Amy Meng, Editor-in-Chief
@amengcourant
Nine new staff have joined the high school for the 2024-2025 school year. Coming from different backgrounds and working in different subjects, these staff share their excitement to work with students.
Laura Newell – Director of Visual and Performing Arts
Drawn by the community’s love for the arts, the Director of Visual and Performing Arts position seemed perfect for Laura Newell. “They want to make sure students have a love for the culture. The fact that the community really supports that is something I really wanted to be a part of,” she said.
Ms. Newell attended the Hartt School of Music for undergraduate degrees in clarinet and music education, then pursued a masters education in music technology and music education. She plays with the West Hartford Symphony and Hartford Symphony. “I started my career in East Hartford, then I transitioned to Greenwich Public Schools to be closer to my family,” she said. “I was there for eight years, and New Canaan is that happy medium because I can still be close to my family and get the experience I was looking for.”
Having worked with students for years, Ms. Newell sees potential in kids to change the world. “Kids amaze me every single day,” she said. “I love being around children, from five year olds in Kindergarten to eighteen year old seniors. Working with strictly adults is just not as fun.”
Ms. Newell’s advice to students is to not be afraid to try new things. “You might find your niche in one discipline, but the skills you learn are transferable across all art forms,” she said. “Don’t think because you’re a visual artist, you can’t also be a musician, dancer or actor. All those skills talk to each other, and you can contribute in so many ways.”
Daniel Prinz – Special Education Teacher
Before joining the district, Special Education teacher Daniel Prinz worked at Hubbard Day, an outplacement school in Stamford where he provided academic and behavioral support to students. “I actually worked with a few students from the New Canaan district prior to coming here,” Mr. Prinz said.
Mr. Prinz decided to apply to a job posting at the high school after he heard positive comments about the district, staff and students. “I really enjoyed what I did, and when I saw the posting, I had heard such good things about the district, the kids, the staff, and the support system,” he said. “Through the interview process, the team here just felt like such a good fit. When they offered me the job, I was so excited to come.”
Mr. Prinz’s favorite part about teaching is seeing the growth of his students. “There’s nothing better than seeing a kid succeed because of something you taught them, or a skill that you gave them, or advice that you provided,” he said.
Besides being a teacher, Mr. Prinz played rugby in college and is a huge Disney fan. He also proposed to his wife at Disney World. “A lot of people consider me a Disney adult,” he said. Mr. Prinz was born in Virginia but grew up in New York before attending Sacred Heart University and Fairfield University.
Justine Repplinger – Math Teacher
After twenty years of teaching in Illinois, math teacher Justine Repplinger is taking a new adventure out in New Canaan. “It’s fun, scary and exciting, all those things in one” she said. Originally from Illinois, Ms. Repplinger earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and her graduate degree at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She taught at the University of Illinois for three years, took time to raise her children, and then spent two decades teaching at Lake Zurich High School in Illinois.
Her decision to come to New Canaan was driven by family. “My son, who was in college, met his wife, a New Canaan alum. Their plan when they had kids was to move back to New Canaan. Their twin babies were born in June, so I wanted to be with my grandkids,” she said. “All the stars aligned. I was very lucky that the high school had a math job and that I am now teaching here.”
Ms. Repplinger currently teaches AP Calculus AB and M3 Honors Geometry. For her, the best part is teaching the students. “Every day is different, every year is different. I’ve taught AP Calculus for seven years but it’s new here because I’ve never taught Calculus to this group of students,” she said. “I think that what keeps teachers in teaching is the relationships they make with students and the excitement of a new year.”
Outside of teaching, Ms. Repplinger enjoys spending time outdoors and traveling. She and her husband, high school sweethearts, once traveled to multiple national parks out in the west, including Bryce, Zion, and Canyonlands. “I never knew how beautiful the west was, and that was such a special trip because it was the first COVID summer and the parks were empty. We didn’t have to fight crowds,” she said. Besides being a grandmother to twins, Ms. Repplinger is also a twin and recently went on a trip to Italy with her twin sister.
Nicholas Frank – Math Intern
Math intern Nicholas Frank always knew he wanted to teach. “I’ve always loved math, but it wasn’t until college that I realized just how deeply I connected with it,” he said. Originally starting in the University of Connecticut’s chemical engineering program, he soon discovered it wasn’t the right fit and decided to pursue his true passion, teaching math.
