Ms. Seavey knew she wanted to be a teacher during her senior year of high school

Ms. Seavey grew up on Mount Desert Island, which is on the coast of Maine and is sometimes referred to as “Bar Harbor”. She went to college at the University of Maine Farmington, where she went in knowing she wanted to be a teacher.  While in high school, she had a teacher whom she admired.  The teacher taught things that actually mattered, while stil her students a voice. Which inspired her to want to take on a role just like that. Outside of school, she loves to read, ski, and hike but her hobbies change based on the season. There are two women in her life that she looks up to. The first is her Grandmother who taught her the importance of righting your wrongs and what hard work can become. The second is her Mother-in-Law who taught her how to live unapologetically as herself and how important the support of your family is. 

Ms.Cassily attended three different colleges, two of which were in France. 

Ms. Cassily our new French teacher not only went to the University of New Hampshire, but also attended the University of Bourgogne which is in Dijon, France, and finished off at the American University of Paris in Paris, France. She grew up in Rochester, New Hampshire where she learned to do some of her favorite hobbies like skiing and hiking, recently she picked up restoring old furniture. As of right now, she is trying to hike all 48 of the 4,000-foot peaks in New Hampshire. But going back to her time in France where she found her interest in teaching after she spent a year as an intern teaching English to kids in France. During her intern year, she realized how much she loved to share new languages with students and inspire them to use those languages in their futures. Growing up and still to this day she looks up to her older brother Kyle, who was a very good student and eventually became a United States diplomat. He was also the one that inspired her to travel internationally and learn a second language.

Mrs. Ames moves from the middle school

A cool aspect of her moving up to the high school is that she is able to see how much her former students have grown up. 

Mrs. Ames is a new art teacher here at the high school, who previously taught art at the middle school. Mrs. Ames was born in Maine and grew up in Arundel. She attended the University of Maine and graduated with a Bachelors in Art Education. Mrs. Ames comes from a family of teachers, some of whom teach art. She knew she wanted to teach ever since she was a kid. Mrs. Ames chose to teach here 12 years ago. She grew up nearby and was interested in the community and Biddefords rich history. During her time here, Mrs. Ames says she’s grown to love the people here and feels like she is part of a family. A cool aspect of her moving up to the high school is that she is able to see how much her former students have grown up. Outside of school, she spends her time being a mother to her new baby boy and taking care of their two geese and cat. Along with renovating a historical home from 1800 with her husband. Mrs. Ames enjoys walks on local beaches, traveling, creating art, and gardening in the summer. Mrs. Ames looks up to her grandmother that has great qualities in which she admires.

Ms. McDonough loves her busy life

Special Ed teacher one second, yoga teacher and parent the next. 

Ms. McDonough grew up between Kansas City and Chicago, going to 13 different schools and bouncing back and forth between the two cities. Eventually she ended up in Albany, NY at a college called The College of Saint Rose. Since McDonough found being at school to be better than being at home, and her math teacher made her feel appreciated and safe, she found an interest in teaching. Outside of the classroom now, McDonough has a busy life teaching yoga, tending to her animals, (1 cat, 2 dogs, and 5 chickens), caring for her 5 year-old and spending time outdoors as often as possible. She has multiple role models – American poet and activist Amanda Gorman, American singer-songwriter India Arie, Professor Dumbledore from the hit book Harry Potter series, and more.

Mrs. Sinnett’s long journey to BHS

Sometimes the path to making your dreams come true is a winding one. 

Mrs. Sinnett grew up in Gorham, Maine, and later went on to USM to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. While studying there, she took a class in Children’s Literature, and she was required to teach a lesson to a third grade class. Sinnett saw a child underneath one of the desks, banging their head. She wanted to figure out what was going on, and find ways to help them. After graduation, Sinnett worked for the Spurwink group home, and from there Spurwink Glickman Academy as an Ed Tech. The lead teacher there soon became her role model, as she thought they had a great philosophy and wanted to help facilitate independence in the children they worked with. This sparked Sinnett’s inspiration to become a special ed teacher, leading her back to USM for her master’s degree in special education. Now, when away from the classroom, Sinnett enjoys knitting, spending time with her family, camping and going outdoors.

Ms Wasina comes fresh out of Farmington

Ms Wasina is a new teacher here at Biddeford in the math department.  She grew up in Waterboro about a half hour from Biddeford.  Ms Wasina currently goes to the University of Maine at Farmington, and will be graduating this spring!  She really enjoys teaching, and has a passion for helping students with work and make a difference in their lives.  She described Biddeford as a great place to teach that is also close to home for her.  Outside of school she enjoys reading, and helps coach some field hockey on weekends as well, as she was a former player herself.   Ms Wasina really looks up to her younger brother, who she said has maintained a happy positive life, despite facing challenges in life. 

Mrs Barry went to two colleges, one in Maine, another in Minnesota

Mrs Barry is another new friendly teacher at Biddeford this year in the science department.  She is from Hermon, ME, in the Bangor area up north.  Ms Barry also went to Farmington for her undergrad degree, and then went to Capella University to obtain her master’s degree.  She’s wanted to be a teacher since a young age and knew it was the job for her.  She felt good about Biddeford from the start, and she is happy to have joined our group of science teachers here in Biddeford.  Away from the classroom, Ms Barry enjoys looking for sea glass, reading, cooking, and spending lots of time outside doing photography or hiking.  Her mom is someone she looks up to for inspiration.