Faculty
Humanities
Dr. Douglas LeBlanc
Dr. Douglas LeBlanc was born and raised in various parts of the southeastern United States. During his homeschooled high school years, he first felt the calling to be a teacher. Dr. LeBlanc has now been working as a humanities instructor in Catholic classical education for over a decade. He holds a BA and an MA in English, and a PhD in Humanities.
Sharing the good, the true, and the beautiful with his students brings Dr. LeBlanc great joy. Moreover, he prays daily that he will be a docile instrument of God in the lives of the young men and women in his charge.
Dr. LeBlanc enjoys spending time with his nieces and nephews, playing piano, and playing pingpong and pickleball. He also enjoys doing academic research; his work has been published by various institutions, including Oxford University.
Humanities
Mrs. Ivana Ackermann
Born in Zurich, Switzerland, Ivana Ackermann moved to Boise, Idaho with her parents and four siblings when she was eleven. Mrs. Ackermann was a proud member of the inaugural faculty at Chesterton Academy of Notre Dame in Spokane, where she taught both humanities and fine arts for two years. Mrs. Ackermann enjoys teaching and ministering to students of all ages, and has served as a youth minister and sacramental preparation teacher in various capacities. Mrs. Ackermann is also an adjunct faculty member in Religious Studies at St. Martin's University.
Mrs. Ackermann holds a Master of Arts in Biblical Languages from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA and a Bachelor of Arts in English-Linguistics with a minor in Music from Boise State University. During her graduate studies, Mrs. Ackermann spent two years living and teaching at the Oakland Catholic Worker, where she learned the joy of living, learning and serving in community.
In her freetime, Mrs. Ackermann enjoys spending time in the great outdoors with her husband Marc. She also makes joyful noises with her vocal chords and her trombone. Mrs. Ackermann is excited to rejoin the Chesterton world at Chesterton Academy of St. Michael and to teach two of her favorite courses, Latin and Old Testament.
Mathmatics & Science
Mr. Sean Swalling
Sean Swalling was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. He then attended Washington State University to earn a BS in Mathematics. During his undergraduate studies, he became highly involved in the Catholic student center and discerned teaching math in Catholic education. He joined the Pacific Alliance for Catholic Education through the University of Portland, earning his MAT.
Most recently, Mr. Swalling has been teaching mathematics at a Catholic school in Nampa, Idaho. He and his wife are new residents of the Seattle area and are excited to spend time outdoors in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Mr. Swalling fills his free time with reading, gardening, and pursuing holiness. He hopes to guide his students in seeing the divine hand at work in the patterns and beauty of mathematics.
Music Director
Mr. Aric Nesheim
Aric Nesheim was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. After receiving a degree in Audio Engineering and working as a producer with musicians in the Seattle area, he attended Western Washington University and received his B.A. in Humanities with an emphasis in history and religion. Through his studies (and in no small part due to GK Chesterton himself) he became Catholic in 2013.
In 2015 he began leading choir at his local parish in Snohomish and has since worked in ministry in various capacities as cantor, catechist, and music director.
In his free time Mr. Nesheim enjoys photography, composing and recording, and theological study. He hopes to deepen the desire to pursue what is good, true and beautiful with his students.
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