Baylor Middle School Head Emmie Treadwell and the Middle School Ambassadors are ready to welcome new students
Baylor will begin the 2023-24 school year on Wednesday, greeting a record number of boarding students, opening a new dormitory, and welcoming 1,079 students and 35 new faculty and staff members.
"We at Baylor continue to benefit from the positive momentum created by our culture and the hard work from our faculty and staff," said Head of School Chris Angel '89 in his opening remarks at the first faculty meeting of the new school year. "In fact, I am beyond excited to welcome back all of our students next week as this year promises to be one for the record books."
Here's how the 2023-24 enrollment breaks down:
219 boarding students from 19 countries and 26 states
97 new boarding students
57 international boarding students from 19 countries and four continents
1,079 total students, including 104 new sixth graders
Middle School Head Emmie Treadwell and the Middle School Ambassadors are ready to welcome new students!
Meet the Newest Members of the Baylor Community:
Jaylon Baker ’18 joins Baylor as a physical education instructor a coach for football and track. Jaylon earned his master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Virginia where he also played football for five years. At Baylor, Jaylon played football, basketball, and track.
Joe Bakewell joins Baylor as a physical education instructor and an associate head wrestling coach. Originally from Elizabeth, Pa., he graduated from McDaniel College in Westminster, Md. with a B.S. in Physical Education and Sociology. He spent 27 years at The McDonogh School in Maryland as a teacher and varsity wrestling coach, middle school dean, and 10th grade dean of students from 1994-2021. Most recently, he served as a lower school P.E. instructor and coached varsity wrestling at Lake Highland Prep in Orlando, Fla.
Andrew Beckman joins Baylor as Middle School science instructor. Andrew holds a B.S. in Chemistry from the University of Alabama. Most recently, Andrew joins us from the Darlington School where he also taught middle school science.
Payton Brooks joins Baylor as the head swim coach after serving as the assistant swim coach for Virginia Tech since 2019. Prior to joining the Hokies, Brooks was head coach at Alderson Broaddus University in Philippi, W.V., for the 2014-15 season. He served as an assistant coach at The Bolles School from 2012-2014. He was a member of the West Virginia University swim team, graduating with a B.A. in Physical Education and Sport Sciences with a focus in athletic coaching.
Will Brown has joined the history department to teach World History 1 and World History 2 following a teaching fellowship at St. Albans School in Washington, D.C. Will attended Princeton University for his undergraduate studies and went on to complete a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania and has just completed a second master’s degree at the University of Cambridge.
Ashleigh Cain has joined the history department to teach sixth grade geography. Ashleigh completed her undergraduate degree at Georgia Southern University and went on to complete a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction and an education specialist degree in instructional leadership from Tennessee Tech. Most recently, Ashleigh taught at Lookout Mountain Elementary School.
Kyle Case has joined the history department to teach sixth grade geography and seventh grade American studies. Kyle completed his undergraduate degree at Tennessee Tech. Most recently, Kyle has taught at South Pittsburg Elementary School in South Pittsburg, Tenn.
Amanda Cotter joins Baylor as dean of residential life. Amanda is a native of Bristol, Conn. and graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a B.S. in psychology, where she was captain of the cross country and track teams and later served as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator for those teams. Most recently she has worked at CGI as the U.S. recruiting coordinator, overseeing recruiting operations within their collegiate division. Amanda and her husband Lucas have three children, including Addison ’29.
Chris Daller joins Baylor this year to serve as Upper School math instructor, coach, and dorm parent. Chris earned a B.S. in Mathematics from Aquinas College and an M.A. in Educational Leadership from Central Michigan University. Chris most recently taught at Christ School in Arden, N.C.
Dr. Logan Edwards has joined the history department to teach World History I, World History II, and U.S. History. Logan received her B.A. in History at Berry College. She earned a master’s degree from the University of Georgia and completed her Ph.D. at Florida State University in Modern American History. Most recently, she has taught at St. John Paul II High School in Tallahassee, Fla.
Tiffany Godbehere joins Baylor as an administrative assistant after 15 years at St. Peter’s Episcopal School in Chattanooga. At St. Peter’s, Tiffany managed a variety of roles, working as the front desk receptionist and most recently as the administrative manager. Tiffany attended the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She and her husband Stephen have four children, including Baylor senior, Jon Ryan ’25.
Kelly Good, Upper School wellness instructor, has had a long career in nursing, primarily as a nurse anesthetist. Kelly also served as a faculty member with the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga School of Nursing. She earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees from UTC. She and her husband, Dr. Matthew Good, are the parents Lucy ’23 and Charlie ’25.
Nikki Griffith joins Baylor this year to serve as an instructor of studio arts. Nikki earned a B.F.A. in Media Arts with a minor in Art History from the Pratt Institute and an M.A. in Art and Art Education from Columbia University, Teachers College. Previously, she has been an art instructor in secondary, university, and museum settings in Chattanooga, Atlanta, and New York City. Additionally, she has experiences teaching in Kenya, teacher training and curriculum development for UNICEF, language immersion programs in Costa Rica and Guatemala, and teaching visual art in Lincolnshire, England as a Fulbright Scholar.
Hal Gruetzemacher is teaching Upper School English and coaching cross country and track. Hal completed English and history degrees from the University of Georgia and earned his M.A. in English from Sewanee. Most recently, Hal has been teaching at Signal Mountain High School.
Marnie Hemphill joins Baylor’s counseling department after many years in private practice. She completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Cincinnati and her master’s degree in social work at the University of South Carolina. Marnie has worked in a number of settings including schools, outpatient mental health clinics, and an inpatient mental health hospital, as well as private practice.