Despite being discouraged by an advisor from the School of Education who laughed at his dream of becoming a teacher, Mr. Frank persevered. “I switched my major to math and never looked back,” he said. Mr. Frank holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mathematics and is working on his Masters in curriculum instruction through UConn’s School of Education.
Mr. Frank is from New York and grew up in Greenwich. He’s eager to share his passion for math in the classroom. “This is what I want to do for the rest of my life, inspiring students to fall in love with the subject that I am so deeply in love with,” he said. “If I could do this once in my career, then every ounce of struggle to get here would be worth it.”
Mr. Frank also has a variety of hobbies. “A fun fact that got leaked is that I was part of the UConn Breakdancing team,” he said. He also started doing music production in high school, enjoys playing the drums, piano and guitar, and does martial arts.
Rebecca Buonopane – Science Teacher
Honors Biology and Geophysical Science teacher Rebecca Buonopane hopes to share her love for the sciences with her students. “I pursued a degree in biology and fell in love with the subject, which inspired me to teach it,” she said. After earning her master’s degree in education, Ms. Buonopane began teaching at Staples High School and the Maritime Aquarium.
For Ms. Buonopane, teaching is an opportunity for her to inspire students and create lasting changes. “Every day, I have the chance to teach something new and influence the world in small ways,” she said. “While not every student will become a scientist, my goal is for each of them to find joy in science.”
Originally from Wethersfield, Connecticut, Ms. Buonopane went to Fairfield University and decided to stay in the area. As a college student, she conducted coral reef research in Hawaii. “I got to live on a little tiny island and study a bunch of animals and go snorkeling for over eight hours a day for months,” she said. Ms. Buonopane also plays the piano, speaks a little Italian and is the advisor for the Italian Club.
Alice Cascapera – Assistant to Director of Visual and Performing Arts
Originally from Rome, Italy, Assistant Director of Visual and Performing Arts Alice Cascapera came to the US fifteen years ago and began her career in the jewelry industry as a sales coordinator and office manager for an Italian company in New York. “It was a fun job where I interacted with American and international clients while staying connected to my language,” she said.
As her daughters entered kindergarten and first grade, Ms. Cascapera wanted to learn more about the local education system. She spent a year as a Special Education teacher’s assistant At East School, which deepended her understanding of the curriculum and student-teacher interactions. “It was a great opportunity to learn how everything worked here, especially since my education in Italy was quite different,” she said.
Now at New Canaan, Ms. Cascapera is excited to be part of the VPA office. “I’ve seen the talent of these kids in the shows at the high school and Saxe, and it’s just amazing to be involved in such a dynamic program,” she said.
Art has always played a part in Ms. Cascapera’s life. “I always had an interest in music, singing and drawing,” she said. “Growing up, I drew Manga and anime. When I was growing up in Italy, you would only have the shows that your channels would display and it was mostly Asian cartoons that would be dubbed in Italian.” She also attributes part of her love for art to her mother, who does watercolor painting.
In addition to her love for art, Ms. Cascapera likes to exercise in her free time. “I just got certified as a personal trainer because I wanted to learn the proper way of doing certain things,” she said. “Out of curiosity, I took a course and passed the exam.”
Tara Thomas – English Teacher
English teacher Tara Thomas has wanted to make a difference in the classroom since she was five years old. “ I was always an avid reader, and I was reading before Kindergarten,” she said. “My mother and grandparents would read to me all the time.”
Ms. Thomas’s own kindergarten experience also shaped her goals of becoming a teacher. “Kindergarten wasn’t a very good experience for me, and mistakes were frowned upon, play was frowned upon. I just don’t want any student to go through what I did,” she said.
Starting her teaching career as a student-teacher at the end of her senior year undergrad, Ms. Thomas was later hired by the same school as a full-time English teacher. She stayed there while she completed her masters degree in education from Southern Connecticut State University with a speciality in the middle grades. Ms. Thomas then spent her longest tenure of 14 years at Saxe Middle School. “Last summer, when the position opened here, I found an opportunity I was ready for. While I wouldn’t give up my middle school experience for anything, it taught me how to teach reading and writing deeply.” Ms. Thomas said. “I was ready to go to the high school with all of that new knowledge, with all of that experience and with a lot more schooling of my own.”
Besides reading, Ms. Thomas enjoys cooking, cycling and working as a freelance floral designer in the summertime. Her Italian family played a large part in fostering her love for cooking. “ I grew up in the kitchen sink, my grandmother used to say,” Ms. Thomas said.
