Head of School

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Beth is a veteran homeschooler with over 20 years of experience in classical education both in home and cooperative settings. For the past nine years, she has worked at a local Classical Conversations community in several roles: teaching grammar and writing to 9-12 year olds, directing the elementary program, and teaching the senior class. 

Due to her own children’s dyslexia, she has a heart for bright but struggling students.  She has nine years of experience with Orton-Gillingham methodology and was certified as a Barton Reading Tutor in 2021. She hopes to create a learning environment where all students thrive and discover their God-given strengths in spite of their struggles.

Katie is honored to be a part of the Rivendell community, where she teaches Primary B. She is married to her husband, Samuel, and they have four wonderful children. The Cotton family moved to Georgia recently, back to Samuel’s roots, from Colorado. She is passionate about fostering both the intellectual and spiritual growth of her students, believing that education should involve leading students to pursue truth, appreciate beauty, and reflect on the goodness of God. With twelve years of experience in classical Christian home education, she embraces the art of rich literature to instill stories of hope to guide students to think deeply and to help them to live bravely in their own story. For Katie,education is about more than just academic excellence; it is about shaping students’ hearts and minds to honor God in all things. In the past, she participated in Classical Conversations as a tutor for many years and served as a foundations director to start a new community. Most recently,she engaged in a shared teaching role with a Charlotte Mason co-op. Beyond the classroom, Katie delights in baking and cooking homemade food for her family, working on interior and exterior design projects with a functional approach, gardening, and exploring nature.“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9

Andrea Crumpacker and her husband Sean have 4 children, and are foster parents to one son. She has been homeschooling their children for eight years.  Andrea graduates April 2024, from Liberty University with a Bachelors in Developmental Psychology.  Her passion and first love is Jesus Christ, and sharing the good news of the gospel with children. She is also passionate about serving children with Special Needs. Through her experience in homeschooling two special needs children with various learning disabilities, she finds that children will grow where they are planted in love, patience, and timing. 

She is looking forward to this new adventure and is praying over the children and families that Rivendell will positively impact. 

1 John 4:19- We love because He first loved us. 

Astrid Donovan was born and raised in New Hampshire, but after 20 years traveling the country as a military spouse, now calls Georgia home.  She and her husband Scott share a love of theology, history, and good literature. Astrid graduated from the University of Alaska with a Bachelor’s degree in English Rhetoric, and still loves to read whenever she gets a spare minute. She has been a Charlotte Mason home educator for 9 years, and is excited to share her love of the Humanities with students.

Amanda Frost is a native of Columbus, GA. After traveling the country with her husband, a 20+

year retirement from the Army landed them back home in Harris County. They have three children and have been blessed to homeschool them for the past three years. Christ, gifting

Amanda with a servant’s heart has led her to mentor and teach children and youth through many different roles for the past 15 years. Across seas, hosting eight Chinese exchange

students to Directing Children’s Ministry, Amanda enjoys educating what is true, good and beautiful. Literature, art history, philosophy and math are just a few passions Amanda is excited to share with her students. 

In her free time, she enjoys hiking, gardening, caring for her chickens, and adventures with her family. Amanda is honored to educated students classically through a biblical worldview at Rivendell Academy.

“Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one’s youth.” Psalm 127:4

Chris Frost brings a deep commitment of excellence and virtue into the classroom as a teacher at Rivendell Academy, where he has a passion for logical thinking, scientific inquiry, and biblical worldview. A veteran of the United States military, Chris served with distinction, cultivating strong leadership skills and a disciplined, mission-driven approach to every endeavor. Following his military service, Chris pursued higher education at Liberty University, where he was inducted into the National Honor Society for his academic excellence and leadership contributions. His academic pursuits reflect his lifelong dedication to rigorous thinking and Christ-centered learning. Residing in Pine Mountain, Georgia, Chris enjoys life with his wife, Amanda, and their three children: Madelyn, Easton, and Scarlett. Outside the classroom, he is an avid reader of Christian apologetics and theology, and finds joy in woodworking, fishing, and spending meaningful time with his family. Chris’s teaching is marked by clarity, structure, and care, aimed at forming students who think deeply, love truth, and live faithfully. 

Karan Anne is blessed to be a daughter of God, a wife to William, and a mom to four children. She has been walking with the Lord since she was 15 years old and has been serving in ministry alongside her husband since they met in high school. She has been on staff at a couple of churches, worked for local middle and high school youth ministries, taught Humanities to gifted students in the public schools, and has taught at different homeschool co-ops. 

