Homeschool Connections

Aquinas Writing Advantage

Biography

By

Vania Kent

AQUINAS WRITING ADVANTAGE

High School Writing Instructor

Vania Kent, PhD, ABD

Vania Kent is an experienced writer and editor with a history of publication that includes drafting, rewriting, and reformatting; preparing texts for publication (editing for accuracy, clarity, spelling, grammar, consistency, format, and punctuation); and ensuring that all writing meets research and style guide standards, including Chicago/Turabian, MLA, and Harvard styles. Ms. Kent has contributed to many articles, conference papers, and books with her writing and editing expertise.

Ms. Kent earned a Bachelor of Arts and Humanities with Specialisms in Religious Studies and German, an MA in Christian Spirituality with a Research Concentration, and she is currently working on her PhD in Theology in the Catholic faculty at Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz.

Ms. Kent also serves as a substitute teacher for middle school students, including 6th to 8th grade critical thinking, science, and mathematics. While most of her time is spent analyzing the texts of the 13th-century mystics of Helfta, she also enjoys reading historical novels, baking sourdough, crocheting, and tending to her absurd number of houseplants. She, her spouse, their two precious children, and two naughty but impossibly adorable dogs live in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

Meet Ms. Kent

Learn with Ms. Kent

Check the current LIVE catalog to see Ms. Kent’s LIVE course offerings and sign up for her courses. Ms. Kent also teaches the following recorded courses in the Word Mastery Skill Building series.

Word Mastery Skill Building 2: Word Warrior Level (MS WM-2) with Vania Kent
Word Mastery Skill Building 3 for Middle School Students (MS WM-3) with Vania Kent
Word Mastery Skill Building 4 for Middle School Students (MS WM-4) with Vania Kent

By

Sara Keefe

AQUINAS WRITING ADVANTAGE

High School Writing Instructor
Assessment Coordinator

Sara Keefe, MA

Mrs. Sara Keefe earned a Bachelor of Arts in English Education from Michigan State University and a Master of Arts in Teaching Reading and Language Arts from Oakland University in Rochester Hills, Michigan. She brings over 30 years of experience teaching in traditional classrooms and homeschooling co-ops, working as a private tutor both in person and online, and homeschooling her four children. She currently serves as a LIVE teacher for the 9 and 10 Series and also holds the role of Writing Assessment Coordinator for high school. In addition, she has served in an administrative capacity on the leadership team for Aquinas Writing Advantage. Outside of the classroom, Mrs. Keefe is an active member of her parish, St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church. She enjoys baking and spending time outdoors, appreciating the natural beauty of Northern Michigan, where she lives with her family.

Meet Mrs. Keefe

Learn with Mrs. Keefe

Check the current LIVE catalog to see Mrs. Keefe’s LIVE course offerings and sign up for her courses.

By

Natalie M. Schira

AQUINAS WRITING ADVANTAGE

Middle School Writing Instructor
Writing Support Specialist

Natalie M. Schira

Miss Natalie Meyer Schira, BA, proudly serves as a teacher of middle school English and writing. She graduated from Saint Mary’s College Notre Dame in 2012 with a major in English Literature and a minor in secondary education.

Since then, Miss Schira has dedicated herself to Catholic education, joyfully serving nine years teaching English in a Catholic high school in Iowa. Miss Schira has also been featured in publications and with awards and recognition for teaching and inspiration.

With a love of language and teaching, she is committed to cultivating students’ academic and emotional development and using her teaching credentials to collaborate with and support families and students. Miss Schira’s greatest loves include Christ, commas, communication, caffeine, and her beloved Chicago Cubs while living a life grounded in faith, joy, and opportunity.

To quote one of her favorite pieces of wisdom from her mother, “When life gives you hold music, dance.” Here at Aquinas Writing Advantage, Miss Schira is beginning her sixth year as a LIVE course teacher for the 6/7 and 7/8 Series middle school writing courses. She is also the Middle School Writing Support Specialist.

Meet Ms. Schira

Learn with Ms. Schira

Check the current LIVE catalog to see Ms. Natalie Schira’s LIVE course offerings and sign up for her courses.

By

Donna Graziose, MA, MS

AQUINAS WRITING ADVANTAGE

Content Manager

Donna Graziose, MA, MS

Donna Graziose, MA, MS, is a teacher with experience teaching across all levels—elementary through college—and a professional book editor for the Simplified Writing series of books and Word Mastery Skill Building workbooks. For many years, she has been working as an academic librarian for universities in New York, teaching writing, literature, research methods, and art history. Donna has also enjoyed teaching local homeschoolers for over 10 years in writing, literature, and history.

Donna, a homeschooling mom, is grateful for the homeschooling lifestyle where she can focus her children’s education on faith and family.

Here at Homeschool Connections’ Aquinas Writing Advantage program, Donna is an Instructor Access (IA) grading services instructor for the 7/8 Series Middle School and the 9 Series High School Foundational writing courses and the Advanced Punctuation and Grammar course.

Meet Mrs. Graziose

Learn with Mrs. Graziose

GET INSTRUCTOR ACCESS AND LEARN WITH MRS. GRAZIOSE IN THE FOLLOWING MIDDLE SCHOOL UNLIMITED ACCESS RECORDED COURSES:

  • MS 7/8-1, Simplified Writing for Middle School 1: Foundations of Composition I
  • MS 7/8-2, Simplified Writing for Middle School 2: Introduction to Essays and Papers I
  • MS 7/8-3  Simplified Writing for Middle School 3: Writing the Excellent Essay
  • MS 7/8-4, Simplified Writing for Middle School 4: Writing Form and Style

GET INSTRUCTOR ACCESS AND LEARN WITH MRS. GRAZIOSE IN THE FOLLOWING HIGH SCHOOL UNLIMITED ACCESS RECORDED COURSES:

  • HS 9-1, High School Writing Essentials 1: Essential Punctuation and Grammar I
  • HS 9-2, High School Simplified Writing 1: Strong Foundational Writing Skills
  • HS 9-3, High School Writing Essentials 2: Essential Paragraphs & Essay Writing
  • HS 9-4, High School Simplified Writing 2: Beyond the Five-Paragraph Essay
  • HS X-5, High School Writing Essentials 5: Punctuation & Grammar II

By

Bonnie Donlon

AQUINAS WRITING ADVANTAGE

Assistant Director for Middle School

Bonnie Donlon

Mrs. Bonnie Donlon earned a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Literature from the University of Virginia. She taught writing at the Charlottesville Writing Center summer camp, then taught multiple subjects at The  Covenant School in Charlottesville, Virginia, with Pre-K through 4th-grade students, including reading and writing in the classroom and in the after-school programs. Mrs. Donlon also co-taught with her husband for the elementary level religious education program at St. Thomas Aquinas parish. When not teaching and grading student work, Mrs. Donlon enjoys reading, exploring the natural world with her children, and spending time with her extended family, including her sister-in-law, Mrs. Eleanor Nicholson, who is the High School Victorian Literature Instructor for Homeschool Connections.

Mrs. Donlon is the Assistant Director for Middle School with the Aquinas Writing Advantage program; teaches the LIVE 6/7 Series Middle School Writing courses, and is the Middle School Assessment Coordinator.

Meet Mrs. Donlon

Learn with Mrs. Donlon

Check the current LIVE catalog to see Mrs. Donlon’s LIVE course offerings and sign up for her courses.