Mrs. Jodi Folley joined Mesa/Arete Prep in our inaugural year of 2007 and has taught various levels of Math and Latin since then and even coached volleyball for 10 years. She grew up in Arizona and attended Cactus Shadows High School, where she was her class valedictorian. After graduating from the University of Arizona, she taught and coached at Paradise Valley High School until she moved to Mesa and started her family. Her three sons all attended Arete from 6th grade through graduation and are proud Arete alumni. As Assistant Headmaster of Academics, Mrs. Folley is passionate about supporting both teachers and students in having positive academic experiences and outcomes. She is also passionate about Exeter math, so feel free to ask her about it if you want to learn more. Outside of the classroom, she enjoys spending time with her family, doing home improvement, and playing various sports.

Mr. Lerner has served at Arete Prep since the 2015-2016 school year when he taught 6th and 7th grade Latin and coached Middle School Cross Country. Since then, he has also had the opportunity to teach Latin at the 8th, 9th, and 10th grade levels, as well as 11th and 12th grade Greek. Mr. Lerner also served as a Dean of Academics prior to taking on the role of Assistant Headmaster of School Culture, wherein he supports the faculty as one of their instructional coaches, collaborates with the Deans, and leads Arete’s House program. While he has now lived in Arizona longer than his native Virginia, he and his wife, also a Virginia native and former Arete Prep faculty alumna, enjoy exploring Arizona and elsewhere with their young children.

After teaching, coaching, and serving as the assistant athletic director at Chandler Prep, Coach Conklin is excited to begin his first year as Athletic Director at Arete Prep. A native of Buffalo, NY, Todd played soccer at and graduated from Slippery Rock University (PA) with a B.S in P.E and Health K-12. Coach Conklin then returned home, teaching elementary P.E and coaching at his all mater, Starpoint Central. While teaching, he earned an M.A in Physical Education with a Specialization in Coaching from Ball State University. During that time, Todd was very active in the coaching world. He coached soccer at the high school, club, and ODP levels, as well as, stints in high school basketball and middle school track and field. In his free time, Coach Conklin loves to spend time with his three kids, travel, read books on leadership, coaching, and athletics, play and watch any and all sports, and stay active.

Kim Bellomy has been a school counselor at Arete Prep since 2021. She is a licensed social worker and really enjoys getting to know the students at Arete and helping them through all of life’s obstacles and challenges, as well as the good parts! She coaches the Varsity Girls Soccer Team, is assistant coach for the Varsity Girls Flag Football Team, and is an all around sports enthusiast! Ms. Bellomy also serves as the school campus safety coordinator and is a co-leader of the mentor program.

Ms. Rebecca Arguello has been a college counselor with Arete Prep since 2014. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing from Arizona State University and a Master of Arts in Counseling from Loyola Marymount University. After spending her undergraduate years coordinating college prep activities for first generation students, managing a tutoring company, and doing graphic design, Ms. Arguello relocated to Los Angeles to pursue graduate school. She holds a Pupil Personnel Services credential in Counseling in California and is a certified Arizona Guidance Counselor for Pre-K through 12th grade students. Ms. Arguello is a Chicago native, Mesa resident, and always seen with a coffee in hand.

Mrs. Jodi Folley joined Mesa/Arete Prep in our inaugural year of 2007 and has taught various levels of Math and Latin since then and even coached volleyball for 10 years. She grew up in Arizona and attended Cactus Shadows High School, where she was her class valedictorian. After graduating from the University of Arizona, she taught and coached at Paradise Valley High School until she moved to Mesa and started her family. Her three sons all attended Arete from 6th grade through graduation and are proud Arete alumni. As Assistant Headmaster of Academics, Mrs. Folley is passionate about supporting both teachers and students in having positive academic experiences and outcomes. She is also passionate about Exeter math, so feel free to ask her about it if you want to learn more. Outside of the classroom, she enjoys spending time with her family, doing home improvement, and playing various sports.

