About Us
Faculty and Staff
Administration
Jennifer Annable
Marie-Alice Chapeau
Aurélie Declerck
Zoe Zitzka
Carlos Berrones
Head of School
Jennifer Annable
Jennifer joined NSFS as Head of School in 2020. She has been a school principal and executive director in Seattle for more than 30 years, and retired in July 2020 after 10 years as executive director of the Academy for Precision Learning (APL). Prior to joining APL, Jennifer spent 25 years at the University of Washington’s Experimental Education Unit (EEU) where she was principal and later director; the EEU is a birth-to-age-six center with a threefold mission of research, training and service. Jennifer was the 2010 recipient of the Division of Early Childhood Rose C. Engel Award for Excellence in Professional Practice, a national award recognizing the highest standards of practice in the education field. She holds a master’s degree in education as well as a Principal’s Certificate from the University of Washington, and she received her bachelor’s degree from Lesley College in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Jennifer is certified in Early Childhood Special Education, K-12 Special Education, and K-8 Elementary Education.
Operations Manager
Marie-Alice Chapeau
Originally from Bordeaux on the Atlantic coast of France, Marie-Alice received her bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of Orléans and worked for different companies including L’Oréal (leader in cosmetics), Sihl (Inkjet paper) and Novamex (leader of eco-friendly cleaning products). She moved to Seattle in 2013 with her husband, and after teaching science at NSFS in its inaugural year, she worked for several years at FISW in Bellevue and at the Alliance Française, before returning to NSFS. Marie-Alice enjoys living in the Pacific Northwest and loves traveling, discovering new places, spending time with family, and learning about new cultures. She is very proud to be a member of the NSFS community!
Admissions - Marketing - Communication
Aurélie Declerck
Aurélie’s passion for nurturing children’s curiosity and creativity led her to education. Originally from the north of France, Aurélie received her master’s degree from the IESEG School of Management in Lille. Previously, she worked as an event organizer for the French-American Chamber of Commerce here in Seattle and for a medical conference organization in Toulouse. Before coming to Seattle in 2008, she spent a year living in Lima, Peru for a year and several months in New Zealand. In her spare time, Aurélie likes to travel, hike, and explore with her husband and two kids. She loves cooking and learning new things, and she is engaged in her community and passionate about environmental protection.
Office Assistant - After-School Care Specialist
Zoe Zitzka
Zoe, who was born and raised here in Washington, joined NSFS in 2019 to lead the extended care program. Her role has grown to include running camps during school breaks as well, and in 2020, she joined our administrative team in the role of office assistant. Zoe is working on her French and picks up more everyday! Outside of school, she loves traveling and has visited France, Canada, Mexico, Norway, Sweden, and Denmark. Her goal is to visit every country. She also enjoys hiking, dancing, and learning new things.
IT Support - Bus Driver
Carlos Berrones
Carlos came to us with over 18 years experience driving in heavily trafficked urban areas. He was born and raised in the Chicagoland area. He graduated from High School in 2004 and attended Hyles-Anderson College for secondary education. Carlos worked his way up to GM at Pilot Travel Centers. Following an injury which affected his walking Carlos started driving for Uber and Lyft in Chicago in 2014. He moved with his wife and daughter to Bellevue in the summer of 2018. He has continued driving in the Seattle area for Uber and Lyft.
Teachers
Céline Bourdales
Anne-Marie Canis
Michaela Hodgson
Mo Belaiche
Audrey Petitpierre
Julie Massoulié
Thomas MacBurney
Roxane Chan
Melanie De Torrente
Stephanie Benard
Agnès Daout
French Teacher 3rd Grade (CE2) - Director of French Curriculum
Céline Bourdales
Céline loves teaching and holds a certification in education through the Mission Laïque Française (MLF). She was born and raised in Arcachon, in the southwest of France, and received a bachelor’s degree from Cefire, a business school in Bordeaux, before working as a financial analyst in France. She then moved to Montreal and finally Seattle, where she started an art studio, taught sewing classes for students from toddlers to adults, and also taught French at the Alliance Française de Seattle. Céline joined NSFS in 2016 and became the director of the French curriculum in 2019, as well as continuing to teach in the classroom.
FRENCH TEACHER PRESCHOOL / PRE-K (PETITE ET MOYENNE SECTION)
Anne-Marie Canis
Anne-Marie has over 20 years of experience teaching and working with children. She has acquired a Child Development Associate CDA and participated in several workshops, trainings and conferences on early childhood education. Previously, she worked in various early childhood education programs including at YMCA and at NSFS as a petite section teacher assistant from 2015 to 2017 and petite section teacher in 2017-2018 . Since 2018, she has been a substitute teacher at NSFS. Anne-Marie is a board member and volunteer at Washington Squash Academy where they offer after school programs for underprivileged kids. Anne-Marie likes to spend most of the summer in France with her family. During her free time, she likes going to the gym, walking her two small dogs and exploring the Seattle area with her friends. As a Seattleite, she enjoys a great cup of coffee.
