OUR PEOPLE
At the heart of any good company is good people. Choice is no exception. Our people come from all over the state and have a wide array of educational, professional, personal, and cultural backgrounds. We are all brought together by the shared passion of helping children.
We also focus on developing one another through meaningful relationships, challenging work, constructive feedback, sound professional training, and a true commitment to nurturing the career path of each team member.
Sarah K. Wildey
Sarah received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the School of Education and Human Development at Brenau University and is currently completing her Master’s degree from the Broad School of Business at Michigan State University.
Chris Slater
Chris is a Certified Public Accountant and has more than 10 years of experience in the accounting industry; holding key roles in leadership, finance, strategic planning, corporate development and operations. Chris also spent time in public accounting serving clients in multiple industries. Chris’ accounting acumen paired with his people-oriented values complements our culture, making him a great fit for Choice Schools Associates.
Beth Spaman
Aside from her duties with Choice Schools, Beth loves meeting and learning about new people and staying healthy and active. She cherishes her time with her husband, two wonderful children, and the family’s husky dog, Chevy.
Chris Ruiter
Chris lives in West Michigan with his wife Beth, and their four children; Addison, Holden, Weston, and Judson. A few of his favorite things are spending time with his wife and children, serving at their church, relaxing at the family cottage up north, hobby farming and reading.
When asked about his role, Chris said, “Coming to Choice was a great opportunity to serve students in need. In this position, I want to have an impact on the students who might otherwise get overlooked or left behind. Those students need to have every opportunity to receive the instruction that meets their needs. Being able to work with staff and school leaders to collaborate will help us to create an environment where kids can get everything they need,” Chris concluded.
Sara Mooney
Sara earned her master’s degree in business administration and her bachelor’s degree in business administration in international business and sports management from Davenport University. She is in the process of completing her second master’s degree in education with an emphasis in adult learning and higher education at Grand Valley State University. She was a recipient of the 2014 Davenport University Outstanding Young Alumni award. In her free time, Sara enjoys spending time with her husband, family, friends, and her dog Woody.
Ron Wiens
Ron’s career has included being active in numerous community service organizations including Rotary International, where he has served as Club President and Assistant District Governor. He was also President of a public school academy board. In addition to his volunteer service, Ron served as a Peer Reviewer and Team Leader for the Council on Accreditation, helping to improve the quality of human service organizations across the United States. He earned a B.A. from the University of Michigan, and a Master of Arts in Social Service Administration from the University of Chicago. Ron is a member of the Academy of Certified Social Workers and has jointly published health services textbook chapters and journal articles. Besides being involved in Rotary for community service, Ron is also a Deacon at his church and is a Track and Field Official for the University of Michigan.
Ron has been married to his wife Kathy for over 30 years, and together they have three adult daughters who are college graduates and professionals in the areas of dental hygiene, speech and language pathology, and retail brand management. Ron’s goal for the students he services is to assist them in achieving excellence in their academics character. As for the Academies serviced, Ron’s goal is that they reach excellence in everything they do.
Brian Beaudrie
Sarah VanderBaan
Free time for Sarah includes traveling, yoga, and spending time with her family relaxing in Northern Michigan. West Michigan is where Sarah calls home. Volunteering is important to Sarah as she serves on the Executive Board of Family Hope Foundation.
Sarah is excited to work at Choice and collaborate with general education and special education staff to meet the needs of all students.
Ben Mercer
Ben enjoys spending his leisure time golfing outdoors, hanging out with his friends and family, and being with his wife, Maria, and their son who they welcomed in 2015.
Jennifer Shiels
supports the budget process, assists with grant management & compliance, handles the financial
reporting function and facilitates external audits for the charter schools.
Jennifer graduated from Central Michigan University in 2009 with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and
minors in finance and legal studies. From there she pursued a career as a public accounting professional
with Deloitte, obtaining her Certified Public Accountant license in 2010 and gaining experience
performing single audits on charter schools across the Midwest. Since leaving public accounting in 2012
Jennifer has ventured into several industries bringing budgeting and financial reporting experience from
wealth management, not-for-profits, hospitality and wholesale food distribution companies.
