Advanced Placement® Summer Institutes Instructor Bios

Kristy Seidel is a teacher at Suncoast High School in Riviera Beach, FL, and the founder of teachingrhetoric.com. She is co-authoring The Norton Guide to AP® Language: Writing & Skills and serves as a College Board consultant. Kristy has held various leadership roles at the AP® Summer Reading and is this year’s assistant chief reader for the AP® English Language and Composition Exam. She teaches in the International Baccalaureate program and examines for the IB English Literature exam. With 21 years of experience across diverse student populations, she holds a Master of Arts in Literature and is an adjunct at Palm Beach State College. In her free time, she enjoys judging competitive cheerleading, watching college football, and traveling.

Patricia Fox is a seasoned high school educator with 40 years of experience, specializing in tutoring college essay writing and serving as an AP® Consultant for the College Board, where she leads workshops nationwide. She has taught students across all grades and ability levels in English and mentored secondary education interns in collaboration with the University of Southern Maine. Patricia designed a Language of Film Studies course for her AP® Language workshops and became a mentor for AP® instructors in Fryeburg, Maine. She holds an M.A. in interdisciplinary studies focused on critical thinking and earned National Board Certification in 2010. She actively presents at educational conferences and enjoys photography, biking, and reading.

Joyce Herr, with over 40 years of experience teaching AP® English Literature and Freshman Composition, resides in Winston Salem, North Carolina. She led the AP® Vertical Team for Amarillo Independent School District, where she taught AP® English for 17 years. Before Texas, she taught at Syracuse University and Onondaga Community College. Currently, she is an adjunct instructor for Amarillo College, teaching Freshman English and serving as a mentor to AP® English teachers nationwide. For 17 years, Joyce has been a reader and table leader for the AP® English Literature Exam. Since 2000, she has been a lead consultant for College Board, presenting at AP® Summer Institutes and various professional development workshops.

Susan Barber teaches AP® English Literature at Midtown High School in Atlanta, Georgia, and is the College Board Advisor for AP® Literature. She's also an AP® reader and serves on the NCTE Secondary Steering Committee. Susan has led training sessions at NCTE, GCTE, and the Folger Shakespeare Library, and frequently conducts ELA workshops nationwide. Her work has been highlighted in the New York Times, The Washington Post, and Edutopia, and she is co-author of The Norton Guide to AP® Literature. Despite her accolades, Susan finds her greatest fulfillment in the daily experiences of teaching in E216, embracing both the beauty and chaos of the classroom. She shares insights with Brian Sztabnik at MuchAdoAboutTeaching.com.

Matt Romano has been teaching AP® Macroeconomics and AP® Microeconomics at Atlanta's Marist School since 2004. He became an AP® reader for Macroeconomics in 2008, served as a table leader from 2013-2018, and has been a question leader since 2019. As an endorsed College Board consultant, he is currently the high school co-chair of the AP® Macroeconomics Test Development Committee. Since spring 2020, he has recorded instructional videos for AP® Daily and AP® Live. Matt has also contributed to the CEE teacher resource manual and co-authored the Fast Track to a 5 manual for Mankiw’s Principles of Economics. He additionally teaches AP® Macroeconomics online through One Schoolhouse.

Lou Gallo teaches AP® US and European history at West High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, and also at Dwight Global in New York City. He has been teaching AP® history since 1996 and has participated in AP® Reading as a reader, table leader, and question leader since 2000. Gallo has been a College Board consultant for European History since 2001 and for US History since 2013, and he mentors other consultants. He has written test questions for organizations like ETS and Cengage Publishing. Lou received the Milken National Educator Award in 2003 and was named Knox County Teacher of the Year in 2008 and again in 2015. He was one of five North American teachers to run the Olympic torch for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Dan Hoppe has taught AP® U.S. Government and Politics and AP® Comparative Government since 2008, with a total of 23 years as a social studies teacher in Stevens Point and Green Bay, WI. He also teaches AP® U.S. History. As a College Board national consultant, he has presented workshops on these AP® courses since 2014 and is currently the Lead Consultant for AP® U.S. Government and Politics. Additionally, he has shared his expertise on using technology in social studies education at various national and state conferences. In recognition of his contributions, he received the Coca-Cola Distinguished Educator Award in 2015 and was named Wisconsin History Teacher of the Year in 2019 by the Gilder Lehrman Institute.

