Toledo School for the Arts

Martin Porter is the founding Director of TSA. He has an extensive arts and education background, including several years as a high school band director, and arts administrator for both large and small organizations. He comes to TSA from the Lima Council for the Arts where he served as Executive Director. He has also served as Director of Public Events and Director of the Creative Arts Program for the College of Musical Arts at Bowling Green State University. As a trumpeter, he has shared the stage with the Four Tops, The Temptations, Johnny Mathis and many others. Locally Mr. Porter is frequently seen performing with the Toledo Symphony, Toledo Jazz Orchestra, Tower Brass Quintet and many other organizations.

Lindsay Williams attended the University of Toledo and earned her Bachelors Degree in Communication, graduating early and with honors in 2005. During her time at UT she was President of the UTTV Student Broadcasting Organization and held internships at K100 Cumulus Radio in Promotions, and Mobile Meals of Greater Toledo in Development. It was at Mobile Meals that she developed her passion for work in the non-profit arena. Since then, Lindsay has sharpened her Marketing and Development skills at United Way as a Loaned Executive, Women Blessing Women as Chair of the Marketing Committee and EPIC as a very active member of the Community Involvement Committee. In the event she manages to find an inkling of spare time between her and Mr. Porter’s very busy schedules, she enjoys dancing, time with friends and family, volunteering for various community organizations, fashion, crafts and reading. (top)

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Principal

Nick Mariano joins the TSA team after serving 10 years at Toledo Christian Schools. He has taught at every grade level K-12. Nick has served as an assistant elementary principal, assistant high school principal, and the admissions director. Prior to this he taught K – 8th grades in Philadelphia at a residential treatment center for children with severe behavioral issues.
Nick graduated from Cedarville University in 1998 with his bachelors in Education and a minor in Art. In 2006 he received his Masters in Educational Leadership and Administration from BGSU.
He lives in Oregon, Ohio with his wife, Paula and their two daughters.

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Artistic Director

David Saygers joined TSA as Artistic Director in 1999. He is an active musician and educator, and a former music professor of the University of Toledo, Bowling Green State University, the Tennessee Technological University and Heidelberg College. David also served as Coordinator of Music Education and Public Programs for the Toledo Museum of Art, has directed instrumental music programs for Trinity Lutheran School and the Toledo Catholic Diocese, and taught General Music for the Toledo Public Schools. He has performed throughout Europe and the U.S. both as a classical and a jazz musician. He performs locally with the Tower Brass Quintet and is a frequent music director for the Toledo Repertoire Theater.

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A graduate of the University of Toledo, Letha Ferguson has served within the Toledo community school movement since its inception in 1998. She joined the TSA administration as Assistant Artistic Director in August 2010. Her previous experiences include co-founding and serving as Educational Director of The Family Learning Center for seven years, perennially teaching an elective in Shakespeare to high school students. Ms Ferguson also taught at Imagine Schools Madison Avenue School of Arts for two years. Her experience with the fifth graders there led her to develop TSA’s After School Advantage Program, reaching out to fourth and fifth graders in the Uptown and Old West End neighborhoods. Ms. Ferguson received her Master’s degree from UT in Educational Administration and Supervision in 2005. When she has time to relax, she enjoys remodeling her Old West End home, bird watching, spending time with family, and recording “Soul Sister Radio”, a talk show on 88.3 FM Toledo Monday evenings.

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Born and raised in Wyoming, Laura Doles graduated with her BA in clarinet performance from Montana State University-Billings and earned her MM in music history from University of Oregon. Her thesis, “William Grant Still and the Problem of the Harlem Renaissance” earned her the Outstanding Graduate Student in Music History award. She began working for the John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts shortly after graduation and relocated to Bowling Green Ohio with her husband in 2006. She was the Administrative Assistant at The Music Schools of Northwest Ohio for two years and is currently the Assistant to the Artistic Director at TSA. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her new daughter, Gwynn. (top)

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Development Team

Dave Gierke is well known is Toledo from his many years as co-owner of Dave's Drum Depot and director of The Toledo Drum School in Toledo. A self-proclaimed Drum-Head from the age of 8, he toured the East coast with a popular show band before opening Dave's Drum Depot in 1991. Dave has served as percussion consultant for programs throughout Ohio including Defiance City Schools, Swanton City Schools and the Glassmen Drum and Bugle Corps. His "Rhythm Circles" program has been used by educators and music therapists throughout the United States. He has presented at the Ohio Music Educators Conference and the National Association of Music Therapists. Dave also designs programs for disadvantaged youth, preschools, educator in service training programs and corporate team building seminars.