In her free time, Jennifer enjoys spending time with her husband and two kids camping, hiking and
biking. She also values maintaining a healthy lifestyle and seeks to incorporate healthy eating along with
being active. Jennifer resides with her family in West Michigan.
Jacob Allen
Jacob graduated from Central Michigan University, receiving his B.S. in Business Administration and Economic Theory. A former U.S. Marine, he enjoys spending his time outdoors kayaking, hunting, and gardening. He also spends time on the weekends working on his family’s tree farm in Lake Isabella.
Kristen Baranski
In her free time, Kristen enjoys camping in the summer and spending time with her friends, family, and two cats. Originally from the east side of the state, Kristen enjoys exploring all that West Michigan has to offer.
Laura Moellering
She earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees at Eastern Michigan University, and it was during her master’s program in Curriculum and Instruction that Laura truly came to appreciate the opportunity that charter schools presented for students and families who desired a different educational experience. Laura finds great satisfaction in designing programs that met student’s educational and emotional needs.
She is excited to be with Choice where she is able to be part of a community that genuinely respects families and believes in every student’s ability to achieve at high levels. When she isn’t engaged in work, she can be found on Lake Michigan, ideally with one of her three daughters, or curled up with a good book or podcast.
Shatara Morris
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and serving in various outreach activities and ministries with New Hope Baptist Church where she is a member.
Courtney Kingma
Courtney excels in customer service and assisting in the needs of Choice staff.
Erin Jeffrey
Erin comes to Choice with a major in Interdisciplinary Health Services and a minor in Management with a Human Resources focus from Western Michigan University. When she’s not assisting our Choice staff, Erin enjoys spending time with family and traveling. Erin has a true desire to provide the best possible experience, and is grateful to have the opportunity to learn from the State’s best teachers and support staff!
Sara Hogle
Malyn Goeman
She loves to help people and values impeccable customer service. Malyn enjoys working in the education industry to support school employees and ensure the company is in compliance with the Michigan Department of Education guidelines. By supporting both the Human Resources and Payroll Department, Malyn is able to ensure all the needs of our schools are met.
Married with two young adult children (boy and girl), she and her husband love to attend music concerts and enjoy spending time outside, either at the beach or walking their golden retriever dog Wrangler. Her new-found hobby is kayaking and she hopes to spend more time going north to enjoy the lakes and rivers in Michigan!
Kristin Molyneux
Kristin graduated from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor’s in Elementary Education and earned her Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction. Kristin and her husband have been married for over 14 years and have two blissfully beautiful children. Her family is very involved in their church and loves to spend time with family and friends. She enjoys taking her family to different parks, traveling, and visiting exciting places. It is always a learning moment in the Molyneux household.
Carrie Paddock
Carrie and her husband, Burt, have been married for 17 years and have two daughters, Hannah and Rylee. They enjoy basketball in the winter and beach time in the summer!
Amanda Konopaska
Amanda’s Choice journey began in 2009, as a classroom teacher and emerged into leadership where she took on both active and interim Principal roles for two of our academies. Currently, she is the program coordinator and trainer of our Montessori Aligned Preparation Program (MAPP) and works one-on-one with our new Montessori teachers to help them grow as Montessorians. Additionally, Amanda continues to show her love for Montessori as the face behind “Montessori Rocks” a vibrant community of parents, educators, and students that are excited to share with one another their love of all things Montessori. Prior to joining the Choice family, Amanda worked at a private Montessori school as an upper elementary teacher.
Mandy Patouhas
Michelle Edson
Michelle is married to a golf pro and together they have a daughter who currently resides in sunny southern California. She enjoys traveling and golfing in the summer!
Caryn Westra
In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her friends, family and two dogs. She loves DIY projects, traveling, and exploring her city.
Ashtyn Overweg
In her free time, she enjoys spending time with friends and family, training for triathlons and being in the outdoors.
Ally Henderson
Ally has a great passion for people and enjoys making connections with those involved with Choice Schools and its academies, which makes her an asset to the marketing team. In her free time, Ally enjoys spending time with her husband and their families, vacationing at the lake, or cooking in the kitchen.
Christina S.
