RICHLAND ACADEMY

Deeper ThinkingConfidentWorld Ready

Faculty and staff

Stepping into Richland Academy, you enter an extraordinary place for children. It is a place where all of our energies are dedicated to helping children become their best selves. We purposefully create an environment to meet their needs from early childhood to emerging adolescence.

Click on our staff profile pictures to learn more about them!

Administration Team

Sandi Fischer
Head of School

Sandi joined Richland in 2018 with over a decade of experience as a Principal. She is passionate about inclusive and innovative education models that help every child become confident learners and thinkers.

Bessy Bianco
Office & Admissions Manager

Bessy has worked for many years in administration and loves being organized. Her focus and concerns are on the well-being of our Richland students.

Adrian Cheung
Director of Communications, Technology and Design

Adrian plays a vital role in communications to keep parents informed and connected. He manages Richland's online presence, facilitates technology use at school, and also supports with any technology problems.

Joanne Pace
IB-PYP Coordinator and Learning Strategist

Joanne joined Richland Academy in 2015 and is thrilled to be part of Richland’s vibrant and creative community and lives the Reggio philosophy.

Angela Poleto
Office Administrator

Providing a safe and inviting environment to students and staff is the goal which Angela wishes to accomplish each day.

Nalini Subramanyam
Kindergarten Lead & Wellness Coordinator

She believes that the cognitive, emotional, social and physical development of children in the early years has a direct impact on their overall development and on the adult they will become.

K-8 Faculty Team

Lindsay Penther
Kindergarten Teacher

Lindsay is thrilled to be a part of the Richland Team and is thoroughly looking forward to returning to work with the amazing staff and children.

Chantal Paguaga
Kindergarten Co-teacher

Chantal Paguaga is a Registered Early Child Educator and is joining Richland Academy as a Teacher’s Assistant in Kindergarten.

Kate Daniel
Kindergarten Teacher and Reggio Lead

Kate Daniel has been teaching at Richland Academy for 16 years as the Senior Kindergarten Teacher.

Alexandra Vanegas
Kindergarten Co-teacher

Alexandra joined Richland Academy in 2019 to passionately work with children in Kindergarten.

Laura McCutcheon
Grade 1 Teacher

Laura’s professional interests derive from her ability to create positive and effective cognitive approaches to teaching and learning.

Melissa Bracciale
Grade 1 Teacher

Melissa has been teaching in private schools for 12 years, in grades ranging from Senior Kindergarten to Grade Two.

Daniela Quiquero
Grade 2 Teacher

Daniela’s passion for teaching is driven by her dedication to creating inclusive and engaging learning environments.

Natalie Revesz
Grade 2 Teacher

As a graduate of Ryerson University and York University (B.Ed), Natalie has traveled the world while working in the field of Education.

Hind Najjar Zahr
Grade 3 Teacher and Literacy Lead

Hind has been an elementary school teacher for over 20 years.

Susan Kennedy
Grade 3 Teacher

Susan strives to create an environment where children feel respected, cared for, and valued. She creates a collaborative classroom community, inclusive of all students, cultures, and backgrounds.

Paola Ciocio
Grade 4 Teacher and Mathematics Lead

Paola’s educational journey includes a Degree in Psychology, in Early Childhood Education, a Bachelor of Education Degree, and Mathematics Specialist Certification.

Deniece James
Grade 4 Teacher

Deniece received her Bachelor of Education from the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) and she is passionate about art, her students and exploring new ways of teaching and learning.

Giancarlo De Luca
Grade 5 Teacher

Born and raised in Richmond Hill, Giancarlo is very much so a homegrown talent.

Asha Mistry
Grade 6 Teacher

Asha has experience teaching in a private school setting, both in Ontario and in the United Kingdom.

Millie Soriano
Grade 7 Teacher

Mrs. Soriano’s has over ten years of teaching experience in a private school setting as a Homeroom teacher, ESL teacher, and Art Specialist, as well as three years of experience teaching internationally as an English teacher in Japan.

John Alton
Grade 8 Teacher

John studied at Queen’s University on two separate occasions, achieving both his Bachelors of Education as well as his Bachelors of Science, majoring in biology.

Specialties Faculty Team

Jacob Demers
Athletic Director

Mr. Demers graduated from Brock University with a Bachelor of Physical Education Honours degree and a Bachelor of Education degree.

Music Teacher
Whitney Henderson
Performing Arts

Whitney graduated from the University of Toronto in 2014 with a Bachelor of Music and Education. She has been passionately exploring the performing arts throughout her childhood and into the present.

Amelie Thompson
French Lead Teacher

Amélie has over 20 years of teaching French and Spanish in the UK in a variety of settings before relocating to Canada.

Sarah Sherman
Primary French Teacher & English Language Learner

Sarah Sherman holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto where she majored in History and double-minored in French and Renaissance Studies.

Josephine Sherman
Visual Arts / Atelierista

Josephine is passionate about fostering creativity and empowering others to make a difference through the visual arts.

Jessica Spritzer
Kindergarten Visual Arts and Learning Support

Jessica holds certifications as a support worker and yoga instructor, Bachelor of Arts Degrees in Art and Philosophy, as well as  a Post Graduate Certification in Museum Studies and Curatorship.

Adrianne Kraft
Information and Communication Technology

Adrianne has worked with children in a variety of roles- coach, tutor, and teacher for over 5 years.

Omua Unuigbe
Librarian

Omua has had the opportunity to experience beautiful cultures as she was born in Nigeria and lived in Brazil before moving to Canada.

Facilities Staff

Heidi Rybak
Meal Coordinator Manager, Aftercare Supervisor

Heidi has an extensive background working in both hospitality and with children.

Rafael Nieves
Campus Manager

Rafael ensures Richland operates smoothly on many levels, both internally and around the campus.

Raymund Narciso
Custodian

Raymund is trained as a Personal Support Worker and very excited to be working at Richland.

Clinton Chang
Custodian

Clinton became a dedicated Custodian in 1990 enforcing sanitation regulations one clean classroom at a time.

Carlos Hernandez
Custodian

Carlos joined Richland Academy in 2020 as casual part time custodian. He has over 12 years of experience as a custodian.