Julie Essley

Ms. Julie Essley has been teaching all ages for 34 years in a variety of settings. She began her career in 1983 at Will Rogers High School in Tulsa as the High School Vocal Music Teacher, leading chorale, jazz choir, and glee clubs. She then became the General and Vocal Music Teacher for Madison County Public Schools in Madison, Virginia where she developed music programs for grades 1-12. In 1992, she started teaching choral and general music in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. In 2003 she took on the role as English Teacher at Utsunomiya Adult Education in Utsunomiya, Japan, teaching English classes to Japanese adults and interacting with students outside of class to hone their conversational skills. Upon returning to the United States, Julie became the Speech Coach at Alpha Omega Speech & Debate Association in West Jefferson and Columbus, Ohio, teaching weekly speech classes and individually coaching competitive speech events.

Julie’s interest in classical education emerged in 1998 when she realized her daughter wasn’t being challenged at the local public school. She read The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer and decided to classically homeschool her three children at "The Essley Academy" straight through the 12th grade. Two of her children became National Merit Finalists; the other child became a National Merit Commended student!

Wanting to bless additional families by offering a free classical education, Julie founded The Classical Academy of Columbus, Ohio with the assistance of the Barney Charter School Initiative of Hillsdale College. She drafted the founding documents which included the mission statement, philosophy, curriculum, assessment, and budget. In addition to that she visited other classical schools, generated interest and negotiated with a management company. She served on the Board of Directors from 2011-2014.

Ultimately and most importantly, Julie is a committed Christian with a wonderful testimony of a lifelong relationship with the Lord. She is currently a member of Capitol Hill Baptist Church.

Mary Brown

Mrs. Mary Brown is a native of Northern Virginia. She grew up as a homeschooler, finishing her high school years at community college. She then attended college at Liberty University (overlapping a year with Allison Morgan, unbeknownst to them both!) where she obtained her Bachelors of Science in Nursing. After graduation, she worked for 7 years as an RN in Labor & Delivery and Pediatrics in the DMV region. As may be subtly evident, Mary has always been inclined to work with parents and children.

Mary is deeply thankful that Potomac Classical was established nearly five years ago to come alongside parents as they seek to teach their children about the Lord and the beauty and depth to all that He has made. She is grateful for the opportunity to bring a little order into the confusion of the online school platform for enrollment and tuition as the school continues to grow and expand.

On Sundays, you can find her at Capitol Hill Baptist Church where she met and married her devoted husband Greg over a decade ago. The Lord has generously given them six sweet and energetic children to raise, five of whom are current students at Potomac Classical.

Caroline Coleman

Originally from Memphis, Tennessee, Caroline Coleman attended Christ Methodist Day School (PreK-6th) and Hutchison School (7th-12th). She grew up attending Second Presbyterian Church and has particularly fond memories of her time in youth group. She later graduated from Auburn University with a major in Elementary Education and a minor in Spanish. During her years at Auburn, she grew in her desire to invest in the local community, shepherd young children, and enjoy some of God’s great gifts such as sitting around the dinner table with friends and cheering on Auburn athletics. While in college, she attended First Presbyterian Church of Opelika and began to appreciate the rich benefits of an intergenerational church community.

Directly out of college, she participated in the Capital Fellows Program which is a nine-month leadership and development program for recent college graduates. The program includes participating in seminary courses, serving in the church, volunteering at a DC non-profit, and interning three days a week. For her internship, she worked at Cornerstone Schools of DC as the Kindergarten and First Grade Assistant Teacher. After the conclusion of the Fellows Program, she joined the Cornerstone staff full-time as the Fifth and Sixth Grade Math and Science Teacher. She served in this position for four years. In addition to teaching, she worked as the school’s Data Director, Middle and Upper School Math Department Chair, 5th and 6th Grade Coordinator, and Registrar. After school, she also enjoyed working as the middle school girls' basketball coach and lower school track coach. 

In 2022, she completed her Master’s of Education in Independent School Leadership from Vanderbilt University. While at Vanderbilt, she explored topics such as Leadership and Learning, Systematic Inquiry, Admissions and Financial Aid, Board Governance, Institutional Advancement, Human Capital Development, Educating the Whole Child, and Educational Law. She completed an action research project titled A Case Study of Admissions Procedures and Value Propositions at Cornerstone Schools. 

She is immensely grateful to now serve as the Student Support and Admissions Coordinator at Potomac Classical. She is eager to get to know current and prospective families and become part of the PCC Family. She is thankful to work at a school that strives to encourage strong character development, growth in reasoning and logic, and a lifelong love of learning through a vital partnership with parents. 

