MEET THE FACULTY& STAFF
Megan Durling
Head of School,
Liberal Arts & Sciences Teacher
M.A. in Liberal Arts, St. John's College
B.A. in Environmental Studies & Anthropology, Mount Holyoke College
Megan arrived at East Burke School in 2019 after an inch-by-inch Google Maps search for a small-scale, progressive high school in New England. Above all else, she was seeking a learning community that rejects the factory model of education and treats each individual, first and foremost, as a human being deserving dignity, autonomy, and love. She also had spent too long trapped in deserts and in cities, and she wanted to come home to the mountains. At EBS, Megan found what she was seeking and more. In addition to having small enough classes to develop strong relationships with each of her students, she has enjoyed the freedom to rediscover and share a number of her passions. Having led courses in topics ranging from great books and ancient languages to wilderness survival and permaculture, she is grateful to have found a place where both intellectual and physical forms of work are valued. Prior to her move to the Kingdom, Megan had spent twelve years exploring America's cultural and natural richness while teaching across the curriculum and throughout the country. After earning her B.A. in Anthropology and Environmental Studies from Mount Holyoke College, she began her education career with Teach for America in the Mississippi Delta. She then took a brief hiatus for graduate school at St. John's College, where she met her future husband and teaching partner Nathan, before relocating to teach science and philosophy in Phoenix, AZ. Megan now lives in Newark with Nathan, their daughter Moira, and two dogs. Outside of EBS, Megan can be found gardening, hiking, foraging, and training in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Nathan Bradshaw
Assistant Head of School,
Liberal Arts & Sciences Teacher
M.A. in Liberal Arts, St. John's College
A.B. in English, Davidson College
Born and raised in Western North Carolina, Nathan has spent over fifteen years trying to pay forward the work of his own amazing teachers. At Davidson College, the generous John M. Belk scholarship allowed him to earn an A.B. in English and once steal the ball from Stephen Curry. While earning his M.A.L.A. at St. John's College, he met Megan, and following her to EBS has proven one of the most demanding and rewarding choices of his life. In his early career, Nathan taught, tutored, directed, or coached every level from third grade through college and adult learners. He has been an award-winning community theatre actor and director, a published author of plays and poetry, a coffee master, a cheese affineur, an audiobook narrator and producer, a school board minutes clerk, a contra dancer, and Santa Claus. No matter how many other hats he tries on, though, teaching has always been his greatest passion. Here at EBS, Nathan gets to be everything he wanted to be as a child: Shakspearean actor and shaker of apple trees, Euclidean geometer and utility repairman, chemist and karaoke host, French philosopher and funky soul food fry cook, Vonnegut vaudevillian and Vermont historian, brewer, baker, ballplayer, and bookmaker. More than simply bringing him joy, all of these activities help give a generation of young people the skills and the spirit to be stronger than the crises the world will thrust upon them and to leave their communities better than they have found them. To range among so many passions teaching alongside his wife, raising their daughter and chasing their dogs here in the Kingdom--as Vonnegut reminds us to ask: if this isn't nice, what is?
Aimee Rozum
Mental Health Counselor,
Art Teacher (ATR-BC, LMHC, LCHMC)
M.A. in Marital and Family Therapy/ Clinical Art Therapy, Loyola Marymount University
M.A. in Pastoral Studies, Loyola Marymount University
B.G.S. in History, Philosophy, & Near East Studies, University of Michigan
Aimee’s journey to the NEK was a most fortuitous one for EBS. Her early career was spent in the Mid-West and on the West Coast: after graduating from the University of Michigan with a combined degree in History, Near East Studies, and Philosophy, Aimee kicked around Los Angeles for a while. While there, she managed bookstores and completed graduate school at Loyola Marymount University, twice. She has been a counselor since 1997, working with humans of all ages and with a special interest in adolescence. She also loves to teach and serves as an adjunct instructor and supervisor for the Graduate Program in Expressive Therapies and Mental Health Counseling at Lesley University in Boston. The pandemic brought Aimee and her family to Vermont, where she has now lived with her husband John Rozum, two young adult children, three horses, and assorted house pets since 2021. After a year of working via telehealth, she found herself missing face-to-face work and began volunteering at EBS as a teacher of emotional regulation and wellness skills. Her efforts at EBS were so beneficial that she was soon hired as an on-site mental health counselor, more affectionately referred to here as the school’s “therapy goddess.” This year, she is adding the role of American folk art teacher to her repertoire and sharing her passion for traditional crafts with EBS students. When not teaching, counseling, or cleaning up horse manure, Aimee spends her time reading and exploring fiber arts (knitting, spinning, felting, and quilting), both with great enthusiasm.
Karen Noyes
Administrative Assistant
Karen has a long and proud history with the little blue schoolhouse. Having lived in Burke for most of her childhood, she attended what is now East Burke School many years ago when it was a public grade school. Her father before her did the same. With such a legacy here, Karen feels a special bond with the school that few people can claim. Karen went on from grade school to complete high school and has taken many college and adult learning classes to develop skills including beginner sign language, Excel, credit union accounting, customer service, and governmental accounting. Her early work history includes over eleven years of customer service, loan officer, and branch manager experience in the world of finance institutions. More recently, she has over two decades of municipal government work as a Finance Administrator, Finance Director, Human Resource Director, and various other positions during her time working for three towns in New Hampshire. Karen recently retired from full-time work to serve part-time at East Burke School, which better fit her needs. She also volunteers many hours to the Tom Breslin Community Center in Lyndonville, where she currently serves as board president. Some of Karen’s experience working with youth comes from being a Shelter Parent for over seven years and a foster mom for almost two. She currently lives in Lyndonville with her husband of forty-three years, with whom she raised two children. She now has three grandchildren whom she enjoys on her off time.
Guest Instructors
Our school is fortunate to welcome a rotating crew of volunteers to teach our students skills in a variety of practical and traditional arts through our Self-Sufficiency Workshop series. Have a skill that you would like to pass on to the next generation of Vermonters? Contact us to learn more about becoming a guest instructor!