Middle and High School Instructors
Alicia Braswell- CCS and WS
Alicia and her husband, Larry, have been married for twenty-two years and homeschooling for fourteen. Their oldest son, Wray, is in college, high schoolers Drew and Caitlyn are Circle students, and the youngest, Lucas, will be joining them this year. After serving as missionaries to the Gaucho people in southern Brazil for over nine years, they have been in the Orlando area for three years where they are continuing to plant churches in much the same way as they did in Brazil. Alicia received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Microbiology from Mississippi State University and was also certified to teach all secondary sciences. After teaching public school in Texas while her husband was in seminary, she feels blessed to be able to teach science from a creationist and Biblical perspective now. She believes in the importance of helping students have fun as they learn to understand the orderly universe that God created, how they relate to it, and how they can defend their faith intellectually in the secular world.Julie Dennen - CCS
Julie is a 2007 Circle graduate and is attending Valencia
Community College to pursue a degree in Spanish. She was homeschooled
through Circle from kindergarten through twelfth grade and was a dual
enrolled student at Valencia during her senior year of high school.
She began her study of Spanish in eighth grade with her teacher and
mentor, Mrs. Beth Mattox, and fell in love with the language
immediately. Since that time she has had opportunities to use her
Spanish both in and out of the classroom including a trip to Mexico
where she worked in an orphanage. Julie loves helping students
understand the language and the culture that has become so much a part
of our own culture today. She is very excited to be teaching at Circle
this year and hopes to instill in her students an appreciation for this
beautiful language.
Scott Gerlt - CCS
Scott received a Bachelor of Science from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and a Master's Degree in Science from Webster College. He is an engineer with Lockheed Martin and has served as a missionary in inner city Chicago and Mexico City. In his church, he currently teaches high school AWANA program and team teaches adult Sunday school. He is a homeschool dad to his daughters, Olivia and Elaine. Scott's driving passion is life-long growth in his Savior, Jesus Christ. This includes an ever clearer image of God's fingerprints in the natural world as well as His highest creation - His children! As part of the team bringing Lasting Influence For Eternity (LIFE), he is driven to see purposeful life decisions bring lasting changes in the lives of the class participants.
Ann Mary Gerrity - CCS and WS
Ann Mary and her husband, Steven, have been married twenty years. They have two children, Sam, a college sophomore, and Rachel, a CCS senior. Ann Mary has been homeschooling their children since 1997. Her enthusiasm for literature, writing, grammar, and apologetics has been used as a vehicle to teach the beauty of words to her children. Ann Mary is passionate about teaching those skills, which, given in youth, will inspire children to communicate God's truth to anyone they encounter. Ann's background before homeschooling her children included two years at college learning under an English major and a long career in retail management and the service industry. She will instill in her students the wisdom and knowledge that God has generously given for the betterment of each child's heart.
Rick Keaton - CCS and WS
Rick Keaton has been a youth and education teacher for over twenty years. He received his Bachelor of Science from Dallas Bible College and his Master's Degree in Christian Education from Dallas Theological Seminary. He and His wife, Eleanor, homeschooled for fourteen years and taught in private Christian schools for ten years. They have three grown children. Rick has taught Bible, American History, World History, and Biblical Worldview classes since 1996. He lived and pastored in Plymouth, Massachusetts for eight years. He has a passion for helping students see all of history through God's Truth and God's plan. History is His Story. He and his wife are co-founders of DesignerTruth Seminars specializing in Biblical Worldview training and Personality Seminars. They one day hope to develop a Christian Camp Ministry.
Tammy Lanzi - CCS and WS
Tammy and her husband Don have been married for twenty-four years and
have two daughters, Trisha, a freshman in college, and Joanna, a
seventh grade student. Though Tammy earned her certification in both
General Bible and Christian Education from Grand Rapids School of the
Bible and Music, she has spent many years involved in a variety of
occupations. It wasn't until she started homeschooling her girls
fourteen years ago that she discovered a love for teaching. She has
taught in several Circle programs for eight years. In all her classes,
Tammy encourages her students to value their God-given gifts and
abilities, think beyond the apparent, and enjoy the breathtaking hand
of God in all history. Yesterday, today and tomorrow He is always the
same!
Kristen Linduff - CCS
Kristen has a degree in journalism but has worked in accounting for sixteen years. Drawing from both backgrounds has not only helped Kristen in homeschooling her four daughters through Circle Christian School for the past nineteen years, but also helped her guide them through the maze of test preparation for college admission. At present, two of the daughters have graduated with highest honors from their universities, one is a senior at FSU, and the youngest is a freshman at UNF. While teaching SAT Prep for the past several years, Kristen has enjoyed interacting with the students and seeing them gain ground in both confidence and ability. She believes that critical thinking and test taking competence are important skills which will not only help students to prepare to conquer the college entrance exams but will help them succeed in college as well.
Tracy Lytle - CCS
Tracy graduated from Circle Christian School after being homeschooled for ten years. She and her husband, Seth, have a seven-month-old daughter, Norah. During high school, she studied three years of American Sign Language and began to discover her deep interest and passion for the language. Upon graduating, she decided to continue her studies and to become proficient in the language. She spent the past four years taking sign language classes at a local college, interpreting, and teaching numerous children. Tracy is excited to be back at Circle bringing her passion and knowledge for sign language to the students. Her desire is for the students to "fall in love" with the language, as she did, and enjoy learning about a different culture.
Brian Snyder
- CCS and WS
Brian has been married over twenty-five years to Jill and they are the parents of two sons, Matthew and Ryan. He brings to Circle an extensive background in science, math, and education. He graduated from Messiah College in PA with a degree in chemistry. For seven years he worked in medical research at Penn State's College of Medicine prior to completing his chemistry education certification in the state of Pennsylvania. In the past, he has served eleven years as Principal/Administrator of Lake Monroe Christian Academy, a small K - 8 school associated with New Tribes Mission. He has taught academic classes ranging from third grade science to high school Algebra II and chemistry and has privately tutored students and adults for over twenty years.
Jill Snyder - CCS and WS
Jill Snyder - CCS and WS
Jill loves teaching and is excited about teaching language arts at Circle Christian School. With a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education, Jill is certified to teach kindergarten through eighth grade. She has taught at Lake Monroe Christian Academy for the past ten years. She has taught every grade except kindergarten, and she enjoys helping students learn to communicate clearly. Jill has been married to Brian for twenty five years. The past four years she has homeschooled their two sons, Matthew and Ryan.
Melody Washington - CCS
Melody along with her husband, Dudley, homeschooled their two sons for eight years, graduating both from Circle. Melody spent several years in Orange County schools as a Chapter One math tutor and in special education substitute teaching before following God's call to complete her sons' schooling at home. Melody claims to be "one of those strange people" who loves math and thinks it should not only be fun for her, but for everyone. She likes to share the idea that if you give her an equation, she will show you three different ways to solve it.