ASM Behind the Scenes
Temporada 2
Passing the Mic (ft. Jingyao Wang, Jimena Roces and Sergio Merchan)
Temporada 1
por Jaime Gómez Arreche, Eco Cavero, and Sofia VanDonk
Jingyao Wang, Jimena Roces and Sergio Merchan ran this podcast, but what happens when they graduate high school? In this episode, the hosts become the guests as the torch is passed down to the new cast. Why was the podcast created? What core memories has ASM provided? The original casts dives into their personal lives and memories in high school as they prepare so say goodbye.
Ben Weinberg took a decidedly different career path to arrive at his current position of Headmaster at the American School of Madrid.Ben was born in Boston and moved to St. Louis in the fourth grade. Ben went back to the East Coast to start at Bates College but left college after three semesters, determined to leave school behind. He was successful for many years working as a commercial fisherman, organic farmer, builder, and writer.Education found him when he volunteered to read aloud to a student at a Vermont elementary school. Ben began working as a Special Education paraprofessional in rural Maine schools and completed his degree in Education at Lesley University. Ben's international career began in 1999 when he moved with his family to South Africa to work at the American International School of Johannesburg. Ben was chosen to start AISJ's Pretoria satellite campus in 2001. Ben completed his Master's Degree in Educational Administration from the University of Massachusetts while serving as the Pretoria principal.Ben joined ASM in 2013 as the Lower School Director. He was chosen to be the Headmaster in 2015.
Darlene Oehlke was born in Hudson, Wisconsin, and spent the first 18 years of her life with a family in Afton, Minnesota. She is the middle of seven siblings. After completing a degree in chemistry at the University of Minnesota with minors in biology and mathematics, Darlene moved to Marburg, Germany to work as a chemist at Phillips University for half a year. She also led wilderness trips with Wilderness Inquiry. Following her return from Germany, she attended the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis to complete a degree in Physical Science education. She taught chemistry and physics in Minnesota for three years, married Rick Vezzoli, and moved overseas to teach IB Chemistry. Since 1991, she has lived in Brazil, Switzerland, Norway, Kazakhstan, Chile, Brazil (again), and Spain and has taught a combination of chemistry, physics, biology, and environmental systems and society. Somewhere along the way, she finished her master’s in Curriculum and Teaching at Michigan State University. This is Darlene’s 3rd year at the American School of Madrid where she teaches IB Chemistry and Grade 10 Integrated Science. She also advises a grade 10 group and an Environmental Club. When she is not teaching, she loves to spend time with her daughter and family, especially when there is a chance to be outside.
Eric Foinquinos is a fourth-year, full-time Upper School teacher at the American School of Madrid, where he currently teaches Theory of Knowledge, Filmmaking and Sociology. He has a Master’s in Music Composition and a Mechanical Engineering Diploma. Prior to his current position at ASM, he has worked in a wide array of areas as a composer for film, television, internet content and theater, as well as as a screenwriter, short film director, marketing copywriter, screenplay translator, as an engineer at an aluminum extrusion factory, and as a teacher's assistant during his engineering and music studies in University.
Tim Eddy was born and raised in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. After finishing his B.A. in Political Science at Hamilton College, he spent five years living and teaching history in Tangier, Morocco, where he also made frequent visits to Spain. In 2015, he completed a Master's Degree in Political Science at the American University of Beirut and continued in Beirut for the following six years as a teacher of history and social studies at the American Community School of Beirut. Tim joined the American School of Madrid in 2021; he teaches Integrated Social Studies 10, Global Politics, and Theory of Knowledge and coaches the Speech and Debate Club.
Maddy Melnick was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. She received her IB Diploma in 20 and went on to attend Emory University to study English and German Studies. She also earned a MA in English from Emory before embarking on her teaching career in Austin, Texas. In addition to teaching, Maddy has also volunteered in museum and cultural spaces, including the Michael C. Carlos Museum, Swenys Pharmacy, and the Michael C. Carlos Museum. She worked in Kaohsiung, Taiwan as an IB Core Coordinator before moving to Madrid for the 22-23 academic year. Maddy is glad to be back in an English classroom at ASM so she can share her love of literature with students and help them find their own joy in reading.
Zander Lyvers grew up in South Carolina, where he attended the College of Charleston as an undergrad. At CofC, he double majored in History and Secondary Education. He then moved to Brooklyn in 2010, where he enrolled in Queens College and began teaching Global History at a high school that specialized in standards-based grading and project-based learning. His first international school experience was in Hong Kong, where he taught grade 7 Humanities. He has led workshops on project-based and interdisciplinary learning for teachers in Hong Kong, Beijing, Bangkok, Kota Kinabalu, and Sofia, Bulgaria. He also leads an Action Research Collaborative for American International Schools in Spain. He assists with the Debate Club at ASM and is currently running the Battle of the Bands ASA. Zander tries to be part of the solution, but most of his attempts are problematic at best.
Irish, the eldest of seven and educated by the Sisters of Mercy in Sligo, Martina earned her B.Sc. in Experimental Physics ( minor: in Mathematics and Mathematical Physics) from University Dublin, Ireland, followed by an M.Sc and a Ph.D. in Physics. She continued in research, completing two Postdoctoral Fellowships at the Max-Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Berlin, Germany, and Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, U.S.A. Moving away from research, Martina started her teaching career in Secondary Education in the U.S. She worked in private and international schools on both sides of the Atlantic: Albany Academy for Girls, NY, American Overseas of Rome, Gadshill School Kent, UK (set in Charles Dickson's country home ). Washington International School, DC, and presently in her 11th year at the American School of Madrid.
Pedro is an ASM alumnus who graduated in 2019. He enjoyed spending his last two years of high school at ASM and has stayed in touch with his high-school friends. Pedro is now 21 years old and he started his industrial engineering degree in Bremen, Germany (Jacobs University Bremen) right after he graduated. Now, he is doing a master’s in Data Science in Frankfurt, Germany (Frankfurt School of Finance). He has working experience in the tech field, more specifically in Data analytics and Product Management (which is his current role). He plans to go to Miami over the summer and stay there for a year or two.
Joseph Khan has been teaching high school math for the past 10 years and prior to that, he ran a small IT company in the Wall Street area to support bond traders. He taught and was a grade-level leader in the Anglo-American School in Moscow before moving to Spain and teaching high school math at the American School of Madrid. He is the president and CEO of Kisnet Corporations and he founded Lifebahn, a non-profit portal designed to help reduce the growing income gap that poses an existential threat to today's world. Joseph Khan believes that, during crises like the COVID-19 pandemic, the world must collaborate to do what must be done effectively. He looks toward making a difference in the world by continuing to improve it so that this is a better place for all.