Mrs. Michelle Downing started her time as a teacher at Arete in the summer of 2023. Dissecting a fetal pig in a high school anatomy and physiology class was likely what turned her away from a career in medicine, but she has always loved books and music and colors and patterns, and the clarity and beauty that can be found in math. She started attending Pomona College as a potential math major, before switching to a major in Studio Art. After spending many years in a career focused on helping people practice mindfulness for a healthy, happy, and peaceful life, Mrs. Downing is excited to continue to “play math” (and make art) with students at Arete Prep. She enjoys dancing, singing in a choir, watching live performances (especially musicals), hiking in places with trees and water, and otherwise learning new things.

Mr. Joe Glascock worked as an emergency room technician in the mountain community of Show Low, Arizona before becoming a teacher in 2002. In 2007, Mr. Glascock and his wife lived on Catalina Island, California and directed a marine science program. Mr. Glascock began teaching science at Arete Preparatory Academy in February, 2009. Mr. Glascock taught various levels of science, was Dean of students, led the mentor program, coached middle school boys’ soccer, sponsored the robotics team and founded the Student Life Team. In 2014, Mr. Glascock left teaching to pursue a career in law enforcement and while he found the job as a police officer to be very exciting, he ultimately decided to return to teaching at Archway Arete as a fifth-grade teacher. He currently serves as the 11th grade physics teacher and Dean of Student Leadership.

Mr. Adam Narish grew up in Wisconsin and earned a B.S. in Zoology and B.S. in Biological Aspects of Conservation from the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Afterwards, he joined the Peace Corps and helped communities in Honduras establish projects to protect their natural resources and set up a national program to monitor populations of endangered birds throughout the country. Mr. Narish had been a professional wildlife biologist for 15 years prior to joining Arete Prep in 2015. He has been Arete Prep’s High School Soccer Coach since 2010, and currently teaches 6th grade P.E and 9th grade Biology.

Mr. Jordan realized during his first year at North Central College that a great injustice was being asked of him – despite his love of history, literature, philosophy, and theology, he would have to choose just one for his major in order to graduate. As a result of this impossible decision, he dodged the problem altogether by studying East Asian Studies and Japanese, which let him do all at once. Still not satisfied, he also received a minor in History of Ideas, which allowed him to seminar on the Great Books of the West, and he later went on to receive his Masters degree in the Eastern Classics at St. Johns and take a summer-long intensive program there on the Islamic Classics. Since 2008 Mr. Jordan has joyfully taught all of the courses in the Lit/Comp, History, and Humane Letters sequence at Arete Prep. In his leisure, he enjoys hiking in nature, reading books that challenge him, drinking good tea, and practicing meditation.

Mr. Downing has taught at Arete Prep for the last 12 years and has 18 years of teaching experience in total. He has taught all three Literature and Composition courses and all four Humane Letters courses at Arete. He holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from NAU in English specializing in English Literature, a post-baccalaureate degree from U of A in Secondary Education, and is currently pursuing a Master’s of Classical Liberal Arts Education from the School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership at ASU. He is highly qualified in Language Arts and History, holds a current teaching certificate in Arizona and is SEI certified.

Nathaniel Smauley hails from Northern California originally, before gaining a liberal arts education at Whittier College.  There he earned a degree in Political Science as well as competing in the school’s Cross Country and Track teams, earning All Regional Honors.  After graduation he spent two years in sales, before coming out to Arizona and working for Great Hearts where he has been teaching at Archway Veritas for the last three years.  Nathaniel enjoys hiking, reading and collecting old books and making memories with his fiance.

Ms. Baugh is entering her 12th year of teaching. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Classics at Arizona State University and her Master of Arts in Classical Philology at Vanderbilt University. After teaching Ancient Greek and Latin at Great Hearts for many years, Ms. Baugh happily took on the challenge of teaching Humane Letters, and she has never looked back! Seminar is one of the great joys of her life. The greatest joys of her life, however, are her two children and her four cats. (Yes, she is a crazy cat lady.)

Mr. Lerner has served at Arete Prep since the 2015-2016 school year when he taught 6th and 7th grade Latin and coached Middle School Cross Country. Since then, he has also had the opportunity to teach Latin at the 8th, 9th, and 10th grade levels, as well as 11th and 12th grade Greek. Mr. Lerner also served as a Dean of Academics prior to taking on the role of Assistant Headmaster of School Culture, wherein he supports the faculty as one of their instructional coaches, collaborates with the Deans, and leads Arete’s House program. While he has now lived in Arizona longer than his native Virginia, he and his wife, also a Virginia native and former Arete Prep faculty alumna, enjoy exploring Arizona and elsewhere with their young children.

