English Language Development:
Reading Specialist: Carolyn Altuner
Hi Snowden Farm Stallion Family! My name is Carolyn Altuner, and I am proud to be your school Reading Specialist! This is my 7th year in this role in Montgomery County. I started my career in MCPS back in 2000 as a Reading Initiative/Resource Teacher at Clopper Mill Elementary School in Germantown. I moved on to teach 2nd grade, Kindergarten, and ended my time there as an Intervention Teacher. In 2009, I had the amazing opportunity to open William B. Gibbs Elementary School in Germantown. I taught 2nd grade for 6 years there, and ended my time there as a 1st grade teacher. I moved on to the role of Reading Specialist in 2016 at Goshen Elementary School. I have worked with the most amazing educators at all of my previous schools, and love growing and learning with my Stallion family! I grew up in the South Hills of Pittsburgh, PA in a suburb called Mt. Lebanon. I earned my Bachelors Degree in Elementary and Special Education from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, and my Masters in Education with a focus as a Reading Specialist from Johns Hopkins University here in Maryland. There is just nothing quite as magical as making connections with students, helping them see the very best in themselves, and fostering academic and social-emotional growth each school year. My family and I are very happy living in the Villages of Urbana in Frederick. I have a wonderful husband, Tony, and two sons, Kyle (16) and Grant (13), who keep us very busy with their active sports schedules! We also have a 5 year old rescue dog named Chance who we just adore. In my free time you can find me cheering on my boys at their sporting events, playing tennis with neighborhood friends, walking Chance or getting in a good workout, reading a good novel or listening to an audio book as I multi-task, or catching up with the latest binge on Netflix! I treasure my time here at Snowden Farm Elementary School!
Staff Development: Erin Kleinman
I’m very excited to be here at Snowden Farm Elementary School as it opens for its first year! This is my third year as a staff development teacher, and I absolutely love that I have an opportunity to collaborate with all of the teachers in the building and work with many of the students at all grade levels. I have previously taught 4th and 5th grade, and am Nationally Board Certified in Elementary School. I grew up on Long Island, NY, and came to Maryland to attend Salisbury University to earn my Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and went on to earn my Master of Arts in Elementary Education at the College of Notre Dame of Maryland. My favorite subject is math, and I am excited to work with teachers to implement our new Eureka math curriculum. I have taught 4th, 5th, 6th, and 7th grade math previously, and have a passion for helping students realize a love for math. When I’m not at school, I spend most of my time with my family; my husband Danny and my kids, Kendall, who is a 3rd grader, and Zach who is in pre-K. I love singing, doing zumba, spending time with friends, traveling (I go back to NY a lot to visit my family), and anything that involves FUN! I can’t wait to get to know all of the awesome Snowden Farm Stallions!