Meet the Staff behind AZVA

AZVA's administrative and support staff is committed to ensuring the finest education possible for your children. From providing expert tools and strategies to teaching materials and parent support, our leadership team is dedicated to making sure that you have what you need to deliver a well-rounded, enriching education to your children. Here are some of the people who maintain AZVA's high standards of education.

Head of School
Megan Henry is AZVA's Head of School. Originally from upstate New York, Megan holds undergraduate degrees in history, English, and secondary education from SUNY Geneseo and Canisius College. She earned a master's degree in educational leadership and business administration from Arizona State University in 2006. Megan is an Arizona-certified, highly-qualified teacher and principal. After her first year teaching in New York, Megan relocated to Arizona. She taught junior high social studies for four years, and then three years of high school history and English in both charter and district settings. Megan has been a school administrator since 2006 and was AZVA's high school principal from 2007-2009. She is thrilled to work with the families, students, and staff at AZVA and is excited to help expand and improve virtual education for students in Arizona.

K–5 Principal
Erica Cunningham has been with AZVA since March of 2005. She has held many positions over the years starting with a K8 teaching position for a year and a half before transitioning into high school. At the high school level she worked as an Instructional Coordinator, Lead Academic Advisor, Assistant Principal and then High School Director for 2 full years. She has now taken the position of K–5 Principal and is excited for the new challenge and opportunity to serve K-5 families. Erica was a Kindergarten and First grade teacher for six years in both private and charter schools before working for AZVA. She received her bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from Southwestern College in Phoenix, Arizona, and is currently working toward her master's degree in Educational Leadership with her principal's certificate at Grand Canyon University. Erica will graduate with her master’s degree in May of 2012.

Middle School Principal
Jeanna Pignatiello joined the AZVA team in October 2006. Originally from Chicago, she transferred to Arizona State University where she received a BS degree in justice studies. Her dream was to attend law school, but after graduating, Jeanna accepted a job teaching reading to elementary students. She quickly fell in love with teaching, and returned to ASU to get her post-baccalaureate certificate in elementary education. She joins AZVA with ten years of teaching experience in both elementary and middle school settings for grades 1 and 3 and 5–8. Jeanna has a focus in ESL, literature, and language arts, and has her SEI and ESL Endorsements. She has a master's degree in educational leadership from Northern Arizona University. Jeanna is an Arizona-certified, highly-qualified teacher and principal. Her goal is to engage her students and their families in a learning environment that is safe and respectful, and that provides endless opportunities for growth.

High School Director
Kelly Van Sande joined the AZVA team in 2008 as a high school teacher after a variety of teaching experiences in Phoenix-area schools. After teaching, she moved into the role of High School Assistant Principal and enjoyed that role tremendously. She has an undergraduate degree in Music Education from Grand Canyon University, a Master's Degree in Education in Teaching and Curriculum Leadership from Northcentral University, and is currently pursuing a Doctorate Degree in Educational Leadership and Administration from Grand Canyon University. Her goal is to support teachers and families to make sure that all students are successful, well supported, and ready for the future.

Assistant High School Director
Veronica Murray joined the high school team at AZVA in July 2007, as an English teacher. Prior to that, she taught English at a variety of levels in the Gilbert Area for several years. In 2010, Veronica transitioned to English Department Lead, a position that she enjoyed immensely. Veronica received a degree in English and a degree in Secondary Education from Arizona State University, and is currently in the middle of a graduate program working toward a Master’s degree in Education. Her goal is to foster positive communication to build relationships between staff, families, and students.

Special Education Manager
Aanya Rispoli joins AZVA after a varied background in general and special education administration. Ms. Rispoli grew up in Phoenix and went to NAU where she received her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education and Special Education. She went on to earn Master's degrees in Special Education, Educational Leadership and Bilingual/Multicultural Education. Ms. Rispoli taught special education in both public and private settings previous to moving into Educational Administration for the Arizona Department of Education, the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and various charter schools in Arizona. Ms. Rispoli is excited to work with students and families in the virtual setting in order to ensure that the needs of students with exceptionalities are met.

