Studies
Reading Anthology
Writing, & Math Faculty
Morning Meeting Facilitator
Academy Learn-to-Read Instructor
Academy Director & Curriculum Coordinator
Doctorate K-12 Curriculum & Instruction
Online Teaching and Learning (University of Florida)
Masters K-12 Curricuum & Instruction
Bachelor’s K-6 Elementary Education
K-12 Academically Gifted Licensure
K-12 Special Education Licensure (in progress)
24+ years K-12 Teaching Experience
14 years full-time University Faculty Experience (Full Professor of Education)
Ms. Julianna Tauschinger-Dempsey
Upper Academy Lead Faculty
English Language Arts & History Harvard University Bachelors in Social Anthropology
Manhattan School of Music
Masters of Vocal Performance Vocalist for Zurich Opera
Upper Academy STEM Faculty
Mr. David Nichols
Upper Academy Science Faculty Columbia University Masters of Philosophy in Chemistry
California Institute of Technology BS Chemistry
North Carolina State Environmental Engineering
Wingate University Chemistry Faculty
Mr. Michael Lowder
Academy Scientist In Residence Volunteer Instructor Co-Founder of Scholars Academy for the Gifted and Artistically Elite B.S. Biology M.S. Department
Head of Life & Physical Science @ Our Dual Enrollment Partner School, Stanly Community College
Recipient of the 2022 NCSTA Don Bailey College/University Distinguished Service Award
Co-Founder of Scholars Academy for the Gifted and Artistically Elite
Newly-Identified Spider Species Named in His Honor ’23 Nesticus lowderi
Upper Academy Social & Emotional Faculty
Mrs. Kamini Wood
Social and Emotional Faculty & 1:1 Support Coach Mrs. Wood is the CEO of her own professional business, as a certified Life Coach.
WHAT MAKES A GIFTED TEACHER
Our gifted teachers support scholars by implementing the following practices:
Being able to adjust to unique situations.
Being able to understand the gifted student, what areas they excel in, their struggles, and using that knowledge to help them learn.
Focusing on the strengths of students and reinforcing the positives, instead of on the negatives.
Being able to use our gifted education program to adapt to the needs of gifted students in a nontraditional setting.
Embracing dyslexia, autism, ADHD, or any other exceptionality, and viewing it as an advantage.
Our academy is full of these educators who are making a difference.
OUR GIFTED TEACHERS AT SCHOLARS ACADEMY
Dr. Laura Lowder selects the best and brightest educators and facilitators in a classroom. For example:
The elementary school faculty members have received K-12 academically gifted teaching licensure.
One of our upper academy English and history teachers has a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University and a master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music.
Within our gifted education program, our artistic faculty teacher has a Bachelor of Music and Leadership degree.
The STEM faculty all have master’s and/or doctorate degrees from esteemed universities.
The academy employs mindfulness, social, and emotional certified instructors.
The faculty is enriched with a foreign language educator who teaches Spanish.
OUR UNIQUE FACULTY STRENGTHS AT SCHOLARS ACADEMY
Our faculty has additional strengths that qualify us to teach the gifted. Some of these are:
Our staff works academically with pre-professional dancers and are accommodating with their busy dance schedules.
The education program implemented by our gifted teachers provides learning opportunities for students that are self-paced and on their own timeline.
We encourage students to dream big, ask questions, express themselves through creativity, and have classroom discussions where they can openly share their opinions.
As teachers of gifted students, we recognize that learning and school should be fun for them. We strive to bring that energy and environment into our classrooms.
We encourage and work with high-achieving students so that they can reach their academic goals as quickly as they would like to.
We have mastered the balance of encouraging student growth at their own pace (in order to eliminate pressure and stress). At the same time, we challenge gifted students to become better through our education program and teaching.
WHY WE LOVE WHAT WE DO
We have mastered the balance of encouraging student growth at their own pace (in order to eliminate pressure and stress). At the same time, we challenge gifted students to become better through our education program and teaching.