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Vickie Werley joined the staff at TSA in the 2005/2006 school year as the Assistant to David Gierke, the Director of Development. Vickie served five years as Development Assistant for a local religious institution before she joined our staff. Her previous experience includes graphic design, office management and human resources functions.

Vickie graduated Magna cum Laude from Lourdes College with an emphasis on Business/ Marketing and History. Vickie is married to her husband John and has three children, Dan, Brian (Stephanie) and Matt (Sonya) and three adorable cats who all keep her busy. She also enjoys sewing, knitting and camping.

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Bethany Urbanski is the first TSA alumna to join our staff! Bethany earned her Bachelor of Arts in Dance from Point Park University (Pittsburgh, PA) and has a wide background in theatre and dance. She has toured with Hoctor's Dance Caravan as a choreographer and Caravan Kid Coordinator, and has also assisted at Co. Dance conventions. Bethany is an exciting addition to our dance faculty. She also serves in the Development Department as our Outreach Coordinator and takes care of booking our numerous ensembles for community performances. (top)

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School Office

A recent Graduate of Kent State University where she studied theatre and communications, Cheryl Darmon has been performing for many years in the Northeast Ohio. In addition to community theatre performances around the Cleveland/Akron area, Cheryl has also taught theatre to young children at various theatres in Cleveland. While at Kent State she also taught Toddlers and worked in the Undergraduate Studies office as an administrative assistant. She recently moved to Toledo and is thrilled to be a part of Toledo School for the Arts!

In addition to her time at TSA, Cheryl enjoys volunteering with her church, singing, dancing, enjoying nature, and spening time with family and friends.

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Monika Ortiz Schroeder graduated from Owens Community College with an Associate's Degree in Office Administration with High Honors. In her spare time, Mrs. Schroeder can be found on a soccer field, softball diamond, tennis court, golf course, and most recently singing on stage (something she never would have believed a year ago!). After reviewing many options, she decided the benefits that Toledo School for the Arts provided were just too enticing to ignore. She has been employed with TSA since November of 2000 and has reveled in the many challenges that a top-rated community school has provided. (top)

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Technology

Andy Parsons joins TSA with 10 years of experience in the technology field, primarily in an educational setting. He holds industry standard certifications with Novell, Microsoft and Apple. He has worked for schools in the Toledo area, sharpening his networking skills. Andy’s goal for TSA is to keep its students and staff on the cutting edge of technology.
Andy began his interest in technology at the age of 13 when a family friend took an interest in what was then considered just a hobby. He has transformed his hobby into a lifelong career and passion. His other interests include: computer gaming, movie trivia and his collection of animals.

Business Office

Kelley Allred graduated with a Bachelor of Science, Magna Cum Laude from Lourdes College in May 1994. She most recently held a position as Secondary Market Analyst with Sky Financial Group. Kelley holds an Ohio School Treasurer License.

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Cathy Bukowski, a native of Toledo is most proud of being a parent to her 3 children: Steven, Melanie and Dominic. She graduated from Start High School in 19XX. Cathy received an associate degree in computer programming from Owens Community College in 1996 graduating with honors. She is currently attending Owens working on an accounting degree.
Cathy has spent most of her career in the information technology field. She changed the focus of her career by working in various positions in both charter and parochial schools about 12 years ago. Cathy is currently working in the finance department as an assistant to the Treasurer, Kelley Allred, and backup lunchroom lady.

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Pam Langdon’s new role this year is that of Assistant to the Treasurer. She will be responsible for payroll as well as the EMIS Coordinator. Pam has Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Business from the University of Toledo and spent ten years in various accounting positions before joining TSA. She is happily married to Cliff, and proud parent of J.T., a TSA 6th Grader. Pam and her family enjoy travel and all things Harry Potter.

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Nurse

Lynn Zuercher joined the staff at TSA in 2000. Before coming to TSA, she worked as a staff nurse at Medical College Hospital and in the home care setting as a visiting nurse. In addition to her degree in nursing, Lynn has a Bachelor of Arts in Music from the University of Toledo. Lynn performs regularly in semi-professional and community orchestras in the Toledo area. At TSA she teaches bassoon to any student brave enough to tackle the instrument! (top)

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