Dr. Messmore brings to the role of President a broad range of educational leadership and teaching experience grounded in a theological framework. He previously served as President of Magdalen College of the Liberal Arts in New Hampshire and as President of Campion College in Australia. Dr. Messmore has also worked as Senior Fellow at The Heritage Foundation, Executive Director of the Millis Institute (Australia), and Assistant Headmaster for Academic Affairs at St. David’s School, in Raleigh, NC. He earned a D.Phil. in Theology from the University of Oxford, an M.Phil. in Theology from the University of Cambridge, an M.T.S. from Duke Divinity School, and an A.B. in Public Policy and Religion from Duke University. In 2017 he authored the book In Love: The Larger Story of Sex and Marriage. His commentary and analysis have appeared in newspapers such as The Washington Times and The Australian, online venues such as Crosswalk.com and FOXNews.com, and in national magazines such as First Things, Touchstone, and Comment. Dr. Messmore joined ICLE in the role of Director of the Credential Program in 2024 before stepping into the role of President in 2025. He has four children (two in college) and lives with his wife and two daughters.

Elisabeth Sullivan

Executive Director

A former journalist, Elisabeth developed her passion for Catholic liberal education while exploring authentic formation in faith and reason for her own children. She joined the Institute in 2010 to advance this vision and train educators in its philosophy and practice. As Executive Director, she develops ICLE’s program content and publications, designs our annual conference, and promotes our mission through speaking engagements across the country. Elisabeth is a CiRCE-Certified Classical Teacher who has taught middle school writing and literature, served on Catholic school boards, and served as director of communications for a liberal arts school in the Catholic tradition. She holds a B.S. in Humanities from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and an M.S. from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. She and her husband live in North Carolina and have three sons.

Danny Flynn

Director of Diocesan and School Relations

Danny Flynn taught for six years at St. Jerome Academy after it became the first diocesan school in the country to adopt a classical liberal arts approach; he then stepped into the principal’s role in 2016. Under his leadership, the Pre-K through 8 school has continued to thrive and expand. Since 2021, Danny has led ICLE’s Aspiring School Leaders Program, a six-month online school leader training program. He joined the Institute full-time in summer 2024 as the Director of Diocesan and School Relationships to share his expertise with dioceses and a growing number of Catholic liberal arts schools across the country. He holds a BA from Franciscan University and an MSE from Trinity University. He is happily married and the father of 14.

Peter D. Crawford

Academic Dean

Peter Crawford was the founding headmaster of the St. Jerome Institute, a private liberal arts high school in the Catholic intellectual tradition located in Washington, DC. A graduate of Ave Maria University, he received his Master’s and MPhil degrees in philosophy from the University of Leuven. He taught ancient, medieval, and modern European history and humane letters at Glendale Preparatory Academy, a classical charter school in Phoenix, Arizona, from 2009-2013. In 2013, he founded two Great Hearts Academies in San Antonio, Texas. He grew both the lower school (K-5) and the upper school (6-12) enrollment to serve 700 students of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. Peter and his beautiful wife have seven children — four girls and three boys.

DeAnn Stuart, Ph.D.

Associate Director of Credential Program
Senior Faculty

DeAnn Stuart received her B.A. and Master of Humanities from the University of Dallas and her Ph.D. from Baylor University. Over the years, she has received multiple awards for excellence in teaching at the middle school, high school, and university levels. Currently, she works as Dean of Curriculum at St. Mary’s Catholic School, a PK-12th grade school in Taylor, TX. She also serves as Associate Director of the credential program and a senior faculty member at the Institute for Catholic Liberal Education.

Alyssan Barnes, Ph.D.

