She is a creative and resourceful educator who brings a wealth of experience to our school, having worked with learners of all ages from elementary to high school. As well as having taught PE for several years, she has had a variety of other teaching experiences including being a classroom teacher and a math and science teacher.

Her teaching journey actually began at our school as a student teacher for Sarah Anderson while earning her Master’s in elementary education at Antioch University. While there she specialized in integrated learning with an emphasis on science and environmental education. She has spent the last four years teaching a blended 2/3 class at Trillium Charter School where she has been committed to creating engaging and relevant projects that connect students to their place. She is passionate about building strong relationships with students and creating a collaborative and inclusive classroom community. We are glad to have her back at our school.

Lauriel came to Cottonwood in the fall of 2018. She earned her B.A. in Environmental and Cultural Studies from the Evergreen State College and her Master’s in Teaching from Lewis and Clark College. She has taught in both formal and informal learning environments including O.M.S.I, The Audubon Society, the Portland Earth, Art, & Agriculture Project, Sunnyside Environmental School, and many more. Lauriel is a passionate educator, who loves exploring the natural wonders of Pacific Northwest with her students. As a teacher, she focuses on using inquiry and exploration to spark curiosity in her students and she enjoys helping young people connect to the nature and place through exploration, journaling, making art, and learning to carefully observe the world. Additionally, Lauriel loves to help developing writers unleash their creative potential and explore their sense of identity by using writing as a tool for self expression and self actualization.

It is a policy of the State Board of Education and a priority of The Cottonwood School that there will be no discrimination or harassment on the grounds of race, color, sex, marital status, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, or disability in any educational programs, activities or employment.

People having questions about equal opportunity and nondiscrimination should contact Amanda McAdoo, Executive Director,
0640 SW Bancroft Street., Portland, OR 97239;
Phone 503-244-1697;
or email: amandamcadoo@thecottonwoodschool.org

Emily Conner joined Southwest Charter in 2016 as our 7/8 Humanities teacher. Emily has a Masters in Teaching at Lewis & Clark, where she focused on social justice education and promoting an inclusive and inquiring classroom community. Her interest in place-based education began when she lived in Alabama, working toward her MFA in creative writing and farming in Coker on weekends. In her free time, Emily likes to bake bread, doodle, and go on long walks with audiobooks and her dog Ellie.

Chris joined the staff as the 7/8 Math and Science teacher in 2014. Chris received his Bachelor’s degree in Biology Education from Ithaca College. He has completed Master’s level work in Educational Technology at Walden University. He spent four years teaching Middle School science at Lower Manhattan Community School in New York City.  Chris feels that every interaction and situation presents an opportunity to learn. He has a passion for outdoor education and learning through community. Chris believes that knowing the children we teach is as important as knowing the content we teach.

Lisa joined the teaching team at CSCS in 2007. Prior to teaching at SWCS, she worked with the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) where for four years she developed science curriculum and taught students of all ages around the state. Her love of science and exploration began back in Michigan where she and her sister would explore their neighborhood, looking for insects and tinkering in their father’s work shed. That interest would take her to study at the University of Michigan where she discovered she had a talent for teaching and received a Bachelor of Arts in Education with High Distinction. She recently completed her Master’s degree at Concordia. She has taught in a variety of educational settings from large group assemblies, which encouraged a love of theater, to small group classrooms, where she can give individualized attention. Her strong science background is accented by a passion for storytelling, folklore & mythology from around the world. Inspired by those tales, she creates visual art, plays with the Stumptown-Jugthumpers as a washboard player, and is learning how to make puppets. Lisa brings her enthusiasm and talents to share and loves discovering and honing the talents and skills of each of her students.

Morgen came to CSCS in 2016 from the Creative Science School in Portland. Prior to her time at Creative Science, Morgen received her master’s degree in Education from Portland State University and had the opportunity to teach in a variety of educational settings as a substitute teacher for Portland Public Schools.  She has experience with the Storyline method and strives to find authentic and engaging ways to integrate grade level content across the curriculum. An avid fan of the game of soccer (football), Morgen enjoys playing weekly on her adult co-ed team and also looks forward to attending Portland Timbers games with her husband and son. As a native Portlander, she also loves a variety of outdoor activities including hiking, biking, and snowboarding.

Elizabeth joined CSCS in 2016. She recently graduated with a MAT from the Arbor Center for Teaching in conjunction with Marylhurst University. As part of this program, she had the privilege of co-teaching for two years in a K-1 classroom at the Arbor School of Arts and Sciences, as well as teaching language arts and math units in a 5th grade at Stafford Elementary in West Linn. When she’s not in the classroom, you can this native Portlander singing in choirs, cooking, gardening, writing, and hiking.