Dr. Stephen Meinhold is a Professor of Political Science at the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) and served as Chief Reader for the College Board’s AP® U.S. Government and Politics program from 2016 to 2020. With 25 years of teaching experience in United States Government and Politics at UNCW, he co-authored the book "Judicial Process: Law, Courts, and Politics in the United States." Dr. Meinhold has been actively involved with the AP® U.S. Government and Politics Program for two decades, taking on roles such as scoring essays, writing questions, and serving on the Curriculum Design and Assessment Committee. He is also a member of the College Board’s National Academic Assembly (2020-2023).

Kenneth H. Keller is a retired AP® Human Geography teacher from George Walton Comprehensive High School in Marietta, GA. He taught the course since its inception in 2000 and has attended every AP® Human Geography Reading since 2002, currently serving as Question Leader. Ken has led summer institutes and workshops for teachers since 2004 and received the National Council for Geographic Education Distinguished Teaching award in 2004. He also taught as an adjunct professor at Western Connecticut State University and held leadership roles in the National Council for Geographic Education and the Connecticut Council of Social Studies. Ken co-founded iScore5 LLC, an AP® prep app, and co-authored Bedford, Freeman & Worth’s textbook on Human Geography. He and his wife, Lisa, moved to Georgia in 2013, bringing their New Yorker roots and Mets caps with them.

Maria Vita is a social studies and psychology teacher at Penn Manor High School in Millersville, Pennsylvania, where she started the Advanced Placement Psychology program. She maintains a laboratory with live rats for ethical research in learning and has expanded the program, requiring additional staff. She has served on the TOPSS Committee as chair and is currently serving on the College Board's Test Development Committee. She is a recipient of the APA TOPSS Excellence in Teaching Award (2012), a finalist for Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year (2019), and a recipient of the APA STP Mary Margaret Moffett Memorial Teaching Excellence Award (2023).

Steve Jones has taught AP® and introductory psychology for over twenty years in Durham, North Carolina. He has served on the American Psychological Association’s Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools committee and received national excellence awards in high school psychology teaching from TOPSS (2016) and the AP®A’s Society for the Teaching of Psychology (2020). Jones has also been part of the College Board’s AP® Psychology Test Development Committee and has presented at various national conferences. He is a National Board Certified teacher in Adolescence and Young Adulthood/Social Studies-History, co-founded the blog Teaching High School Psychology, and tweets as @highschoolpsych. Steve enjoys crossword puzzles, baseball, and travel with his family.

Steve Cox is an AP® World and European History teacher with 37 years of experience in middle and high school. A nationally board-certified educator for over 20 years, he has received numerous accolades for his teaching. Since the inaugural year of AP® World History, Steve has served as a reader and table leader, significantly contributing to its launch in South Carolina, where his students represented 91% of the state's exams that first year. As a College Board-endorsed AP® Consultant since 2007, he has led seminars across the U.S. and internationally. He has also served on various curriculum and textbook committees and was the Department Chair at Dutch Fork High School from 2005-2022, recently being inducted into its Hall of Fame.

Lou Gallo teaches AP® US and European history at West High School in Knoxville, Tennessee, and also at Dwight Global in New York City. He has been teaching AP® history since 1996 and has participated in AP® Reading as a reader, table leader, and question leader since 2000. Gallo has been a College Board consultant for European History since 2001 and for US History since 2013, and he mentors other consultants. He has written test questions for organizations like ETS and Cengage Publishing. Lou received the Milken National Educator Award in 2003 and was named Knox County Teacher of the Year in 2008 and again in 2015. He was one of five North American teachers to run the Olympic torch for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Kenny Moore, born and raised in Waycross, GA, graduated from Ware Co. High School and earned a BSED in Math Education from the University of Georgia, where he later received a Master’s and an Educational Specialist degree. He and his wife Teresa recently celebrated their 46th anniversary and are proud parents of Kanada and Kaleb, and grandparents to Abby, Cason, and Cooper. Kenny started teaching and coaching at Jefferson High in 1976 and held positions at Perry and Charlton Co. High School before moving to LaGrange, GA in 1989. He has taught AP® Calculus for 34 years, received numerous awards, and has led workshops across the U.S. and in China.