Senior Faculty, Credential Program

Dr. Aly Barnes studied the trivium at the University of Dallas in graduate school, and she began teaching in trivium-based schools in 2001. She most recently served as a teacher of formal rhetoric, AP English, and moral philosophy at a classical Christian high school in Waco, Texas. Aly is the author of two high school textbooks: Rhetoric Alive: Principles of Persuasion and Rhetoric Alive: Senior Thesis Student Workbook. She developed and has taught a graduate course on the trivium for the master’s program in classical ed at the University of Dallas, and she also serves as an Alcuin Fellow for the Society for Classical Learning. As a convert in 2010, Aly was delighted to bring her passion for liberal education together with her Catholic faith by developing and directing ICLE’s new Catholic Educator Formation and Credential program. After serving as the inaugural Director, Aly continues to work with Catholic teachers in the CEFC as Head of Cohort for the Oklahoma cohort.

Abriana Chilelli

Diocesan Liaison

Abriana Chilelli believes deeply that there can be no true education which is not wholly directed to man’s last end (Pope Pius XI, 1929). After nearly a decade of teaching and curriculum writing, she served a variety of leadership roles at the archdiocesan-level in the Archdiocese of Denver, including Assistant Superintendent, as well as Associate Superintendent for Academic Renewal. As ICLE’s new Diocesan Liaison, she will lead this program by drawing on a wealth of educational leadership experience, from the classroom to the archdiocese. In addition to her work at ICLE, she also serves as the Assistant Director of Catholic Education for the Archdiocese of Portland. Abriana has an undergraduate degree from Franciscan University of Steubenville, a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Colorado, and a master’s degree in educational administration from the University of Notre Dame. She and her husband currently reside in Denver with her favorite students — their four children who all attend Catholic schools steeped in the Church’s charter for education.

Colleen M. Richards

Faculty

crichards@catholicliberaleducation.org
After 17 years of classroom teaching in a variety of Catholic elementary and high schools, Colleen Richards spent eight years as the second headmaster of St. John Bosco Schools in East Rochester, New York. Colleen led the school’s adoption of the St. Jerome Academy Educational Plan, training teachers and growing the school to double its size. In 2014, she led the opening of Chesterton Academy of Rochester as part of the new Chesterton Schools Network, making the institution an option for a complete Catholic education for students from Pre-K through twelfth grade. She served as ICLE’s Director of School Services, leading teacher training and school advising efforts around the country, and continues to serve Catholic teachers around the country in the role of faculty member. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Education from Canisius College, a Master’s Degree from the University of Phoenix in Curriculum and Instruction, and holds New York State Teacher Certification.

Rosemary Vander Weele

Leadership Development Specialist

Rosemary was born and raised in Denver, Colorado. She earned an undergraduate degree from Franciscan University of Steubenville and graduate degrees in Catholic Leadership from the Augustine Institute and Education Administration from Regis University. In 2011, after teaching middle school English and history for seven years, Rosemary was appointed principal of Our Lady of Lourdes, which at the time had less than 100 students and was identified for closure the following year. At the encouragement of then-Auxiliary Bishop James Conley, she led the school through a renewal in the Catholic liberal arts that resulted in a return to maximum enrollment within seven years and the addition of a second campus in the fall of 2018. Rosemary now serves as President of Our Lady of Lourdes, overseeing the continued development of both campuses, and as Faculty for ICLE.

Elizabeth Black

Faculty, Credential Program and School Services

Elizabeth has worked in Catholic liberal education for seventeen years, most recently as principal of Saint Stephen School in East Grand Rapids. She has taught broadly over grades 3-12, including philosophy, Latin, Logic and Rhetoric, music, geometry, history, and literature. Elizabeth has developed curriculum for several schools as well as created several unique programs, such as a high school sacred music apprenticeship and a Way of Beauty program. As Dean of Faculty and Curriculum at Oakcrest School, she developed the school’s liberal arts educational vision. Elizabeth is trained in the Ward Method of Music Instruction, holds a B.A. in Classical and Early Christian Studies from Christendom College and a M.A. from the University of St. Mary of the Lake. Elizabeth is a consecrated virgin living in the world.