Nicole Hahn
In her free time, Nicole loves to be outdoors, spending time with her family and friends and coaching volleyball.
Sidney L. Faucette, Ed.D.
Sid Faucette received his bachelor’s degree from High Point University and his master’s and doctoral degrees in Educational Leadership and Policy Study from the University of Virginia. His list of publications includes the Everyday Etiquette program created specifically for implementation in elementary classrooms, journal articles in such professional publications as American Educational Research Association, Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, and ERS Spectrum. His doctoral dissertation titled School Board Chairmen and Superintendents’ Perceptions toward Merit Pay in Virginia was also published and has received noteworthy attention from scholars and professionals in the field of Education.
Stan Rathbun
Amey Dryer
Amey and her husband Todd live in Brighton, MI with their two energetic boys Cole and Noah and their mischievous dog, Ruby. The boys keep them both very busy with baseball, ninja warrior, swimming, and gymnastics.
Kurt Naber
In Kurt’s spare time, he loves spending time with his wife Kathy and 2 sons (both of whom are attending WMAES).
Nicole Tuinstra
Nicole likes to bowl in her spare time with her family. She also has participated in the Shadblow Theater summer concert for the past 2 years. Nicole also likes to spend time with her husband and 2 daughters as well as her extended family.
Nicole is excited to make the transition to Choice Schools Central Office. “I am excited to work with the Curriculum and Instruction team and the Special Education team. My new role will allow me to work with both general education and special education teachers, which will benefit all of our students.”
Patrick Coleman
He loves to help others and takes value in ensuring the company is in compliance with the Michigan Department of Education guidelines. Patrick also enjoys helping with employee relations, benefits, and customer service. He is grateful to work in the education industry and is excited to continue learning and growing in a remarkable company.
Outside of the office, Patrick enjoys playing many team sports with friends, Hanging with his wife, twin daughters, and his Goldendoodle Blue.
Kelsey Lewis
In her free time, Kelsey enjoys volunteering with Special Education Ministries in Holland, Michigan, as well as spending time with her fiancé and mini Goldendoodle Milo.
Ali DuBois
IN CASE YOU'RE WONDERING.
Frequently Asked Questions
Charter schools are independent, public, and tuition-free schools that are given the freedom to be more innovative in offers and instructional style while being held accountable for advancing student achievement at an often higher level than their traditional public school peers. Charter schools extend the privilege of choice to all families and are open to all students, regardless of income, gender, race, or religion. Charter schools are governed by a local Board of Directors and are required to meet and often exceed the standards of its Authorizer and the State Board of Education. Today, nearly 3 million students attend more than 6,700 charter schools in the United States. With over 100,000 students attending the 232 charter schools in Michigan, 5,000 of those students attend one of our Choice Schools.
Charter school management companies, often referred to as education service providers (ESP), are organizations that contract with new or existing public, charter, or private schools to carry out the Board of Director’s vision. While each management company structures their offerings differently, Choice is a full-service management company.
We are different because, unlike some other management companies, we work for the Board of Directors and at the pleasure of the Board. Our goal is to build trust and good faith with our Boards so that we work with them, always remembering we work for them. We are also different from other management companies because children and employees come first in our decision making. They are our internal primary customers. Our mission is the guiding force of our work.
What Others Are Saying
"When we hired Choice it was like a lightbulb turned on. They are extremely supportive of our vision and allow us to be who we want to be while providing the foundational support for our students, staff and school community success. We would not be where we are today without
Choice Schools."
- Susie Schlehuber, Founder and School Leader at Lake Superior Academy
"Choice Schools has created and implemented a vision for every child to learn and grow based on his/her needs. They have instilled this mission in their educators, who strive every day to provide the tools for students to reach their full, unique, and empowered potential and purpose.”
– Lisa Gillon, Principal at Livingston Classical Academy
"I have worked with Choice Schools Associates for the last 13 years. The service and support that Choice provides its leaders and schools is top notch. They have figured out a successful formula to support the schools in each facet of operation - human resources, finance, operations, and curriculum and instruction. Their support allows me to focus on the daily operation of my school.”
– Terry Larkin, principal at New Branches Charter School Academy