Local Development Manager
Natalie Lundberg is originally from California, where she earned her Bachelor's Degree in Liberal Studies at Vanguard University. She then went on to California State University Fullerton and received a teaching credential in the state of California. Her teaching career brought her to Arizona, where she accumulated a total of 13 years in instructional experience. She has earned both the Early Childhood and Structured English Immersion endorsements, putting both to good use while teaching primary grades across a wide range of demographics. Natalie recognized the unique and cutting edge approach to education provided by AZVA, as well as the phenomenal curriculum and individualized learning program provided by K¹², which brought her to the current position as local development manager. To speak with Natalie personally and learn more about the exciting opportunities that AZVA has to offer your children, feel free to contact her at nlundberg@K12.com.

Director of Academic Services
Denese Wierzbicki, AZVA special education lead teacher, has 37 years of experience teaching special education, from preschool through high school. Denese has also taught math, science, and computer programming. She was attracted to AZVA as the ideal situation for special kids to receive a rigorous education at their own pace. Denese holds a BA from the University of Michigan in psychology and a master's degree in special education from Northern Michigan University.

Regional Finance Manager—Central Region
Allan Alvarado joined K¹² in July 2010, and serves as Regional Finance Manager for Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas. Previously, from 2001 to 2010 he served as Director of Finance and Operations for two Arizona private schools, Valley Christian High School and Tesseract School. Prior to professionally entering the education field, Allan held various finance and operational positions with organizations such as Honeywell, Sunstate Equipment Co., and Enterprise Rent-A-Car. Allan has been involved in a number of non-profit school boards and finance committees, serving as both a member and treasurer. Allan holds a B.S. in Finance from Arizona State University and an M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix.

Response to Intervention Coordinator
Hope Terhaar has been with AZVA since September 2006, and has ten years of experience in education. After graduating from Ottawa University with a BA in elementary education, she received her MA in elementary education from Northern Arizona University. During her career in education, Hope taught second and sixth grades, and also worked for the Arizona Department of Education in the Character Education Department. She is an Arizona Highly Qualified Teacher and is certified in regular education for K–8. She is excited to support students through the Response to Intervention program.

Compliance Coordinator
Michelle Sanchez joined AZVA in 2010. She received her Bachelor of Arts in education with an ELL and Bilingual certification from Arizona State University, and her Master of Education degree from University of Phoenix.  Michelle has 13 years of classroom teaching experience in the Washington and Phoenix Elementary districts, where she taught grades k-3 and worked extensively with students in Sheltered English Immersion programs. Michelle is highly qualified in Elementary Education and Middle School Math, and loves being a part of a school which gives unique educational opportunities to every student.

Academic Administrator for Hybrid Programs
Melody Williamson joined AZVA in February 2006. She received her Bachelor of Arts in education with an ELL certification from Arizona State University, where she graduated summa cum laude. Melody was hired straight out of college by the Washington School District, where she completed her student teaching, to teach in a multi-age classroom. After four years of classroom teaching experience, she accepted a music-teacher position within the Washington School District, where she taught grades K-7. She feels her applied experience in an extensive multi-age environment has prepared her well for her position at Arizona Virtual Academy and is excited to be a part of our team.

Director of Instruction and Accountability
Cindy Wright Carter has been with AZVA since August 2005. As Director of Instruction and Accountability at Arizona Virtual Academy she maintains congruency between the school’s mission, vision, and goals as represented throughout the schoolwide consolidated plan. Her academic leadership experience includes monitoring student academic progress, coordinating the efforts of school administrators, and overseeing the academic affairs of the school. Cindy’s teaching experience includes special education in preschool through high school in Arizona and California. She has extensive experience in Title I programs, assisting students and their parents in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing. Mrs. Wright-Carter graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education and Special Education. In addition, she holds a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership and Administration. Cindy is Highly Qualified in the areas of Special Education, Elementary Education, Middle School Mathematics, and Middle School Language Arts.

Coordinator of Title Programs
Sarah Alexander joined the AZVA team as an Arizona Highly Qualified teacher in March 2006. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Arizona State University. After working with students with special needs in preschool and kindergarten, she completed a post-baccalaureate teacher certification program at Northern Arizona University. Sarah has eight years of experience teaching kindergarten through midle school students, as wll as an endorsement in ELL, Middle School Mathematics, and Middle School Language Arts. She is excited to be part of the unique educational environment provided to AZVA families.

Regional Technology Manager – Central Region
Mike Kunz joined K¹² in 2008. He is responsible for all teacher, administration and site technology for every school within the central region, including AZVA. Mike has a Masters of Science in Information Management from Arizona State University's W.P. Carey School of Business and has over a decade of experience in the IT field. Prior to coming to K¹², Mike worked for the Federal Public Defender's office.