Jonathon Ciani

Faculty

Jonathon Ciani holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Philosophy from Marian University (Indianapolis), and a Master of Education in Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment from The University of Mary (Bismarck). After dabbling in public relations and dropping out of law school, he found his professional calling at his alma mater, Saint Mary’s Catholic High School in Phoenix, Arizona. During more than a decade at Saint Mary’s, he coached football and track, served as Dean of Men, and, most importantly, worked to renew the school’s culture and develop its liberal arts curriculum as the first teacher of Seat of Wisdom, an integrated humanities class. Jonathon joined the ICLE Faculty team in summer 2025. He lives with his lovely wife and children a short bike ride away from where he grew up.

Monica Clarke

Faculty

Monica grew up in Louisville, Kentucky, and attended Christendom College in Front Royal, Virginia, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy. She holds a Master of Arts in Theology from St. Charles Borromeo School of Theological Studies in Philadelphia. Monica has worked in Catholic education for 13 years, teaching a variety of grade levels and subjects, including math, Latin, religion, and music. She has served both as a Master Teacher and Upper School Dean of Regina Coeli Academy in Abington, PA, during which time she mentored and conducted professional development for a portion of the faculty in addition to her regular teaching duties. Her most recent project has been helping develop, articulate, and implement a comprehensive curriculum and pedagogy for the Academy. She is a classically trained musician and enjoys adding the beauty of music to the liturgy both at school and in her parish. Her passion for authentic Catholic and classical education stems from ever-growing gratitude for her own formation, and she hopes to work towards making the same formation possible for many future generations of students.

Katie Gillett

Faculty

Katie Gillett comes from a family of educators. She has held various positions teaching music, theatre, Latin, and rhetoric in PK-12th grade liberal arts schools in the Archdiocese of Denver. She has also contributed to several adult formation projects serving teachers in Colorado, including writing music curriculum and professional development programs, observing and coaching new teachers across the Archdiocese, and teaching the Catholic Worldview Seminar, a four-day course designed to help teachers encounter and appropriate a sacramental vision of reality so that they can hand on that vision in their classroom. Katie holds a BA in Theatre from Vanderbilt University and is a graduate of ICLE’s Catholic Educator Formation & Credential Program. She is also a junior fellow in the Boethius Institute Fellows Formation Program. Katie joined the ICLE Faculty team in summer 2025. Outside of her professional pursuits, Katie enjoys seeking adventure and beauty in the Rocky Mountains, serving as a cantor and choir member at the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, reading anything and everything, and spending time with her family.

Christy Karako

Faculty

Christy Karako has worked in Catholic schools for two decades. Having taught Pre-K through eighth grade across the country, she delights in nurturing the joy of learning in young students. Most recently, she served as Librarian and Director of Curriculum and Instruction at Angelus Academy in Springfield, Virginia. There she supported teachers through curriculum development and in implementing classroom routines and refining lesson planning. She enjoys spending time in the library, helping children discover truth, goodness, and beauty through a love of reading. A lifelong student of the liberal arts, she learned a newfound appreciation of its application to education while teaching her own children. Originally from Texas, she holds a B.A. in History from the University of Dallas and a Master’s of Library and Information Science from the Catholic University of America. Christy joined the ICLE Faculty team in summer 2025. She and her husband have three children and live in Alexandria, Virginia.

Marie J. Kelly

Faculty

Marie was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, before receiving her B.A. in elementary education and reading from Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. She has experience teaching in a variety of PK-12 classroom settings but found her passion in teaching early elementary students. Marie was first introduced to the rich tradition of a Catholic liberal education when her school began the process of renewal, diving more deeply into what the Catholic Church teaches about education. She has been blessed to teach in two Catholic Liberal Arts schools, one in Michigan and the other in Massachusetts. Marie is passionate about helping inspire and renew Catholic educators in the rich tradition of the Church, especially in the meaningful integration of prayer in the classroom. Together, may we provide students with an authentic encounter with the transcendental Good, True, and Beautiful in a joyful and faithful Catholic environment.

