Instructors

Michelle Balon

Michelle has a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education and Special Education. She earned her Masters Degree in Special Education with a focus on learning disabilities, speech, hearing, and reading. Michelle has taught children Kindergarten through Grade 12, as well as college students, in formal and informal settings. Michelle has taken courses in Scripture study of both the Old and New Testament, Greek, and Bible translation. She enjoys sharing our Catholic faith with all ages through interactive methods.

Jean Czerniak

Bio to come. 

Alyssa Giambra

Wife and mother of two boys, Alyssa has been homeschooling her children since they became school age in 2019. She has always loved volunteering and providing outreach services. She co facilitated a Parkinson’s support group at a senior in center in Claremont CA. There she was an active member of the Catholic community, taking the Eucharist to patients that were hospitalized and praying the rosary with them. Alyssa earned her B.S. at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, in psychology with a minor in English literature. She completed her master’s in clinical psychology, with a focus on marriage and family therapy from Argosy university in San Bernardino, CA.  She served the homeless community, provided behavioral therapy to school aged children, and worked in private practice with children and teens in Southern California before starting a family and relocating to Buffalo, NY. She serves on the events committee at St. Margaret Church, her home parish and continues to enjoy volunteering with her children in a reading program at Elderwood (reading to seniors). Alyssa loves homeschooling her children, reading, sewing/painting, and spending quality time with her family and friends.

Rebecca Kruszka

Rebecca is a homeschooling mother, who began her study of History at Canisius College as part of the History Honors program. She did two semesters of European History with a specialized Church Historian and returned to Canisius to specialize in local and American history, as well as taking multiple segments on Russian History. She received the Robert J. Sullivan Award for Excellence in Historical Writing for her thesis on Mark Twain's Buffalo Experience and has actively participated in local history groups- being a Board Member Emeritus of the Buffalo Lighthouse Association, and the South Buffalo Lighthouse Group. She lectures and teaches as part of this involvement as well as being part of our Learning Center for 13 years. She was employed at her family’s law office and worked as a filing clerk and paralegal, as well as being an assistant to the town prosecutor in Evans for several years. Her interest in mock trial came from her own participation at Immaculata high school.

Shannon Lawson

Shannon is a former homeschool student and lives in Wheatfield with her husband and children. She graduated summa cum laude with a BA in Education and a minor in English from Niagara University and then completed a Master’s Degree in Literacy Education from Buffalo State College. Her teaching experience includes more than three years teaching at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic School, over six years of private tutoring experience, and thirteen years of freelance teaching “a-la-carte” classes to homeschool students. Shannon has been playing guitar since childhood and has played in different folk groups in the area, teaching guitar since age fifteen.

Victoria Levine

Victoria earned her Bachelor's Degree at Canisius College in Childhood and Special Eduction with a concentration in Mathematics, and then completed a Master's Degree in Differentiated Instruction. She taught for 5 years in a variety of roles, starting in middle school math for one year, then 2.5 years teaching second grade, and finally 1.5 years as a special education teacher. Victoria now enjoys being a stay-at-home mom, wife and homemaker, and is excited to start homeschooling her two young daughters.

Chantel Muntain

Chantel started homeschooling her three children in 2014. In 1999, she received her Bachelor’s Degree in Humanities with a Minor in Latin and Greek at Indiana State University. In 2002, she received her Master’s Degree in Performing Arts at American University in Washington, D.C. Post college, she taught a variety of subjects at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School in Potomac, Maryland: Latin, Religion, World Religions, AP English, 7th grade English, and dance. After marrying Joshua, Chantel was the writer for the president at Savannah College of Art and Design for two years. Currently, the Muntains have devoted much of their time to fixing up an old house and maintaining a small farm with chickens, sheep, and three sweet cats. Chantel’s favorite hobbies include planning trips, reading out loud to the kids, crocheting, hanging laundry, and baking bread.

Elizabeth Neswadi

Liz is a wife and homeschooling mom of 3 who loves this season of life. She earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 2013, then went on to nursing school and spent 8 years working as an ER nurse before staying home full-time. She loves spending time in the kitchen and the garden. 

Lisa Pietras

Lisa, a mother of 10 and grandmother of seven, has homeschooled with her children since 1995. She holds an Associates Degree in Business and is currently studying in the school of Life. She is a Household Engineer trying to survive everyday challenges. ;)

Kate Pike

Kate Pike is a wife and mother of 5, living near Ellicotville, New York. She has been homeschooling her own children since 2020 when she left the public school system. Kate first earned her Bachelor's degree in Early Childhood Education from Cleveland State University, and then went on to receive a reading endorsement for grades K-12. Kate has had a diverse teaching career; working as a preschool teacher, teaching grades K-4 at some point over her 11 year teaching career, and also spending some time as a teaching coach as well as the Dean of Students at a Cleveland charter school in Ohio. She is excited to now bring her knowledge, experience, and love for the arts and theater, to the Guardian Angel Co-op. 

Kristin Pratt

Kristin is a certified emergency RN/BSN with over 15 years of experience working in an emergency room. She has been a nurse for over 20 years and worked in various other hospital units. She is a mother of 6, and currently homeschooling some of her children. Her family has been part of Guardian Angel for many years. Her other children attend Chesterton Academy of Buffalo, and she is involved in many committees at the school. She enjoys teaching first aid, and is looking forward to next year.

Paula Reese

Mother of 8 children and grandmother to 4, Paula began her Catholic homeschooling career in 2001. She focuses her homeschooling days on hands-on activities and experiences and brings these ideas to the classroom at Guardian Angel. Never shying away from an adventure, she and her family enjoy traveling, camping, gardening, small animal husbandry, arts and crafts, kayaking, skiing, sports and trying out new things. Paula has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Buffalo State College and an Associate’s Degree in Paralegal Studies from ECC.

Nadine Turner

Nadine has been homeschooling since 2016 and has taught in various roles over the years - tutoring, pre-K programs, religious education, high school, adult technology education and more recently, classes at Guardian Angel and Agnus Dei co-ops. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Secondary Education from Buffalo State College.

Richelle Weber