Assistant Teacher
Michaela Hodgson
A graduate of Seattle University, Michaela received her bachelor’s degree with a double major in French and international studies. Born in South Dakota but raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, Michaela attended French immersion school starting in kindergarten and continued her French language studies through high school. Michaela had the opportunity to spend four months living with a host family in Grenoble, France, and would love to return in the near future. In her free time, Michaela enjoys reading and spending time visiting Seattle’s waterfront parks.
French Teacher Kindergarten (Grande Section)
Mo Belaiche
Mo was born and raised in the north of France. He has a bachelor of science degree in education from the Université Charles de Gaulle, and a master’s in teaching French as a second language from the Université du Littoral Côte d’Opale in Boulogne-sur-Mer. Mo, who joined NSFS in 2017, has over 20 years of teaching experience in France, the U.K., Louisiana, California, and now Washington. In addition to teaching, where he especially enjoys the challenge of teaching different subjects in an immersion environment, Mo also plays and coaches tennis.
French Teacher 1st Grade (CP)
Audrey Petitpierre
Audrey was born in Lyon and raised near Valence, in the southeast of France. She obtained the CRPE, a French degree in elementary education, and worked for 12 years in elementary and early childhood education in France. For 2 years before moving to Seattle, Audrey was an elementary school principal in the Paris area. She moved to Seattle with her family in 2019 and joined NSFS in September 2020. When she’s not at school, she loves playing board games, outdoor activities and cooking.
French Teacher 2nd Grade (CE1)
Julie Massoulié
Julie was born in Paris but has lived all around the world. At the age of five, she moved to Canada and then to India, where she grew up in a bilingual French-English environment. Ultimately Julie settled in Belgium, where she obtained her degree in elementary education. After teaching in Belgium, she moved to Spain to work at the Lycée Français d’Alicante, and then relocated to Chile to be a French elementary teacher in a bilingual school and discover another new region. Julie has lived in Seattle and taught at NSFS since 2019.
English Teacher K / 1st / 2nd Grades (Grande Section / CP / CE1)
Thomas MacBurney
Thomas was born and raised in California. First, he received a bachelor of arts from San Francisco State University. He went on to California State University Stanislaus where he studied teaching. Then, he returned to San Francisco State University and earned a master’s degree in education with a concentration in equity and social justice. Thomas began his professional career as a special education paraprofessional and has had the privilege of working in multilingual schools. He had the opportunity to teach English in a multilingual public school on the eastern coast of Spain. Thomas is passionate about education. He loves music and the arts, and regularly gets lost in a great book.
English Teacher 3rd / 4th / 5th Grades (CE2 / CM1 / CM2)
Roxane Chan
Roxane, who is from Vancouver, Canada, is passionate about teaching, inclusive education and second language learning. She has more than eight years of teaching experience with K-12 students in public school settings. She has a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of British Columbia, Canada, and a Bachelor of Arts majoring in linguistics and minoring in curriculum and instruction with Simon Fraser University. In addition, Roxane is currently a Master of Education candidate with the University of British Columbia. She is trilingual in English, Cantonese and Mandarin and has also taught French as a second language. Roxane has lived in Canada and Hong Kong and now resides in Seattle with her Polish-Canadian husband.
French Teacher 4th / 5th Grades (CM1 / CM2)
Melanie De Torrente
Mélanie grew up between the mountains and the shores of Lake Geneva in Switzerland. She received a Bachelor of Arts in social work from the University of Applied Sciences Western Switzerland and a Master of Arts in special education from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland. Mélanie has worked as a social worker with adults living with blindness and intellectual disabilities, with children and teenagers facing behavioral and academic challenges, and also as a teacher with students from preK to 8th grade. Before moving to Seattle with her family in 2019, Mélanie lived in New York and taught bilingual French-English preschool. In her spare time, Mélanie loves discovering Seattle with her young daughter, traveling and skiing.
Assistant Teacher 4th / 5th grades (cm1 / cm2)
Stephanie Benard
Stephanie has been living in the Seattle area since 2007, with her husband and two children. She was born and raised in Normandy, France, and after graduating from College, she worked as a legal counselor in an international transportation company for 10 years in France, before moving to Seattle for her husband’s work. She discovered the American education system through her children and often volunteered at her children’s schools. After working in the aerospace industry for few years, Stephanie has recently decided to go on a new path working with children and teachers, while promoting French language and culture. Stephanie loves family trips, antique stores and interior design. She also enjoys all forms of art and artistic material to share emotions and opinions with others.
French Instructor Middle School Program - Substitute
Agnès Daout
Agnès was born and raised in Tours, France. In high school, she majored in language arts. She learned English, German and Arabic. After graduating Law School, she moved to Texas with her husband. She then lived in England, Mexico and now Seattle. She has been working as a substitute teacher and camp instructor (virtual and in-person) at NSFS since 2020. She is a French tutor, and she has also worked as a preschool French teacher. She recently created a French book club for the Seattle area. Agnes loves teaching and sharing her mother tongue and culture. One of her favorite quote is from the American lawyer and author Amy Chua: ‘Speaking with a foreign accent is a sign of bravery”. Agnès has 2 children. She loves reading, traveling, hiking, music and ballet.