Tyler Storey

Faculty

A native of the Pacific Northwest, Tyler Storey holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Whitman College, in Walla Walla, WA, with additional study in social and political philosophy, studio art, and urban horticulture. After a time as a legislative analyst and speech-writer in Washington, D.C., he continued in communications, and then taught urban horticulture and irrigation. He entered the Church and Catholic liberal arts education, one right after the other, in 2009. Since then, he has taught students from fifth-grade to seniors across a wide swath of curriculum, from literature and philosophy, to economics, history, grammar, and nature studies. As an administrator, he served most recently as Dean of Students and humanities department chair at Saint Mary’s Catholic High School in Phoenix, where he worked to develop the original Seat of Wisdom curriculum. Tyler joined the ICLE faculty team in the spring of 2024.

Megan Fassero

Director of Events and Partnerships

mfassero@catholicliberaleducation.org
Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, Megan was educated K-12 in Catholic schools and discovered the liberal arts for the first time as a student at Benedictine College (Atchison, Kansas). After graduating with Bachelor of Arts degrees in French, History, and Religious Studies, Megan married her husband Matt and embarked on a 15-year homeschooling journey with her own daughter, leading to a deeper understanding and appreciation of classical education. For the past five years, Megan has served in various roles at Benedictine College, most notably as the Homeschool Outreach Coordinator. As a Catholic school graduate, she wholeheartedly supports ICLE’s mission “to renew today’s Catholic schools.” She and her husband Matt reside in rural Atchison County Kansas, where they raise cattle, pigs, and chickens.

Katie Groves

Program Associate

kgroves@catholicliberaleducation.org
Before coming to ICLE, Katie served in various lay ministerial roles in service to the Church. She received her B.A. in Pastoral Ministry with a catechetical focus from the University of Dallas and went on to receive her M.A. in Theology from the University of Notre Dame through the McGrath Institute’s Echo Graduate Service Program, where she served in parishes within the Diocese of St. Petersburg, FL. She then served as the Director of Campus Ministry at St. Peter Catholic Student Center in Waco, TX, primarily working with the students of Baylor University. Katie is passionate about life-long education and enjoys reading on a variety of topics in her free time, especially those concerning ecclesiology, virtue ethics, & Catholic social teaching. As Program Associate, Katie provides administrative and operational support to the Catholic Educator Formation & Credential Program within ICLE.

Hannah Naughton

Program Manager

hnaughton@catholicliberaleducation.org
Hannah earned a B.A. in English from Miami University in Ohio and began her career working in Marketing and Communications at the University of Illinois. She then completed the University of Portland’s Pacific Alliance for Catholic Education (PACE) program, earning her M.A. in Teaching while teaching English at a Catholic high school in Fairbanks, Alaska. She joined ICLE in 2023 as Communications Manager, joyfully sharing the Institute’s mission with schools and educators nationwide. Now, as Program Manager, Hannah supports the Teachers for Christ program and other initiatives that aim to build a faithful and vibrant future for Catholic schools. She and her husband live in Virginia with their son.

Elisabeth Seeley

operations associate

eseeley@catholicliberaleducation.org
Elisabeth has been steeped in Catholic liberal education her whole life. She graduated high school from St. Augustine Academy in Ventura, CA, and received her B.A. in classical Liberal Arts from Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, CA. She worked in the Human Resources department at the college after graduating. The daughter of ICLE Co-Founder Dr. Andrew T. Seeley, she was delighted to join the team in September of 2020.

Megan Sheehan

Communications Manager

msheehan@catholicliberaleducation.org
Megan has more than 12 years of communications experience in Catholic institutions spanning from parishes, elementary schools, high school and higher education. She earned a Bachelor’s in Journalism from Marquette University, a Master’s in Theology and Ministry from Boston College, a Certificate in Ignatian Spirituality Spiritual Direction from John Carroll University and she is finishing a Certificate of Catholic Theology in Catechesis from the McGrath Institute for Church life with the University of Notre Dame. Megan has found that communications for Catholic mission goes hand-in-hand with the pursuit of catechesis and evangelization. Megan and her husband Joe live in Wisconsin and are blessed with 5 children.

ICLE Faculty Consultants

Merrill A. Roberts, Ph.D.