Susan joined the staff of Southwest Charter in 2012. Her teaching experience spans grades two through six in both public and private schools. Her first four years of teaching were with third graders, and she is excited to be back with this age group. Susan received her Masters of Education from the University of Pennsylvania and found her way to Oregon as the result of marrying a native Oregonian. She spent most of her childhood living outside the United States. She was born in Brazil and completed high school in Belgium with an IB diploma. She has also lived in Russia and values these international experiences while developing a strong appreciation for other cultures and viewpoints. She enjoys camping and hiking in the summer months and traveling to new places whenever she can. She is an avid reader and helps to promote this to students through participation in Battle of the Books.

Angie 2017-18

Angie joined CSCS in fall 2016 and came to us after teaching a first, second, and third grade blend at The Ivy School in Portland. Originally from Southeast Idaho, Angie moved to Portland in 2005 and later earned her Masters of Education from Portland State University. Angie has held a variety of roles in education from coaching to being an instructor at Mad Science, but has especially enjoyed working with young children. She loves their strong sense of curiosity and contagious joy for life. Angie’s commitment to crafting learning experiences that are hands-on and require creative thinking have found a natural fit in place-based education and the Storyline method. When not teaching, Angie loves to fill her time with reading, painting, kayaking, and catching up with friends and family.

Nesa joined the teaching team at CSCS in fall 2014 and has loved being a part of this amazing community ever since! Nesa is passionate about Place-Based Education and has been working on the grant committee to help other teachers learn about and implement PBE curriculum. She also uses the Scottish Storyline method, an integrated approach to teaching, in her classroom which leads to many engaging activities such as building a volcano and creating a restaurant in the classroom. Nesa received her B.A. in Drama from Vassar College in New York and incorporates her love of performance into the classroom by allowing her students to explore creatively and learn by doing. Originally from Eugene, Nesa returned to Oregon after living on the east coast and received her Masters in Education from Portland State University. Nesa has loved being a teacher of young students immensely. She loves getting to know her students, discovering their strengths and talents, and overcoming challenges together as a classroom and school community. Outside of teaching, Nesa enjoys being in nature, traveling, Balkan folk dancing, dancing in general, and 90s sing-along parties.

Noelle joined Cottonwood in the fall of 2017. In the six years prior, she taught pre-k thru third grade in both public and private school settings. Noelle also teaches acting classes at Oregon Children’s Theater.  Noelle received both her BA and MAed from Portland State University.  When she isn’t teaching, she spends her time acting on stage and in film, camping, backpacking, hiking, and adventuring with her dog, Lady Bird.

Kathy Price, a former preschool teacher, has been working with CSCS since the opening in 2007 (as Southwest Charter School). In addition to teaching preschool, Kathy has worked with Neighborhood House’s SUN program teaching after school classes to grades K-8. Kathy has a coached many sports over the years including soccer, basketball, gymnastics and dance. Outside of school, Kathy enjoys reading, hiking and long walks on the beach. Kathy has lived in Portland for most of her life and is proud to be bringing up her son in the same neighborhoods in which she grew up. Kathy has taken great joy in raising her teenage son and is grateful she gets to spend time with the amazing kids of CSCS.

More to come…

Email: courtneymiller [at] thecottonwoodschool.org

Sarah K. Anderson, was previously our 7th/8th teacher specializing in language arts and social studies, was originally lured to Oregon by its waterfalls. She spent most of her childhood exploring rivers and forests near her rural Vermont home- experiences which provided inspiration for a passion for nature and all things wild. After graduating with a degree in American Studies from Bard College in New York, Sarah served as an AmeriCorps volunteer for Metro Parks and Greenspaces in Portland. Since then, she has worked as a crew leader at an educational farm in Vermont, a Teacher Naturalist in the California Redwoods and a Middle School Humanities teacher at The Key School in Annapolis, Maryland. Sarah received a Masters of Education from Antioch New England Graduate School, where she specialized in integrated and place-based education. In addition to exploring the local neighborhoods and environs with her zany middle-schoolers, Sarah enjoys knitting, hiking, pickling, reading good books, and climbing waterfalls.

Sarah has written a book about Place-Based Learning and The Cottonwood School of Civics and Science, titled “Bringing School to Life: Place-based Education Across the Curriculum.” Learn more about the book here .

Email: sarahanderson [at] thecottonwoodschool.org

Amanda joined the faculty at Southwest Charter in Fall 2010 as the kindergarten teacher, during the 2014/15 school year she began her transition into administration, becoming the Executive Director in 2016. After being away for 22 years, Amanda returned to her hometown of Portland in 2008 to raise her two boys. Amanda received her Master’s Degree in Education from the Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, California in 1992. With her degree in hand, she has taught in a number of small alternative schools, designed a successful children’s clothing line using recycled materials, and started her own Place-based school in rural Montana. Amanda believes strongly in the power of Place-Based Education and getting children out from behind their desks and into active, hands-on learning! She loves children and is enthusiastic about the outdoors, her community, family, cooking, and crafts.

Email: amandamcadoo [at] thecottonwoodschool.org