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Spring Hill Spotlight

Meet the Staff, Families & Students That Make Spring Hill So Special

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Alone, we can do so little. Together, we can do so much.
-Helen Keller

Phoebe Emerick; She is very inquisitive, excited about music, and pursues outside interests. I am in 6th grade with Mrs. Smith; My favorite thing about Springhill is all the musical opportunities. I play the Upright Bass for the Springhill Orchestra and I enjoy choir. I am exited to join higher levels of singing and playing with the band in orchestra. My favorite school subject is probably writing. I like to write a lot and sometimes when I’m at school I write something that I’m really proud of. I like to read. Some of my favorite books are The Lunar Chronicles and Keeper of the Lost Cities. I like to play with some of the kids on my street. I also like to laugh a lot with my older sisters. I’m not sure yet. I think that I haven’t found my thing. Although writer and musician are on the list.

Learn more about students' daily life at SHES!

Academics @ Spring Hill

Nazanin Farchtchi Art Teacher; Teaching art, encouraging creativity and helping my students to love art!; B.A. Hunter College, NYC ( FIlm and Media); I was a Fashion Stylist in NYC for many years; My favorite thing about Spring Hill is the community.

Learn More About Our Passionate Panther Staff!

Kerry Desai; I have been a proud SHES parent for 7 years now! Ellie graduated from 6th grade last year, and just started middle school at Cooper. Abby is in 5th grade. I volunteer throughout the year in a variety of capacities, and have served as the Room Parent Lead in the past. We love to travel, and hope to visit many countries as a family. SHES is truly a special place, and we feel blessed to have landed here! Our girls have formed lifelong friendships (as have I), and we are so grateful for this community. The teachers are a HUGE part of what makes SHES such a fabulous environment. There are so many that I don't want to leave anyone out. Mrs. Swiers, Mrs. Chang, Mrs. O'Conner, Mrs. DeVylder, Mrs. Barlow, Mrs. Deornellas, Mrs. Minutoli, Mr. Freeman have ALL been amazing teachers, and share so much positive energy with our students. And I especially want to give a shout out to Mrs. Strandlund - she has a special gift, and was born to be an educator. Thank you all for everything you do!

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Past Student Spotlights

Past Family Spotlights

We are new to Spring Hill and our oldest son, Brayden, is in Kindergarten. I volunteer as a Room Parent and member of the Staff Appreciation Committee. I am passionate about nutrition and am a Certified Nutrition Coach. I enjoy running and we enjoy skiing as a family. My husband, Chris, is a dentist and an artist. Our two boys are aspiring engineers. We feel lucky to be a part of a school with such a great reputation and welcoming community.

Jennifer McCarthy We have been a Spring Hill family since we moved to McLean and our daughter started kindergarten in August 2017. She is now starting 5th grade. We love this community and all of the families we’ve met. Volunteering with the PTO from the start has helped us get to know the school, our teachers and other students. I have served on the PTO Executive Board for 3 years. We have a new puppy! (3 month old Maisy); we can walk to school in 3 minutes. We love all of the community events at Spring Hill - Fun Fair, Field Day, Block Party, all of them! Since we don’t live near family, this community has become our local “family”. Emalie Coen We moved to McLean and the Spring Hill community in 2019. Our son John graduated from SHES in 2022 and we have a daughter, Anna, in 4th and son, Gregory, in 2nd. We also have a 25 year old daughter, Isabella. I have loved volunteering with the PTO and am currently serving as President-Elect, alongside Past President Jennifer McCarthy. We have relocated three times in the last 11 years, having lived in NY, AR, and NJ. I have a background in ballet, which led to me helping open and run a classical ballet school in Bentonville, AR from 2011 to 2017. We love Spring Hill! The school and community are both so welcoming, and the PTO makes volunteering so easy and fun!

Past Staff Spotlights

My IA's and I work with nonverbal kids with autism. To increase target behavior(s) and communication, we use Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) throughout our day with each individual student. This is done by using a 5 piece token board system. The token board is a great visual for target behaviors and to show the students exactly what they're working for. I received a Bachelors in Elementary Education & a Masters in Special Education, both from West Virginia University. I just started taking lessons to learn American Sign Language to help increase communication for our nonverbal students. I'm also getting married to my fiancee DeAundre in July 2023! My favorite parts about working at SHES are the staff. I moved to Virginia from West Virginia to teach at Spring Hill and I couldn't have felt more welcome since day 1. I also love collaborating with my SPED team and IA's, especially Kim Roman & Abeer Abu-elHawa who put 150% into each day. Lastly, I love working with my students and seeing their progress first hand!

Danielle Lasley; Family Liaison- Connecting families in the community and providing opportunities for families to engage with the school; O'More College of Design- Belmont University- B.A. Fashion Design and Merchandising; I love yoga and have been practicing for over 10 years. I'm from Nashville, so if you hear a little twang in my voice, that's why. I love working at Spring Hill Elementary! Seeing the hard work and dedication of the staff makes me proud to work here and send my children here. I feel grateful to be a part of such a wonderful community.

Jenny Strandlund Resource Teacher - This means I get to work with ALL grade levels to support students in reading and math. I also work with new teachers as the Lead Teacher Mentor. Lastly, I work with staff to collect data and decide on intervention support! Studied Elementary Education and English at The College of New Jersey; Masters in Curriculum and Instruction from Western Governors University. I have a 6 month old girl named Carter; This is my 15th year teaching!; I go to my beach house in Rhode Island every summer. I love all of the amazing students and parents in the community! I was welcomed with open arms 6 years ago and have loved every moment! There are so many fun events like the Block Party, Fun Fair, and Bingo nights. I can't wait to bring Carter this year!

Janis Lefcourt Reading Specialist - With their advanced preparation, high levels of knowledge, and experience, they are responsible for the literacy performance of all students and the professional literacy learning of all teachers in the school. Goucher College and Manhattanville I was born and raised in Philadelphia. I have two boys in there early 20's that come home to visit us and our 6 month old puppy, Skipper. I love the supportive community and staff here at SHES.

Boutia Pourhashemi Assistant Principal George Mason University (Fairfax, VA) - B.S. in Psychology, George Mason University (Fairfax, VA) - Masters of Special Education, & Longwood University (Farmville, VA) - Administration & Supervision Certification -I have a Bernese Mountain dog named Harley. -I am a graduate of FCPS (Marshall High School), a parent to 4 students who have graduated from Marshall High School, and have one more who is currently three years from graduating from Marshall HS as well. -I lived in Iran for a year before the revolution. My favorite part about working at Spring Hill ES is how welcome everyone makes you feel when you become a part of this community.