Dr. Merrill Roberts is a post-doctoral researcher at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD, where he studies solar coronal transients and performs forward modeling for the Parker Solar Probe mission. He received his Ph.D. in Physics from The Catholic University of America in 2018, where he is currently a lecturer, and his Bachelor’s in Liberal Arts from Thomas Aquinas College in 2003. Dr. Roberts serves the Institute as an instructor for the Catholic Educator Formation and Credential program, and also as a member of the School Services team. He combines his passions for nature and education as the Nature Studies teacher at St. Jerome Academy where he has instructed 5th through 8th graders from 2010 to the present. Dr. Roberts is the Co-director of Music at St. Jerome’s Parish, where he strives to emphasize the beauty and truth inherent in the Mass, along with his wife Elizabeth. Merrill and Elizabeth live in Hyattsville, MD, and are blessed to be the parents of four active, inquisitive young men.

Arthur Hippler, Ph.D.

Dr. Arthur Hippler is Chairman of the Religion Department at Providence Academy, where he has taught since 2006. He also teaches as an adjunct professor in St. Paul School of Divinity at the University of St. Thomas and as an instructor in the Harry Flynn Catechetical Institute for the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis. A graduate of Thomas Aquinas College in California, he received his Doctorate in Philosophy from Boston College. He is the author of four books, two on Catholic social teaching and two iBooks on C. S. Lewis. He is married with five children.

Alisha Barker, M.A., CALT

Alisha Barker gained an enthusiasm for liberals arts education as an undergraduate through the impassioned teaching of a favorite college professor. After teaching English as a second language in Taiwan and earning her MA in literature at Baylor University, she joined the faculty of a classical Christian school in Waco, Texas in 2009. She has taught first, fourth, and fifth grade and now serves as the Assistant Dean of the Grammar School. As she worked with students with language-based learning differences in the classroom, she gained an appreciation for both the challenges and gifts a liberal arts education offers these students. When her daughter was diagnosed with dyslexia and dysgraphia, she took a deep dive into the science of reading as she trained to become a certified academic language therapist (CALT). Her ability to offer dyslexia therapy, alongside her work as an administrator and ICLE’s literacy specialist, allows her to bring her experiences together to help support teachers and students alike in their pursuit of liberal arts education. She and her husband have one son and three daughters.

Allison Buras

Allison Buras is one of three founders of Live Oak Classical School, a Christian school devoted to liberal education that opened in 2004 in Waco, Texas. She has served as the Dean of the Grammar School for over a decade. She completed a Master’s in Theological Studies at Baylor’s Truett Seminary, has presented several times at Society for Classical Learning conferences, and currently serves as an Alcuin Fellow. She regularly hosts school visits to Live Oak where she mentors other school leaders in Christian schools engaged in a liberal arts education.

Our Team

Operations

Board of Trustees

Ryan Messmore, D.Phil.

President

Elisabeth Sullivan

Executive Director

Danny Flynn

Director of Diocesan and School Relations

Peter D. Crawford

Academic Dean

DeAnn Stuart, Ph.D.

Associate Director of Credential ProgramSenior Faculty

Alyssan Barnes, Ph.D.

Senior Faculty, Credential Program

Abriana Chilelli

Diocesan Liaison

Colleen M. Richards

Faculty

Rosemary Vander Weele

Leadership Development Specialist

Elizabeth Black

Faculty, Credential Program and School Services

Jonathon Ciani

Faculty

Monica Clarke

Faculty

Katie Gillett

Faculty

Christy Karako

Faculty

Marie J. Kelly

Faculty

Tyler Storey

Faculty

Megan Fassero

Director of Events and Partnerships

Katie Groves

Program Associate

Hannah Naughton

Program Manager

Elisabeth Seeley

operations associate

Megan Sheehan

Communications Manager

ICLE Faculty Consultants

Merrill A. Roberts, Ph.D.

Arthur Hippler, Ph.D.

Alisha Barker, M.A., CALT

Allison Buras

Associate Director of Credential Program
Senior Faculty