Her current role is being a pastor’s wife, as her husband is the lead pastor at MidTree Church. Karan Anne is excited to use her education degree and her love of teaching with all ages at Rivendell this year.  She enjoys a fun and lively classroom environment and is looking forward to letting kids lean into their creative side as the Art Teacher.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works…” ‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭2‬:‭10‬ ‭

 Married to high school sweetheart for 26 years, mother of 3, 2 grown and her 9 year old attending Rivendell, Grammy to a sweet baby boy, loves spending time with family, homeschool mom over 20 years, the past two years teaching second grade at a local homeschool co-op,  excited to be teaching Primary A, feels blessed to help children grow not only academically but also in their knowledge of the Lord, finds great joy in watching students discover their God given gifts and deepen their faith, looks forward to a year filled with learning, laughter, and spiritual growth as we work together to nurture hearts and minds for Christ. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 

Chelsi is a dedicated mother to four sons and pastor’s wife to her husband of twelve years, Tyler. Chelsi grew up in Cincinnati and always dreamed of being a teacher and missionary. After graduating from Moody Bible Institute with a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, the Lord led her to marry her husband as he pursued pastoral ministry. During their time at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Chelsi earned a Certificate in Ministry through the Seminary Wives Institute. In addition to her education degree, she also holds a teaching certificate with an endorsement in Bible, through ACSI.

Chelsi strives to educate by enabling students to see how God is the source of truth across all disciplines. She hopes that students will feel a personal ownership of the Christian worldview and be able to engage with culture and society knowing that they have received an education that allows them to grow not only in knowledge but also in godliness. She loves being outdoors, studying the Bible, reading good literature, lifting weights, watching documentaries, playing the cello, and embroidering.

Marion is a Columbus, Georgia native who has been married to Wesley for over 20 years. They have 5 children and just completed their 18th year homeschooling. She is skilled at teaching all ages and subjects, though literature and American History are her favorite! Marion graduated with honors from Columbus State University with a Bachelor of Business degree in Marketing and Finance. She has been a professional photographer for the past 14 years and loves to use her camera as a ministry tool to show the love of Christ and bring Him glory.

Marion understands that there are only a few years to teach students how to be grounded in Truth so that they can be prepared to face the culture and temptations that the world presents. She is excited to assist students to learn how to think for themselves based on what is really true. She is gifted at developing relationships as she’s teaching and creating opportunities to help others go on adventure with Jesus. She is very excited to be a part of this inaugural year of Rivendell Academy and hopes to contribute to making it a school of excellence.

"Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life."-Proverbs 4:13

Danelle is the Equipping Minds Education Coordinator at Rivendell Academy and will be working with students that have special needs academically. A native of South Florida, Danelle earned her Bachelor of Arts in Family Studies/Psychology from Samford University, where she met her husband, D.R. They've been married for 18 years and, since moving to Columbus in 2010, have found a welcoming community at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church. Danelle has a background in fitness, spending many years as a personal trainer, driven by a desire to help others reach their fitness goals. She has three children—Ryder, Campbell, and Reagan and for the past nine years her main focus has been managing her home and supporting her busy military husband. Danelle is thrilled to apply her nurturing spirit and love of connection to helping students at Rivendell discover their God-given strengths, even amidst learning challenges. She loves to go on a long run, listen to music of all kinds, be near the ocean, read anything by C.S. Lewis,  and make homemade guacamole. "I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.” Psalm 16:2

Callie is super excited to be a part of the Rivendell Family as the Administrative Assistant this year. Born and raised in Columbus, she received a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education and served as a first grade teacher in MCSD for five years. Callie has been married to her husband Christian for three years and they welcomed their beautiful, caring, and spunky little girl, Olivia James in October of 2023. The Wizieck Family loves being a part of a deeply rich community at MidTree church and working in ministry with college aged students  at Impact 360. Callie is excited to support the families, parents, and teachers in her role at Rivendell whether that is answering the "simplest" questions or walking alongside families in difficulty. On her days off you can expect she is spending time outside, drinking warm tea, and eating boiled peanuts. “Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold  and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will take joy in the God of my salvation.God, the Lord, is my strength; he makes my feet like the deer's; he makes me tread on my high places.