Andrew Hoffman ’18 joins Baylor as an instructor of physics in the science department. Andrew earned a B.A. in Physics while minoring in secondary education at the University of Tennessee. Andrew recently completed his student teaching at West High School in Knoxville.
Ed Holland joins Baylor as physical education instructor and assistant wrestling coach. Originally from Seymour, Tenn., Holland was an assistant wrestling coach at McDonogh School in Baltimore, Md., and the head wrestling coach at Heritage High school in Blount County, Tenn.
Cole Johnson ’17 joins Baylor as an instructor of biology in the science department. Cole earned a B.S. in Biology while minoring in secondary education at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Cole recently completed his student teaching at Soddy Daisy High School and has served as a Baylor football and track coach while completing his studies.
Dr. Deb Rock Kendrick ’03 attended Baylor as a boarding student from Atlanta and graduated from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. with a B.A. in Studio Art and Education. She later earned her master’s in special education from the University of Maryland and earned a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She has worked as a special ed teacher at several grade levels, led a learning lab, and taught character and leadership development, as well as served as an adjunct professor at the collegiate level. Deb and her husband Phillip are excited their daughter Aubrey '30 is a new Baylor sixth grader.
Jake Kennedy ’11 returns to Baylor as an associate director of College Counseling. Jake received his B.A. in history from Sewanee. Following graduation, Jake returned to Baylor where he served as a Middle School teaching fellow, a dorm parent, and a Walkabout instructor. For the last eight years he has served as an associate director of admission at Mercersburg Academy in Pennsylvania where he also served as an outdoor education instructor and dorm parent.
Allison McMahan LaPorta ’01 is an administrative assistant in the advancement office. She earned her B.S. in Human Health Performance from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She worked as a marketing consultant and sales representative before returning to Baylor to join the advancement team.
Chuck Newell joins Baylor this year to serve as an instructor of Upper School English. Chuck earned a B.A. in English and M.A. in English from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. For the last 26 years, Chuck has been teaching at Notre Dame High School.
Timothy Shober ’11 returns to Baylor as the assistant director of Walkabout and an Upper School English instructor. Timothy majored in anthropology and Spanish at Appalachian State University before moving to Ecuador where he taught English as a Second Language. He then earned his master’s degree in public administration from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He worked several years in the non-profit industry, acting as a program manager in a Latino Community Credit Union and a program associate at a non-profit consulting firm.
Drew Tompkins joins Baylor this year as an Upper School math instructor. Drew earned a B.S. in Mathematics and an M.A. in Education from Tennessee Tech. Most recently, Drew most recently served as Director of Focus Schools with the Tennessee Department of Education.
Tiffany Townsend ’95 returns to Baylor as chief advancement officer bringing 22 years of experience in independent school advancement. A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Tiffany most recently served as Ensworth School’s director of marketing and communications. Prior to that she was the director of annual fund and alumni relations and assistant director of development, and coached lacrosse and soccer. Before joining the advancement office at Ensworth, she was the director of alumni relations and publications at Davidson Academy, where she also taught Latin in grades 8-12. Tiffany and her husband Todd are excited that their daughter Clara '30 is a new Baylor sixth grader.
John Wheeler joins Baylor to teach Upper School English and to coach Middle School football and baseball. John earned a B.A. in English from Sewanee and is currently finishing his M.A. in Literary and Writing Studies from Sewanee: School of Letters. Most recently, John has been teaching and coaching at St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School.
Tyler White joins Baylor this year to serve as a senior associate director of boarding admission and the head coach for the boys lacrosse team. Tyler earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Dickinson College and is currently pursuing a master’s degree in school leadership from the University of Pennsylvania. Most recently, Tyler was the senior associate director of boarding admission and head boys lacrosse coach at Kent School in Connecticut.
Austin Zinkann joins Baylor’s business office as the general ledger accountant and is completing his final courses in at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to obtain his B.S. in accounting. Prior to Baylor he served as a business office intern at the Lookout Mountain Golf and Country Club.
Transportation, Mail & Baylor Spirit Store Adds Staff
A lot goes on behind the scenes on campus and to keep things running smoothly, Baylor has hired Andre Taylor to oversee mailroom operations, along with new hires in Baylor’s transportation office and Spirit Store.
Karen Hawkins, Roe Kneep, Jeff Storey, and Kevin Thomas as bus drivers. Karen, Roe, and Jeff all worked with the Whitfield Count School system in Dalton, Ga. Kevin was most recently a driver with Hamilton County Schools. The transportation team is led by David Eaves, director of transpiration. David is a graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and previously served as the transportation director for the Hamilton County Department of Education from 2016-22, overseeing 78 schools, 150 drivers, 400 buses, and 880 routes. He is a graduate of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.
The Baylor Spirit Store welcomes Summer Law as an assistant. Summer graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a degree in sports, outdoor recreation, and tourism management, and has been involved with Walkabout summer camps.
Front row, from left, Cole Johnson '17, Austin Zinkann, Marnie Hemphill, Allison McMahan LaPorta '01, Chuck Newell, Summer Law, Andrew Hoffman '18, Andrew Beckman, Joe Bakewell, Ashleigh Cain, and Rowena Knapp; (middle row, from left,) Ed Holland, Chris Daller, Jake Kennedy '11, Tiffany Godbehere, Logan Edwards, Nikki Griffith, Deb Rock Kendrick '03, Amanda Cotter, Payton Brooks, Drew Tompkins, and Karen Hawkins; (back row, from left) Jaylon Baker '18, Hal Gruetzemacher, John Wheeler, Timothy Shober '11, Kelly Good, Tiffany Townsend '95, Will Brown, Kyle Case, David Eaves, and Kevin Thomas. (Not pictured): Jeff Storey, Tyler White and Andre Traylor.