HELLO!

VARUN Bhatia (CO-Founder / Middle School Guide)

My professional career has taken me through amazing opportunities at PNC Bank, Scotts Miracle-Gro, and JPMorgan Chase, among others.

I have worked in investment banking (mergers and acquisitions), corporate strategy, corporate finance, and, most recently, as a project manager for a Machine Learning team.

And now, I’m a Guide at Acton - and I wouldn’t change it for the world! The opportunity to help young learners grow through education and learn real-world skills is what I’m most passionate about.

My bachelors degree is from Ohio State and MBA from University of Michigan.

Connect with me on Linkedin or Twitter or Medium.

AMY (Discovery Studio -Upper ELEMENTARY GUIDE)

I have spent my whole career looking for ways to nurture curiosity, independence, and creativity in kids, and my journey has only just begun. 

After obtaining a Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Old Dominion University, I worked in preschools and as a nanny for a decade before going back to school. In 2016, I received a Master’s in Social Work and worked as a mental health therapist for kids, teens, and adults for 5 years. I am an EMDR-trained clinician with additional training and experience with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Motivational Interviewing, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Play Therapy. I specialize in the treatment of trauma, anxiety, and grief, and I take pride in my ability to tailor treatment for every client's needs. When I learned about Acton Academy from a podcast, I was inspired. Many of my clients were students who struggled to manage the stress and anxiety of a typical school setting. I stepped away from the mental health field to be part of the solution for these students, instead of just the treatment.

In my free time, I enjoy hiking, creating miniatures, and reading good books with a cat (or two) on my lap. 

STEPH (SPARK MONTESSORI GUIDE)

Steph Richardson is a dedicated early childhood educator with over a decade of experience, specializing in both Montessori and Reggio Emilia approaches. Her passion for nurturing children's growth has led her to develop her own unique hybrid curriculum called "Reggessori," which combines the strengths of both philosophies. Steph holds a Diploma in Early Childhood Education and Care from Australia, as well as a Montessori Education certification, and has spent years fostering learning environments where children can explore, create, and grow in confidence and capability.

Steph was a prior Spark Guide from October - February before leaving for a Montessori consulting role. Prior to that, she served as a Lead Montessori Teacher and Reggio Specialist at Villa Montessori. Her expertise in creating open-ended, child-led learning environments helped inspire both students and teachers to embrace creativity and curiosity. She has also worked as a curriculum coordinator, developing lesson plans tailored to each child's unique developmental needs.

Steph's educational journey extends across multiple countries, having worked in both the United States and Australia. Her global experience includes positions as a lead teacher, kinder assistant educator, and program director. With a background in health and physical education, Steph incorporates holistic development into her teaching, ensuring learners grow not only academically but also physically and emotionally.

Steph has two beautiful Australian shepherds - Moxi and Bundji. They were both greatly loved by the Eagles during her time at Acton.

CARE (SPARK REggio Guide)

After a 2-year hiatus from teaching, I am over the moon to not only return to the classroom, but to do so at Acton Academy.

I earned a BS in Education from The Ohio State University. Since then, I’ve taken graduate classes at University of California Riverside, University of California Los Angeles, Copper Mountain College, Cal State San Bernardino, University of Connecticut, and The Ohio State University. Such is the meandering path of a lifelong learner.

Over the years, my classrooms included a variety of students as both special needs and gifted student clusters were consistently placed in my classes. I have worked with the children of our military during wartime, across socio-economic groups and across state lines.

I developed a reputation for and an ability to reach the ‘quirky’ learner; children who didn’t necessarily succeed with a traditional curriculum delivery practice. That skill proved imperative when we became parents. Our children, Hannah and Uriah, navigated their education through an autistic lens. Both are graduates of The Ohio State University.

While my heart is in the classroom, I spent several years managing various home businesses, mostly in the wine industry. This required recruiting, screening and supervising consultants across the country while managing a customer base of my own. I planned and executed small events for clients and national training events for business partners.

Outside of the classroom, I enjoy DIY projects with Rob, my husband. Football season is a favorite as we cheer on our Buckeyes. We appreciate good food and interesting books regardless of the season.

ELISE (Growth Studio - Lower Elementary Guide)

Hey there! My name is Elise Barbour, and I am so excited for this upcoming school year at Acton! 

I received my Bachelor’s in Inclusive Early Childhood Education with a generalist endorsement from Bowling Green State University. This degree includes a license to evaluate kids ages birth through 3 for special education services, to teach PreK through 3rd special education and with the addition of my generalist endorsement, I can teach general education PreK through 5th grade. I worked in Southwestern City Schools for two years; my first year being a 2nd and 3rd grade Intervention Specialist, and my second year was spent as a 3rd and 4th grade split classroom General Education teacher. 

I am grateful for my experience in the public education system, but I was looking for something more fulfilling that catered to the learning needs of the students. I discovered Acton through a coworker at my previous school and upon my research I fell in love with the concept. I’ve always felt a pull to be in a Montessori setting; and Acton offers even more.

In my free time I enjoy cooking/baking, swimming (or exercising of some kind….my newest obsession as of right now is roller skating!), traveling, reading with my cats, and going for walks (especially with my mom)! 

I, truly, couldn’t be more excited to be starting my journey at Acton. I’m looking forward to meeting all of you!

LAURA SANDEFER (ACTON CO-FOUNDER)

Laura lived on both US coasts and in between as a child, then settled into Vanderbilt University for her undergraduate studies in the College of Arts and Science. After being awarded the highly competitive Walter Wattles Fellowship at Lloyd’s of London, Laura worked in the aviation insurance industry in New York City.

Deciding to follow her calling into the world of education, Laura returned to Nashville and earned her Master of Education at Peabody College. This led her to her work at the Oklahoma Arts Institute, creating fine arts education programs for teachers and talented high school students.

Laura married Jeff Sandefer and is the happy mother of Sam and Charlie and step-mother to Taite. It is the inspiration of these children that led Laura and Jeff to co-found Acton Academy.

Her greatest hero is her mother who was a Master Teacher. Her wisest mentor is her father who sent her off to college with two words of advice: "Be curious."

JEFF SANDEFER (ACTON CO-FOUNDER)

Jeff Sandefer lives a dual life as an entrepreneur and a Socratic Guide. As an entrepreneur, he founded his first company at age 16 and went on to found or co-found seven successful businesses. As a Socratic teacher at the University of Texas, Jeff’s students five times voted him the school’s Outstanding Teacher and Businessweek named him one of the top Entrepreneurship professors in America.

Jeff went on to co-found the Acton School of Business, an MBA program perennially ranked by the Princeton Review among the best in the nation. In 2012 The Economist honored him as one of the top fifteen Business School professors in the world.

Jeff is a graduate of the Harvard Business School, where he served for over twenty years on the school’s governing committees. He was a longtime director of the Philanthropy Roundtable and National Review magazine and one of the youngest members ever elected to the Texas Business Hall of Fame.