Academy of St. Therese

Mary A. Brundage, Administrator and Educator

Mary A. Brundage, Administrator and one of the founding members of the Academy of St. Therese, is a cradle Catholic and attended Catholic schools starting with St. Joseph Elementary in South Norwalk, CT. She attended Sacred Heart Academy in Stamford, CT, and then St. Joseph College in West Hartford, CT, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in English and Child Study and a minor in theology and philosophy. Finally, Mrs. Brundage graduated with a Masters Degree in Administration from Fairfield University in Fairfield, CT. She also received a Sixth Year Degree and an Intermediate Supervisory Certificate from the University of Connecticut. For her, living her faith was always of paramount importance.

Mrs. Brundage is certified to teach pre-K and Kindergarten and all subjects in Grades 1-8, and has experience teaching in each of these grades. She is also certified to teach English in Grades 9-12 and has also taught in each of these grades.

Administratively, Mrs. Brundage was principal of the Solomon Schechter Academy, and served as Department Chair of English at the Bennie Dover Middle School, both in New London, CT. She has led in-service workshops, mentored novice teachers, and worked with the state of Connecticut in the CONNCEPT and BEST programs to assess and aid beginning educators. She has been teacher and writer of curriculum for the religious education program in South Norwalk, West Hartford and Gales Ferry.

She resides with her husband in Gales Ferry, CT, where they are active members in Our Lady of Lourdes Parish and co-chairs of the Right-to-Life Committee. They have four married daughters and seven grandchildren - to whom they are affectionately known as “Grami and Grampi Grape.”

Jo Ann Galat Brown, Educator of Violin and Tennis Instructor

Jo Ann was educated in the Bristol, CT, public school system and encouraged
primarily by music teachers Michael Masailo and Kenneth Ferris to continue her music studies. She received her B.S. in Music Education from Central Connecticut State University and was a scholarship recipient for viola studies at Chautauqua Institute, Chautauqua, NY, where she studied viola with Nathan Gottschalk.

Spending a year in Krakow, Poland, Jo Ann studied the Polish language and culture at Jagiellonian University and studied viola with Dzislae Polonik at the Higher School of Music. Returning to the States, she received a scholarship to study viola at the Brevard Music Center, NC, where she was invited by Jerzy Kosmalma to continue her viola studies at the University of Akron, Akron, Ohio, earning her M.M. in Performance on Viola.

Jo Ann has studied string pedagogy, violin and viola with master string pedagogy teacher, Dr. George Bornoff.

Her teaching experience includes general music, string education, full day kindergarten in private and public school settings in CT, SC, and HI; teaching for The Advancement of String Education in Newton Centre, MA, and Hanson, MA, and for Arcata String Camp in St. George, VA. Jo Ann also teaches violin, harp, cello, and piano in her private studio.

She has played in the Vallejo Symphony Orchestra, Vallejo, CA; the Florence Symphony Orchestra, Florence, SC; Long Bay Symphony Orchestra, Myrtle Beach SC; and the Eastern Connecticut Symphony Orchestra. Jo Ann was a viola soloist in the Piccolo Spoleto Music Festival in Charleston, SC. Her experience is extensive in many other ensemble and solo venues, and she is presently a violinist in the Amabile Violin Duo. In addition to performing, Jo Ann has been music director for the Citi Arts Theater in Vallejo, CA.

Jo Ann has done and continues to do extensive volunteer work for businesses and civic and private organizations, churches, nursing homes, public and private schools and in a prison.

As an instructor at the Academy of St. Therese, Jo Ann savors her teaching time as violin instructor which encompasses general music, keyboarding, theater, science and art. She wears the hat of a tennis instructor in spring and fall.

At the Academy of St. Therese Jo Ann Brown and Mary Brundage coauthored the Christmas musical, Come and See, which includes original compositions by Jo Ann.

Nicole Naylor, Educator of Art

Nicole Naylor has been teaching art for the last ten years at Solomon Schechter Academy in New London, CT, and joined the staff at the Academy of St. Therese in Gales Ferry, CT, in September, 2007. Nicole is also employed at the Granite Street Gallery in New London where she teaches adult studio classes concentrating on the fundamentals of drawing and perspective and at her own Dragonfly Art Studio in Pawcatuck, CT, where she teaches children and adult classes.

Nicole studied oil painting with Russell Neagle for fourteen years and has attended classes and workshops with watercolorist Lou Bonamarte and Master Pastelist Doug Dawson. She is a classically trained artist specializing in pastel and oil painting and has won numerous awards as a painter and a teacher.

Nicole received first place at the Mystic Art Center’s 2008 Youth at Art Show for Middle School Group Entry, titled “Carousel Creatures.” This award is based on both the teacher’s lesson plan and the students’ outcome. Many of Nicole’s students have gone on to prestigious art institutions / colleges to pursue careers in art.

Jerrica Watrous, Educator of Music

Jerrica Watrous is an experienced teacher of 14+ years. Her principal area of expertise is in private piano and vocal instruction. She received most of her training at the Thames Valley Music School at Connecticut College. Jerrica has enjoyed preparing her students for lead roles in musical productions and auditions for the Ensign-Darling Vocal Fellowship at the Bushnell Center, the Connecticut Children’s Choir at U-Hartt, the Hartford Academy of Fine Arts, All State Chorus and Eastern Regionals.

Some highlights of her career include the following: vocal soloist both in the United States and abroad to Riga Lativia and Russia, Children’s Choir Director for an 80 –member choir in East Hartford, CT, and leader of a 300- member Children’s Choir at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, CT.

Jerrica is currently serving as the Assistant Music Director and Church Pianist for Friendship Community Church in Ledyard, CT, and is the Ledyard Community Children’s Choir Director. She enjoys her teaching position at the Academy of St. Therese and works each week to give well rounded music education to every child in her class.

Carol Ann Gray, Physical Education Educator

Carol Ann Gray graduated from Eastern Connecticut State University and earned a Masters Degree from Southern Connecticut State University. She has been teaching physical education for nine years. Her teaching focuses primarily on fitness and lifetime sports.

She is married and has three children. She, with her family, enjoys the outdoors. Carol Ann especially likes gardening, bike riding, hiking and swimming. She is also an active participant in triathalons.

The Academy of St. Therese is a wonderful environment for physical education. We have a large, grassy area, a full-sized basketball court, a state-of-the-art tennis court, and a large indoor space with a wooden floor. The students participate in tennis, bowling, dancing, jump roping, and fitness activities. Spring introduces basketball, volleyball, fitness testing, and Field Day.

The Town of Ledyard

The Ledyard School System provides the Academy of St. Therese with ongoing services from the Ledyard Regional VNA and psychology department. This includes monitoring records, examinations for eyes, weight, height, speech and psychological testing when requested. The nurse also promotes training in good nutrition and healthy eating habits.