When not working, you can find Caroline biking around DC, baking a treat for friends, or planning for her next travel adventure. She loves skiing, watching sports, and completing challenging puzzles. She is a member of McLean Presbyterian Church, where she has had the pleasure of shepherding the now 9th-grade girls since they were in 4th grade. She is an active member of the young adult community at McLean Pres, and she is eager to extend her faith community by building friendships with those at PCC.

Katie Holland

Katie grew up in a small town in Mississippi and was educated in a classical Christian co-op.  She continued her education at Liberty University receiving a BA in Fine Arts and Business. Katie enjoyed being a creative designer and manager at a local pottery shop before going to India to labor for the sake of the gospel in 2016. 

In India, Katie homeschooled three delightful elementary school-aged girls before entering language school to study Hindi. Over the course of her time homeschooling in India and studying Hindi, Katie was drawn to many diverse teaching opportunities: studying the Bible with girls and women, teaching illiterate adults how to read Hindi, occasionally giving art lessons at a village school, and teaching English to a group of seminary students.  She also illustrated a bilingual children’s book, Kuenda Kumusha, published in 2019.  Due to increased hostility in India, Katie had to unexpectedly return to the USA in 2019 and she again found herself drawn to teaching, serving as a 6th grade homeschool tutor and online ESL teacher before deciding to move to Virginia to join the Potomac Classical team. 

In her free time, Katie loves to be outside enjoying nature or dabbling in oil painting, watercolor, or hand lettering. She continues to work her way through literary classics and just checked War and Peace off her list. She loves spending time with children and is excited to share her love of learning and the Greatest Story Ever Told with young hearts and minds.

Cassie Downing

Miss Cassie Downing grew up in Arlington, Virginia where she was homeschooled by her parents who helped her develop a deep appreciation for nature and the arts. In high school, Cassie began to work as a counselor at her church’s summer camp where she discovered her love for working with children. Simultaneously, Cassie was training at a pre-professional ballet company, and upon graduation she decided to pursue a career in ballet. 

Cassie joined the Alabama Ballet and attended college, receiving her Bachelor of Arts in Exercise Science from Concordia University. After five years of dancing professionally, she felt the Lord calling her back to Northern Virginia where she became a member of Cherrydale Baptist Church and began serving in the Children’s Ministry. In 2021, she began teaching with The Center for Redemptive Education, and a year later she joined PCC. 

Cassie has truly loved seeing the Lord work through her life in the various ways that have led her to teaching, and she looks forward to what He will continue to do with this pursuit. She is passionate about sharing her love of God's creation with her students and fostering in them a desire to learn. In her free time, Cassie enjoys hiking and camping in the Shenandoah or paddle-boarding on the Potomac. She loves Jane Austen and exploring new coffee shops around Northern Virginia.

Traci Meeder

Originally from Indiana, Traci Meeder earned her Elementary Education degree from Bethel College and spent five years teaching 1st and 2nd grade students. She eventually decided to transition to homeschooling and has enjoyed her time at home with her two children for the past two years as they settled into life as Virginians.
 


While researching various formats for homeschooling, Traci was introduced to collaborative schooling and discovered what a great fit Potomac Classical would be for her family. She is eager to return to the classroom setting and partner with other parents in educating their children.
 
The Meeders are active members of The Journey Church in Springfield. In her free time, Traci loves to be outside in God’s creation as much as possible. Her favorite indoor activities involve baking, eating said baked goods, drinking coffee, and reading with her kids. 

We are excited to have Traci join our team to continue cultivating an environment that equips students to know, love, and practice that which is true, good, and beautiful.

Caitlin White

Born and raised in a small town in New York, Mrs. Caitlin White was blessed to be raised in a Christian household where her parents shared the Gospel with her from a young age. She decided by the time she was 12 years old that she desired to attend college where her love for Christ would be nurtured and where she’d be taught from a Christian worldview. Caitlin attended Liberty University where she met her husband Jacob and earned her degree in Elementary Education. 

Jacob’s career brought them to the D.C. area where they quickly found and joined Arlington Baptist Church. While Caitlin has been teaching lower elementary students at another local school for a few years, it became clear over time that her true desire is to teach students in a place where the foundation is built distinctly upon God’s Word.

Caitlin is excited to join the mission of  Potomac Classical Conservatory and looks forward to the opportunity to teach and train the minds and hearts of her students towards Christ. 

Jessica Nance

Mrs. Jessica Nance is a mom of two children, both current Potomac Classical students, and has spent the last 15 years married to the United States Marine Corps (or more accurately, her loving and devoted husband, Wilson). She began schooling her son through the Classical Collaborative model while stationed in North Carolina when the Lord, by way of the USMC, relocated her family to the National Capital Region in 2018. Through His providence they landed right at Potomac Classical and have been blessed to be part of the Potomac Classical family since then. She is honored to be on campus with the students each day, engaging their ever-curious minds, and witnessing their growth and development as they learn to discern what is right, true, and good.