M.s Truitt has been a teacher of Latin at both the middle school and high school levels for 15 years, including Dual Enrollment classes for college credit.

Ms. Lowell has been learning Latin since the 8th grade and considers herself a lifelong language learner. She graduated from the University of Puget Sound with a major in Classical Languages and minors in Mathematics, Social Theory, and Medieval Studies. She completed a fellowship with the American School of Classical Archaeology in 2023 exploring the ancient rituals and myths that took place in different cave sites all around Greece. She began teaching at Arete in 2022. In her free time, Ms. Lowell enjoys swimming, painting, and hanging out with her cat.

Dr. Jana Minov was born and raised in Belgrade, Serbia in the family of professional musicians. Ms. Minov holds a Doctorate in Orchestral and Opera Conducting from Arizona State University and a Master’s degree in conducting from the Conservatory of Music in Belgrade-Serbia. Before coming to Arizona, Ms. Minov worked as a professor at the school of music and assistant conductor in National Opera Theater in Belgrade. Ms. Minov was also a founder and artistic director of the chamber choir and due to her great contribution to Serbian music and culture, in 2011 Dr. Minov was inaugurated a cultural ambassador for Serbia for the North America. Ms. Minov was on staff of The Phoenix Symphony for 2010/11 serving as the Assistant Chorus Master. Ms. Minov is accomplished music educator, pianist and vocalist and she has been teaching music at Arete since 2009. Dr. Minov lives in Gilbert with her husband and two sons.

Dr. Nenad Savic discovered his lifelong passion for music when he first picked up the guitar at the age of eight. A graduate of the prestigious European Conservatory of Music in Belgrade, he went on to earn his Master’s degree in Guitar Performance from the University of Idaho and his Doctorate from Arizona State University.

A laureate of numerous national and international competitions, Dr. Savic has captivated audiences across Europe and the United States with his artistry and expressive performances. He is a sought-after performer, respected adjudicator, and active presence at major guitar festivals and competitions.

Bringing this wealth of experience to Arete Prep Academy, Dr. Savic now inspires young musicians as the 7th and 8th grade music teacher and leader of the school’s Guitar Club, fostering the next generation of passionate performers.

Mr. Grajeda joins the Arete faculty teaching Art this year. Mr. Grajeda has spent his entire life in Arizona, a proud son of two hard working Mexican immigrants. Mr. Grajeda is bilingual, speaking English and Spanish and graduated from Arizona State University in 2017 with a bachelor’s in fine arts education and has been teaching since. He has taught every single age range from Kindergarten to Twelfth grade in this time and is excited to join the Arete team this time from the beginning of the school year. He enjoys art, art history, drawing and painting, and most of all, spending time with his small family with a new addition of a baby girl arriving last week!

This is Mrs. Tortorici’s seventh year with Arete Prep and her 10th year with Great Hearts. Her journey with Great Hearts began as a 2nd grade teacher at Archway Anthem then a 1st grade teacher at Archway Lincoln. She has served as ESS Coordinator for the past six years at Arete Prep. She has a Master’s Degree in Education with an emphasis on Special Education and a Bachelor of Science degree in Child Development/Family studies from Arizona State University. She has four grown sons- all who were Great Hearts students and her two oldest are Arete Graduates. She loves building strong relationships with our ESS families and helping students recognize their great potential in any situation. Outside of work she enjoys spending quality time with her husband and family.

This is Mrs. Snow’s first year at Arete Prep as the ESS Lead, but this will be her 14th year teaching, with 12 of those years in Exceptional Student Services. Mrs. Snow received her Bachelor’s Degree from Point Loma Nazarene University in 2009. After graduating she moved to New Mexico, where she worked with students with a variety of disabilities as completed her Special Education License at Northern New Mexico College. Mrs. Snow completed her first two years of teaching in Los Alamos, New Mexico before moving to Arizona in 2014. In 2021 she received her Master’s in Curriculum and Instruction from Arizona State University. Mrs. Snow loves to do puzzles, read, and play with her children. She currently resides in Gilbert with her husband, children, and their six year old Great Dane.