Jill Westerlund is a computer science instructor at the University of Alabama (UA), teaching undergraduate CS students and pre-service education majors pursuing a CS certificate endorsement. She supports K-12 CS education through grant projects. In 2017, she was named Alabama’s Aspirations in Computing Educator of the Year by NCWIT. Jill has served on the College Board’s AP® CS Principles as both a reader and committee member from 2018 to 2023, and she currently consults for AP® CS A and reviews CS syllabuses. In 2023, she was on the College Board’s AP® Educator Advisory Committee on Generative AI. Jill enjoys knitting and quilting and lives in Homewood, Alabama, and Farmersville, Texas, with her husband, Eric, and their basset hound, Louie.

Andy Kuemmel has been a key figure in the AP® Computer Science Principles program from the beginning. As a first member of the Test Development Committee, he taught AP® CS Principles as a Pilot Instructor at West High School in Madison, WI, and developed the district-wide CSP curriculum. Andy has authored several College Board documents, including the CS Principles Course Planning Guide and Practice Exam Solution explanations. He’s been a reader and table leader for CS Principles readings, a question writer for ETS, and moderated the College Board CS Principles Teacher Community. Additionally, he serves as a Faculty Associate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and was part of a team that received a $1 million NSF grant to increase computer science teachers in Wisconsin high schools.

Cassidy Schatz is a dedicated mathematics educator in Orlando, Florida, with over ten years of experience teaching Advanced Placement (AP®) courses. She actively explores innovative teaching strategies and curates valuable resources. When the College Board launched AP® Precalculus, Cassidy joined as a consultant, bringing her expertise to support the program. She was also part of the Question Team during the inaugural AP® Precalculus Reading, gaining insight into the assessment process. Her journey has deepened her passion for AP® Precalculus, and she is committed to empowering fellow educators by sharing knowledge and fostering a community to help them succeed and unlock their students' potential.

Julie Harrison is a gifted Mathematics Teacher with 20 years of experience, including teaching AP® Calculus and Honors Precalculus at ELHS, where she also served as Department Chair. Currently, at Spelman College in Atlanta, GA, she is a College Board-endorsed consultant for AP® Precalculus and AP® Calculus. Julie has presented workshops at various educational levels and has contributed to curriculum writing across multiple platforms. Since Spring 2022, she has played a key role in developing the AP® Precalculus course, serving on the Development Committee and as a Lead Consultant. Passionate about increasing student access to AP® Mathematics, she finds the AP® Precalculus course content revolutionary for student opportunities.

Erika Hettinger has taught math for the past 31 years in California. She has focused on increasing access to AP for all students, particularly those for whom taking AP classes has never crossed their radar. She is very excited to share this special “Access Edition” of AP Precalculus to address this diversity. In addition to being an AP consultant, Erika has had the opportunity to do professional development all over the US for a variety of math initiatives and to participate in the AP Precalculus Reading. Outside of teaching, Erika and her husband enjoy traveling, Pickleball, spending time with their four (mostly adult) children and directing a summer camp each year for children in the foster care system.

Dr. Martha Cantrell taught high school mathematics for 39 years, specializing in AP® Calculus for over 30 years and Advanced Algebra/Trigonometry and Precalculus for more than 25 years. She has led AP® Calculus workshops for the Georgia Department of Education, served as an AP® Reader from 2007 to 2020, and was an Early Table Leader for the first AP® Precalculus Reading. Additionally, she consulted for the National Math and Science Institute, leading AP® Calculus study sessions across Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida. Since 2008, Dr. Cantrell has been the District Gifted Program Coordinator for Habersham County Schools, expanding advanced course offerings and enhancing services for gifted students.

David Wilcox holds the Eileen Mullady Distinguished Teaching Chair at The Lawrenceville School. In his second year, he received the Robert B. Ritter Jr. award for excellence in academic nurturing. For 22 years, he's been involved with the College Board as a rubric team member, table leader, and reader for the AP® Statistics Reading. David is also an AP®SI and workshop instructor, presenting at various conferences. He co-authored the 5th edition of “Multiple-Choice and Free-Response Questions in Preparation for the AP® Statistics Examination” and will be the sole author of the upcoming 6th edition in 2026. David teaches AP® Statistics and Honors Calculus-Based Probability and holds a BS in Mathematics and two master's degrees from the University of South Carolina.

Patricia Mote has over thirty years of experience teaching high school biology and has served as department chair. Currently, she is a Senior Lecturer and Lab Instructor for Human Anatomy and Physiology at Georgia State University-Perimeter College. She holds degrees in Microbiology, Genetics, and Science Education from the University of Georgia. Patricia has been involved in the AP® Biology Exam Reading since 1992 and has held various leadership roles. She has received multiple awards, including Teacher of the Year and the Siemens Award for her work with minority students. Additionally, she has edited textbooks and published articles in microbiology journals, enhancing science education throughout her career.

