The McNicholas Milestone

By Rosie Smith

McNicholas hired seven new staff and faculty for the 2026-2027 school year, including two math teachers, a theology teacher, a marketing and communication specialist, and a new Director of Curriculum.

Math teacher Mr. Ed English came to McNick after teaching 7th and 8th grade math at Seven Hills Elementary for four years and Immaculate Heart of Mary for five years. Before becoming an educator, English was an engineer, designing high power lasers and working on projection lenses and infrared cameras for the military.  When looking for a change, English said God had invited him to think about his next position in education. Before becoming a teacher at McNick, English was a long-term substitute and created relationships with students and faculty. English said he has “always been a teacher in some way, shape or form, it was sort of a fortuitous but providential reunion of many ideas.”

 Theology teacher Mrs. Elizabeth Pille came to McNick after teaching 7th and 8th grade English and religion at Mercy Montessori for eleven years and working for a non-profit called Beech Acres Parenting Center. After hearing about her sister’s experience at McNick and living in proximity, Pille decided to apply. “I’m really enjoying getting to know everybody, especially the people in my department,” she said. Pille also said that because she had taught in a grade school, switching to freshman and juniors was a “mental switch,” but it gave her the opportunity to understand what their high school experience would have been like.

Math teacher Mrs. Amy Bland came to McNick after teaching 5th through 8th grade math and science at St. Peter and Paul Academy. Bland said she moved closer due to her daughter attending Wilson Elementary. Despite her starting over at a new school, Bland said she was confident in fitting in. “I’ve fallen right back in, I feel like it’s no different,” she said. She also said that having taught eighth graders prepared her to teach high schoolers.

Marketing and communication specialist, Grace Normad, came to McNick for her first out-of-college career. After being a teaching assistant in college, she knew she enjoyed the administrative side of education. Because education was one of her top areas of interest, Normad decided to apply. She said she loves “variety in my work. I don’t like feeling like I’m doing the same thing every day, and this job is never like that. There’s always something new to work on and learn about, and the variety of projects I work on within a day keeps me engaged and excited.”

“My favorite thing about McNicholas is the way community is emphasized and the way new students are welcomed and celebrated. It reminds me a lot of where I went to college [Taylor University],” Normad said.

Director of Curriculum Mrs. Julia Thornton came to McNick after being Assistant Principal and Dean of Academics at Purcell Marian High School. She was also an administrator, a religion teacher for 15 years, participated in campus ministry, and guided student leadership development. Thornton has coached soccer, track and field, and cheerleading. Her many past careers guided Thornton to come back to her roots as an alumni grad of 2005 and daughter of theology teacher, MaryBeth Sandmann.

“As a person of faith, and as someone with a vocational call to education, I loved the idea of coming back to McNick and getting to work and learn alongside our students, teachers, staff, and families,” she said.

Thornton said she has enjoyed getting to know the people on campus, visiting classrooms and learning new ways to improve. “It has been busy, and fun, and I continue to learn more each day. One of the reasons I love working in education is because it is never boring,” Thornton added.

School Counselor Mrs. Brianna Fogus came to McNick for her first out-of-college career after an internship at Norwood View Elementary, practicum for a semester at Norwood High School and experience as a social worker. Fogus said what drew her to the position was how the counseling team worked together, instead of a more independent position. She also said how she admired student life. “I loved that it was faith driven, I also feel like you could tell a lot about the culture from the website, seeing all the kids and how involved they are,” Fogus said.  She added that her “main goal this year is to learn everything to help support next year’s seniors with college applications on my own.”

Director of Technology Mr. Sam Carlascio came to McNick after being the Head IT Technician for United Wheels Inc. in Miamisburg, Ohio. Carlascio said being a student at McNick [Class of 2014] helped confirm his application. “Being a student here previously, I knew how strong a community was around McNick,” he said. Carlascio mentioned that transformation since being a student impressed him. “My favorite thing about McNick since being back is seeing all the changes they’ve made. The students here have a lot more options to study what they’re interested in. Also, the addition of so many clubs and sports teams is cool to see.”

Photo courtesy of mcnhs.org.

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