Before being called to motherhood, Jessica's love of dance (and 20 years of experience), coupled with her desire to see young ones come to know their worth in Christ, led her to help create an after-school dance program in a Hawaii public middle school, where she coached the school’s competitive dance team. She loved the opportunity this afforded her to work closely with preteen girls; not only inspiring in them an appreciation for movement, but also providing an environment rich with gospel truths. She has also learned along the years to find joy in letting the Lord lead her down new paths as the seasons (or military orders) change. This has enabled her to diverge into an array of career fields from healthcare, to business administration, to exploring our beautiful country as a flight attendant.

Jessica has been a member of many churches across the nation, serving in children’s and youth ministries as well as in several school-based and military-focused ministries. Currently, she and Wilson are members of Del Ray Baptist Church. On weekends her family can be found spending time with friends in the great outdoors where they enjoy climbing, hiking, camping, and lots of swimming. Her personal interests include interior decorating, fashion, health and nutrition, God’s Word, and in more recent years has taken up an interest in history— which her history-teacher father wishes she would have done as a teenager!

Carolyn Jenkins

Mrs. Carolyn Jenkins married her high school sweetheart after they graduated from The University of Virginia, where she studied architecture.


Carolyn is a licensed architect and has worked on historic preservation and renovation projects in Boston after graduating from MIT’s Master’s program in 2013. As an undergraduate student, she studied architecture and architecture history. Her interest in history has been recently rekindled as she taught 4th and 8th grade medieval history classes at a classical collaborative school. She loves to discuss the inspiration for and symbolism woven throughout medieval architecture and literature with her students. History and literature are full of stories of God’s beauty and goodness to his people. From early church history to Shakespeare, she has learned that every lesson relates back to Him.



Carolyn began to follow Christ during her freshman year of college. Two decades later, she is still learning to lean on Jesus more in her everyday life. Once they move from Maryland to Virginia, they intend to join Christ the King Anglican Church in Alexandria.

She enjoys running and uses a portion of that time praying and reflecting on God’s miraculous creation. Teaching Gospel truths to my children through homeschooling and our lifestyle is a top priority in her life.

Lisa Law

Mrs. Lisa Law grew up in a Christian home in Southern Maryland and graduated from the University of Maryland Baltimore County with degrees in English and Psychology in 2004. She spent some time working in operations at a Christian web services company before taking her expertise in-house to manage and teach her children.

Lisa first heard of classical education when a friend recommended The Well-Trained Mind as a resource for beginning homeschooling. She began classically homeschooling her children in what they affectionately refer to as “Law School” when her oldest began school in 2011. While she has learned many lessons along the way and sometimes wishes she could start over, it was a delight to graduate her first high school senior in 2024 and Lisa is looking forward to seeing her three sons also make their way to the homeschool finish line.

No stranger to Potomac Classical, Lisa served as Potomac’s Latin teacher in 2019 and then began teaching kindergarten in 2020, the same year she received her Barton Tutor Certification. She remained in the kindergarten classroom for three years before taking a school year off to reimagine her family’s homeschooling journey. Lisa loves phonics and spelling rules and delights in helping children learn to read, whether it comes to them easily or not. In addition to helping students grow in reading skills, Lisa is passionate about seeing established readers grow in their appreciation for lasting literature, especially in its historical context. She strives to turn literary conversations to Christ by examining the worldviews of authors and characters and she hopes to challenge her students to find truth, goodness, and beauty in the works that they study.

After dismissal on school day afternoons, you might find Lisa chauffeuring her sons to cross country practice, watching college basketball, or officiating a swim meet. One of her greatest loves is her local church, Arlington Baptist Church, where her husband serves as the senior pastor. Lisa hopes to impart to the children of Potomac Classical not only an appreciation for reading and literature, but a love for Christ.

Lisa Stevenson

Paul Crookston

Paul was born and raised in Tampa, Fla., the fourth out of six siblings. He was homeschooled until sixth grade, when his parents enrolled him in a classical Christian school. In the coming years, he came to know the Lord and developed a love for history, Latin, and the classics. His school also won him over to the classical model of schooling, which he has enjoyed championing whenever the topic turns to K-12 education. 

To continue his Christian liberal arts education, Paul attended Gordon College. He had the privilege of studying abroad in the UK and completing the Jerusalem–Athens Forum honors program, where Gordon students ponder Tertullian’s famous question “What hath Athens to do with Jerusalem?” through reading and seminar discussions. He graduated with a degree in history and communication arts, as well as lifelong friendships and deepened faith. 

