Principal & Vice Principal
Rebeca Venegas
Principal
24 years at Calibre
My name is Rebeca Venegas and I am the Principal at Calibre Academy. I was born and raised in Mexico City and moved to Arizona in the summer of 1996.
I have a teacher Diploma from Colegio Guadalupe and undergraduate degree in Accounting from Universidad la Salle. I have also taken several online courses through Rio Salado. Taking online courses allowed me to take several classes at the same time and the flexibility to work at my own pace.
In 1985 I started working as an English as a second language teacher for undergraduate students at Universidad del Tepeyac. I later taught English as a second language to Elementary and Middle School Students in Mexico City.
In 1991 I worked in the accounting field for Pricewaterhouse for a year but realized my passion was teaching not accounting so I went back to teaching.
In Mexico I also taught English (from beginning levels to conversational) to Executive Employees in companies like American Express, Geo New York Life, Colgate, Mancera Ernest & Young and the Department of Communications and Transportation.
I began working for Learning Matters Educational group in 1999. I taught Spanish and Global Government to middle school and high school students. Later on, I was given the opportunity to teach Math to the same group of students.
In 2008 I became the Principal for Calibre Academy Glendale and in 2015 I was offered the position of Principal at Calibre Academy Surprise.
I have been married for 27 years and have two sons. I enjoy spending time with my family and traveling.
Sharon Kaplan
Vice Principal
18 years at Calibre
My name is Sharon Kaplan and I am the Vice Principal at Calibre Academy. I was born and raised in El Paso, Texas and moved to Surprise in 2001.
I have a bachelor of Science in Family Studies from The University of Arizona and a Masters of Education from Lesley University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I later went to University of Phoenix, as an online student, to take the necessary classes to get my administration certificate. I really enjoyed the flexibility of taking these classes at my own pace and time.
Before getting my masters degree I worked as a director of an after school program. Once I got my masters I worked as a 1st grade teacher at Fletcher Heights Elementary School in Peoria, AZ.
I began working for Carden/Calibre in 2005. I taught 1st grade, 3rd grade, and was the Title 1 Coordinator before becoming the Vice Principal in 2014.
Not only do I love working at Calibre but I also loved being a parent here. Both my children attended Calibre from preschool – 8th grade. My son, Jonah, is now 18 and my daughter, Jessica, is now 16. I also live with my husband, Jonathan and my 4 dogs.
Teachers & Staff
Rachelle Quinton
Administrative Assistants
Jodi Barahona
Administrative Assistants
Kim Eberlein
Resource
Cindy Riskas
Speech Therapy
Michelle Botteri / Zachery Labarbera / Rose Bullard / Lisa Roach
Extended Care
Harmony Olson
Nutrition Specialist
Julie Candelaria / Veira Freesh
Pre-K Teacher/Aide
Denise Leadabrand
Title I Coach
Robert LaBarbera / Maria Villegas / Manny Garcia
Facilities
Rick Klein
P.E./Athletic Director
Library
Stephanie Marciniak
Art
Kristina Brilhante
Technology
Ronnie Fredrickson
Music
Pre-K
Rose Bullard
Teacher and extended care
Julie Candelaria
Ashley Spittle
Aide
Krystal Miles-Mora
Aide and extended care
Kindergarten
Sharon Dewey
Virginia Guzman
Stacie Kopa
Cassady Lewis
Aide
Debra Sulivn
Aide
Maria Madigral
Aide
1st Grade
Stephanie Peterson
Cheryl Swanson
Angel Ortega
Aide
Shahla Latifnia
2nd Grade
Monica Mitri
Brenda Rubin
Dawn Hale
3rd Grade
Jennifer Armstrong
Connie Clemmer
Angel Mejia
Aide and extended care
Zeth Napier
Aide and extended care
4th Grade
Clara Delise
Connie Harkness
5th Grade
Tracy Hill
Kristina Perkins
Jake Freddette
6th Grade
Melissa Nevarez
Math & Science
Trevor Barber
ELA & Social Studies
7th Grade
Kayla Renckly
Science
Linda Felix
8th Grade
Samantha Frost
Social Studies
Tyhanna Harrison
Math Teacher
Specials
Kristina Brilhante
Technology
John Givens
PE/Athletic Director
Claudia Yakin
Art
Tyler Graves
Music
Leah Bowers
6th-8th Grade Specials and Gifted
Remote Learning
Brooke Wakeham
Suzanne Wiser
Administrative Assistants
Rachelle Quinton
Tammy Fuller
Enrollment Specialist
Aubrey Clement
MTSS
Denise Leadabrand
MTSS coordinator
Ruby Lather
Lisa Roach
Elizabeth Meltzer
Resource
Lindsay Perez
Resource Director
Jordan Koerber
Cindy Riskas
Speech
Zachary Dominguez
Support Staff/Extended Care
Michelle Boterri
Health Aide
Jennifer Crosby
Lunch
Kira Clauss
Lunch Coordinator
Kim Wavrick
Facilities
Arturo Bringas
Head of Facilities
Robert Ramirez
Noel Beltran
Maria Villegas
Manny Garcia
Noe Avila
IT
Waylon Marble
Head of IT
Nicholas De La Torre
Right to Review Teacher Qualifications
Click the following link to learn more: Calibre Parent Notice