Fred Vital has been teaching Chemistry at Darien High School in Connecticut since 1999. He has a strong commitment to Advanced Placement education, having participated in AP® Reading as a Reader, Question Leader, and Table Leader for over 16 years. He has also served on the Test Development Committee for 5 years, the AP®AC Steering Committee for 2 years, and as an AP®SI instructor since 2008, contributing to Pre-AP® Chemistry course development. In 2010, he was honored as the NEIC Connecticut Secondary School Chemistry Teacher of the Year. Outside of teaching, Fred enjoys relaxing by the Connecticut shoreline and savoring gourmet food and wine with family and friends.

Carly Borken has been teaching secondary school science and geography since 2006, specializing in AP® Environmental Science and AP® Human Geography, along with biology, chemistry, and marine science. She taught for 15 years at Taft School in Watertown, CT, before spending the last two years at Greens Farms Academy in Westport, CT. Carly has served as Sustainability Coordinator at both schools and is currently the 11th Grade Dean. Since 2018, she's graded the AP®ES exam for the College Board, led tables, and contributed to the 4th edition of Friedland and Reylea’s AP® Environmental Science textbook. An AP® Consultant and NMSI coach, she also balances her career with family life with her husband, an organic vegetable farmer, and their two active kids.

Dr. Patrick Polley has been involved with the College Board and Educational Testing Service in the Advanced Placement Physics program since 1987. His career includes grading exams and creating grading rubrics, and he served as Chief Reader for six years, from 2000 to 2005. He authored the original AP® Physics laboratory manual in 2003 and contributed to the AP® Physics 1 and 2 lab manuals. His Summer Institutes focus on integrating laboratory work across all AP® Physics courses (Physics 1, Physics 2, C Mechanics, C Electricity and Magnetism). He earned his Ph.D. in experimental atomic and molecular physics from the University of Florida in 1985 and has been teaching physics at Beloit College since 1990.

David is in his 28th year as a public school teacher, having earned a BA from UNC-Chapel Hill and an MA from Penn State, both in art history. He holds an Art K-12 teaching license from UNC-Greensboro and currently teaches at Indian Land High School in Lancaster, SC. Since 2006, he has taught AP® Art History (AP®AH) and has been an AP® Reader since 2009. In 2015, he led his first workshop as an AP® Consultant, finding great rewards in providing advice and encouragement to fellow teachers. David is also motivated to make changes and learn from others during these collaborative experiences.

Terry Eder is a retired choral conductor and music educator with over 40 years of experience. Currently, he teaches AP® music theory at Lovejoy High School in Lucas, Texas. As a College Board Consultant, he has led numerous AP® workshops and served as a reader for the AP® Music Theory exam. He developed a one-day workshop on vertical teams in music theory and authored an article on sight-singing strategies. Eder was co-chair of the College Board AP® Music Theory test development committee and contributed to the 2014 National Standards in the Arts. He holds degrees in Music Education from Texas Christian University and a Doctorate in Choral Conducting from the University of Oklahoma.

William Lee has taught Latin for 24 years in Texas Public Schools. He has served 10 years as Communications Chair, National Committee Secretary, and Certamen Chair for the National Junior Classical League, and 3 years as Chair of the American Classical League’s DEI Committee. Currently, he is one of the State Co-Chairs of the Texas State Junior Classical League, President-Elect for the Texas Classical Association, and serves on the National Latin Exam’s Writing and Steering Committee, and the AP® Latin Development Committee. William has also been a Reader and Leader for AP® Latin. His accolades include the 2019 Society of Classical Studies Excellence in Teaching Award and 2023 ACTFL National Language Teacher of the Year.

Kris Campos has been a Spanish teacher at Cedar Park High School near Austin, Texas, since 2008, where she also serves as the Department Chair for Languages Other Than English and the Sponsor of the Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica. Before relocating to Texas, she taught for a decade at Topeka West High School in Kansas. With 25 years of experience teaching AP® Spanish Language and Culture, she has also instructed all levels from Spanish I to AP® Spanish Literature. Kris has participated in the AP® Reading since 2004 in various roles, including Question Leader. An AP® Consultant and Mentor, she has presented workshops at conferences and mentored new AP® teachers. She holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s from Kansas State University.