Right after graduating, Paul did a fellowship at National Review magazine in New York, where he took school choice as a major focus. This experience was crucial in developing his writing and editing skills, which served him well in the years to come working in professional journalism. standards of writing and editing. Then, the pandemic’s upheaval of students’ lives convicted Paul about Christians’ obligation to foster young people’s development. While he continued working as a freelance writer and editor, he searched for ways to help the looming crisis of learning loss. He began working with students at a local homework center focused on executive-function coaching, then he got a job teaching Latin and rhetoric at Cornerstone Schools of Washington, DC. After a year there, he started at Potomac Classical in 2022, the same year he married his wife Lauren.

During his years in the DC area, Paul has been attending Capitol Hill Baptist Church, which he joined in 2018. He volunteers on the sound and hospitality teams, so you may see him if you swing by for a cup of coffee after the morning service. Don’t hesitate to start a conversation about anything, even if it’s a while after church has ended. He’s always happy to chat about the news, the ancient world, or anything in between.

Esther Bream

Esther grew up making music. At age three she began playing the violin and in early elementary was regularly playing in ensembles with her sisters. Through middle and high school she sang with choirs at her church and school and played violin with local youth orchestras in the metro Atlanta area. In college Esther continued to study music at Maranatha Baptist University in Wisconsin. There she taught violin and orchestra to elementary age students in the String Prep School and taught at summer music camps for students in Illinois and Wisconsin. While in Wisconsin she completed a Masters in Biblical Counseling at Maranatha Baptist Seminary and met an Air Force ROTC cadet Tom Bream. 

In 2010 Esther married Tom Bream and began the adventure of becoming a military spouse and eventually mom of three amazing boys. Since then the military has moved them seven times. In each new place she lived Esther found opportunities to continue teaching and making music. In Texas she taught violin for K-8th grade at an Ambleside School. In South Korea she led early childhood music classes and in Hampton, VA she taught Fine Arts for Peninsula Classical Scholé. 

Finding a classical school for her boys has been a priority for Esther in each new place they have lived so she was delighted to find Potomac Classical Conservatory. This past year she enjoyed serving as a TA in a Kindergarten classroom at PCC.

Esther and Tom serve at the Worship Music and Church Life Associates at Corpus Christi Anglican Church in Springfield, VA  where they worship with their boys. In addition to teaching and making music Esther also enjoys traveling, spending time in nature, cooking delicious food with Tom and skiing with her boys.

Heldana Gobena

Mrs. Heldana Gobena joyfully serves Potomac Classical Conservatory as a Classroom Aide. Heldana was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to a wonderful and loving mother and father and she is the youngest of four daughters. Both of Heldana’s parents worked for the United Nations helping refugees across various parts of Africa. The workload and needs of the UN caused her family to move around the continent of Africa every few years. She has lived in Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Tanzania to name a few! Ultimately, when Heldana was 11-years old her parents decided to come to the United States to offer their children a chance for a better education.

It was in Las Vegas, Nevada when Heldana was 16 that she learned the joy of serving at church as a Sunday School teacher. She eventually attended the University of Maryland and graduated with a degree in Information Systems Management. She’s now married to her husband, Araya Gobena, and has been blessed with four beautiful children, three of which attend Potomac Classical. They are actively members of Franconia Baptist Church.

Sarah Weinberger

Sarah Weinberger was born in a suburb of Chicago, IL. She lived in different parts of Chicagoland until moving to a 40-acre homestead in southern Missouri when she was 14. In Missouri, she discovered a new world of gardening, clearing brush, and working on a chicken farm and goat farm.

As a child, Sarah attended Christian schools, public school, and was finally homeschooled from 7th-12th grade. Sarah became interested in education after helping in children's ministry, so she took online classes in early childhood education from Louisiana Baptist University.

After moving back to the Chicago area, Sarah married her husband, Lael, in 2010. Lael's work as an attorney and legal scholar has taken them to Idaho, Illinois, Massachusetts, and finally to northern Virginia where Lael clerked for the Supreme Court of the United States. Lael and Sarah have three children--Chaim (8th grade), Esther (4th grade), and Micah (1st grade). This will be their second year enrolled at Potomac Classical Conservatory.

Sarah wasn't familiar with classical education until she started homeschooling her own children. It has been exciting to learn and memorize along with them! Sarah especially enjoys reading classic literature and learning history through the chronological timeline. Other hobbies include studying Modern Hebrew, listening to radio dramas, writing letters, and making miniature foods out of polymer clay.

The Weinbergers are active members of Del Ray Baptist Church.

This will be Sarah's second year as a teacher's aide at Potomac Classical. She loves getting to know the children at PCC and helping with everything from skinned knees and spilled water bottles to math facts and reading!

Jordan Spear