Tasha C. Ring, M.Ed., Directress and Principal Consultant
Ms. Ring is a licensed early childhood and elementary educator specializing in multisensory-based methodologies. She has tutored and taught students of all ages with varied gifts and abilities. Her broad experience in the education field has included sales, marketing and administrative positions with prominent companies such as Kaplan, Inc. and Pearson Education, but her passion remains working directly with students in a teaching capacity. As such, she continues to guide classes, as well as some tutoring sessions. Her desire to create more personalized experiences for youth led her to the founding of Meridian Learning in 2008. An early and continuous advocate of a “less is more” approach to learning, she is honored to be among the first innovators of the microschool movement.
Ms. Ring completed her Masterʼs in Education, teacher training and certification at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, and her Bachelor’s in Arts and Entertainment Management at Eastern Michigan University. She received an early childhood credential from the American Montessori Society, one of the premier Montessori advocacy organizations. She has extensive training in several methods of reading and language instruction, including Orton-Gillingham and Lindamood-Bell®. Since 2013, she has thoroughly engaged in the study of mindfulness, and she incorporates these exercises into both curriculum and parent-teacher education. She is a longtime practitioner of social-emotional learning and regularly consults with leaders in this field. Committed to best practice, continued professional development and whole child well-being, her current studies include literature on hunter-gatherer societies and intentional communities. Ms. Ring is also a specialist in arts integration; having spent many years studying dance and designing dance programming for several organizations including Indianapolis Parks, she is a fervent advocate for all art forms and their continuous value in learning and in life.
In addition to her work with Meridian Learning, Ms. Ring has written for various publications and websites including The Huffington Post and BabyCenter. In 2017, she started a minimalist Montessori lifestyle blog to help inspire less consumerism, and she now co-hosts an online community focused on the practice of Montessori in the 21st century. Her most meaningful role is that of mother to three children, her greatest gifts and wisest teachers.
Hokyoung Kim, M.Ed., Meridian Montessori Primary Guide
Ms. Kim received her Master’s in Early Childhood Education from Xavier University and early childhood credential from American Montessori Society. She has taught in a Montessori classroom for over 20 years, with much of her teaching experience at Garden Montessori School in Anderson Township. Ms. Kim grew up in South Korea and came to the United States after she graduated from college. While at Xavier to learn English, she became interested in Montessori Education. She lives with her husband in Mount Washington where she enjoys observing nature and working with gardens. She also takes classes in Zumba and Yoga and shares these passions with the children in our classroom. She loves to see how each child grows and loves to help them as they do so.
Abby McCord, Meridian Montessori Toddler Guide
Ms. McCord completed her Montessori Infant/Toddler training through NAMC. Before joining Meridian, she worked as a 1st and 2nd grade teacher in Northern Kentucky and prior to this, she taught 4th grade ELA in Cincinnati. She has also taught kindergarten and preschool, and served as a substitute for all ages. She has been working in education and child development since she graduated from Covenant College in 2013 with a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. Loving and guiding children has always been important to her. She and her daughter, a student in our toddler environment, enjoy doing anything together, but they really like reading, dancing, playing games, and getting outside to explore nature. Ms. McCord is excited to learn and grow with her students and enjoys being a member of the Meridian community.
Bri Santucci, Meridian Montessori Assistant Guide
Ms. Santucci has always found joy in working with children. As a nanny for over 10 years, she has used the Montessori method to help children learn and grow. Primarily as a stay at home mom, she incorporates Montessori learning everyday with her daughter, a student at Meridian Montessori. For the last five years she has worked in a hospital as a Registered Nurse. Prior to becoming a nurse she has worked with a number of families and has very much enjoyed the Montessori philosophy and better understanding of small group, independent learning. She is currently completing Montessori assistant training through Trillium Montessori. One of Ms. Santucci’s favorite ways to teach and learn is to have help with everyday activities such as cooking, sweeping, and cleaning dishes. In the summer she loves being outdoors with her daughter and working in her garden.
Claire McKay Waller, M.Ed., Meridian Micro School Guide
Ms. Waller received her Master’s in Transformative Education at Miami University, with a concentration on teaching diverse student populations, and a Bachelor’s in Classical Humanities minoring in Education, Teaching and Learning, as well as Child Studies. She also has a TEFL license and is currently completing Montessori training through AIM. Prior to joining Meridian, she worked as a graduate and teaching assistant at Miami. Her broad experience in guiding students includes four years teaching English in Seoul, South Korea, teaching Head Start preschool in Hamilton, Ohio and serving as an after-school tutor for students from kindergarten to high school. She believes in nurturing students and teaching in a holistic environment that focuses on the complete child. She loves exploring the outdoors, baking, and solving puzzles and loves incorporating that into every day classes. Ms. Waller is excited to be a member of the Meridian community!
Spencer Zembrodt, Music Guide
Mr. Zembrodt is a conductor, composer, pianist, and percussionist. He holds a Bachelor of Music from the University of Louisville and a Master of Music from the State University of New York at Fredonia. He is currently an instructor at Piano Sensei and Artistic Director of the Cincinnati Men’s Chorus. He has a passion for teaching all ages and ability levels, and believes learning music makes us better
Natalie Butcher, Cooking and Gardening Guide
Ms. Butcher has a Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Communication. Currently, she’s owner at The Hungry Noodle based in Mount Washington. Growing up in a rural community with a close connection to our food, she’s felt compelled to share what she’s learned. Growing whole foods and baking from scratch is something that anyone can do with the right information and she loves to show people how easily it can be done.
Linda Brooksbank, Arts and Crafts Guide
Ms. Brooksbank worked as a Paraprofessional at Sands Montessori elementary school from 2008 to 2021. During her last few years of working at Sands, she began to paint, sew, and do crafts as hobbies at home. Since 2021, she has been a part-time nanny, as well as an art instructor at Evendale Cultural Arts Center and Pleasant Ridge CRC. She’s happy to be adding to her offerings by guiding extended enrichment classes at Meridian Micro School. You can visit her shop, Bobbins n’ Brushstrokes, on Etsy and follow on Facebook and Instagram.
Philip Green, Forest Guide
Mr. Green guides Forest Fridays at Meridian Micro School. He received his degree in Plant Biology from Ohio University. He was unschooled as a child and is an outdoor enthusiast. He works with children at his “Forest Unschool” based in Batavia and also as a volunteer for 4H and the Clermont County Park district. His approach is play-based and child-led, following the interests of children as well as the rhythm of nature.
Rob Schramm, Maintenance and Tech Support
Mr. Schramm, better known as Mr. Rob, designs and builds furniture for our urban microschools and helps maintain the indoor and outdoor learning spaces, including the children’s gardens and micro farm. An accomplished IT consultant and senior systems engineer, he also guides our technology explorations and elementary computer science classes. He believes the Montessori approach within a microschool model to be the key to success in modern society.