Faculty & Staff

Mr. Ryan brings a passion for teaching economics and mathematics that began in his own high school classroom. He has experience with a range of courses in our network from his time teaching for BASIS Independent Silicon Valley and BASIS Independent Manhattan. These include AP Macroeconomics, AP Macroeconomics, Capstone: Game Theory, and mathematics from Algebra I through Precalculus. 

Mr. Ryan earned his Bachelor of Science in Economics with a Minor in History from Binghamton University in Upstate New York. During his undergraduate years, he tutored upper-level microeconomics to college students while also volunteering as a substitute teacher in a middle school. This dual experience shaped his goal of teaching his favorite subjects at a high level to motivated middle and high school students as they begin exploring specialized academic interests.

In his classroom, Mr. Ryan focuses on personal engagement through practice problems, experiments, and instructional games. He believes that students learn best when they are actively involved in the learning process. Outside of the classroom, Mr. Ryan enjoys running, listening to podcasts, and brainstorming new lesson plans, preferably all at the same time. He finds fulfillment in constantly seeking innovative and engaging ways to inspire his students.

Are there any highlights you’d like to share about your teaching philosophy or approach?
The core principles of my teaching philosophy are rooted in economics. When teaching opportunity cost, I introduce the tradeoffs inherent in the “endowment effect,” the human tendency to value something more once we own it. The endowment effect can be leveraged to the advantage of our students. We rarely overvalue the investment in our own human capital, that is, the investment in our own education. Consequently, I have consistently found that students learn best when they feel ownership over their learning. That ownership is the first meaningful step toward becoming a lifelong learner. My role is to create a healthy learning environment where that ownership is both natural and rewarding so that students continue to reinvest in themselves. That means lessons that are efficient, data-driven, and engaging. When course structures and expectations align with students’ goals, engagement rises.

What are some of the most rewarding parts of being a Subject Expert Teacher and working with BASIS Independent School students?
One of the most rewarding parts of being a Subject Expert Teacher is working with students who are genuinely curious and are capable of engaging with advanced material. Teaching within an accelerated curriculum allows for deeper conversations. Our students have more opportunities to push beyond procedural fluency and towards genuine conceptual understanding. I especially enjoy watching students as they begin recognizing when they are thinking ‘like economists’, questioning incentives, recognizing tradeoffs, and using marginal analytical reasoning. Watching my students develop confidence in their skills and intellectual independence has been incredibly fulfilling.

Are there any thoughts you’d like to share with families who are joining – or who are thinking of joining – the BASIS Independent Dublin community?
My aspiration is to share the confidence and excitement I have developed from joining the BASIS Independent Dublin team with our families. In my experience within the BASIS Independent network, I have been privileged to see how our strong academic framework can grow and mature over time as students and faculty work together. Being part of this flourishing institution has been deeply meaningful professionally and personally. One of the biggest draws for me to work at BASIS Independent Dublin has been the opportunity to support our school leadership in building a campus community from the ground up. I have faith in the tested success of our curriculum, our school leadership, and our amazing and growing staff.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.

Ms. Kendall holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from the University of Oregon and a Master’s degree in Secondary Education, with a focus in the social sciences, from the University of San Francisco. This provides her with the skills necessary to create and maintain a welcoming educational environment for all learners. She is a strong believer that social studies classrooms are the perfect place for developing skills and interacting with content relevant to students’ lives. 

Ms. Kendall is a strong believer in developing a student’s enthusiasm for learning through hands-on activities, class discussion, and individualized assistance.

In her free time, Ms. Kendall likes to crochet and spend time with her family and friends.

What drew you to join our school community?

What drew me most to join this school community was the strong academic environment that has been developed, and the opportunity to work with students who have a love for learning and who have been very successful in meeting their academic goals!

What are you most excited about in your first year here?

I am most excited to get to know all my students and to develop a strong classroom community. Social studies classes are some of the best places to develop important literacy skills and confidence that can help students in other areas of study. I am also excited to interact with and get to know my peers at BASIS Independent Dublin and to help foster a strong and welcoming environment for all learners.

What advice do you give to students who want to succeed in your class?

Come to class with an open mind and be ready to learn new things! History is an exciting subject that connects to each person’s past while helping them prepare for the future. Ask questions, make connections, and challenge yourself to be the best student you can be every day, and you will be successful. 

What do you hope students will remember most about your class years from now?

I hope that students remember all the skills they will be developing and strengthening in my classes years from now. History and social studies are classes that are best taught when students are hands-on learning, but from these activities students are also working on important literacy and interpersonal skills that they will use in academic, professional, and personal settings for years to come.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.

A San Francisco native and life-long musician, Mr. Cliff received Bachelors of Arts degrees in Music and English in 2009 from Santa Clara University where he studied performance and screenwriting. He then began his career as an educator, teaching guitar, drums, and music theory throughout the Bay Area. He soon returned to school, earning a Master’s of Music in Music Education in 2014 from Boston University. During this time, Mr. Cliff continued his career as a music educator, teaching modern band, music theory, instrumental performance, and music history throughout the East Bay. While continuing his teaching career, Mr. Cliff found himself bitten by the education bug once again; he returned to Boston University in 2017 to pursue a Doctor of Musical Arts, where he is currently finishing his degree as a doctoral candidate.

Mr. Cliff is a passionate music educator who believes that music is for everyone – he also thinks it’s important to provide students with music education experiences that will transcend the classroom. Students can look forward to learning to play new instruments, getting better at instruments they can already play, performing live, learning to record, and listening to lots and lots of music together!

When Mr. Cliff is not busy teaching, you can find him spending time with his family in the city, on the hunt for the best burgers and hot wings with his friends in the East Bay, at the driving range, at the skatepark, on his laptop finishing his dissertation, and, of course, in his music room practicing!

What drew you to join our school community?

BASIS Independent Dublin seems like a place where the teachers and students are enthusiastic, and the prospect of building a music program from scratch with new students sounded like a can’t miss opportunity!

What are you most excited about in your first year here?

I’m excited to meet all the students, pick our first few songs, and to play the first notes in our brand new building together!

What advice do you give students who want to succeed in your class?

Some advice I would give to my students is to remember that “we are all musicians.” Whether you’ve been playing music for 30 years like me, or you’re just starting, it’s OK! You’re a musician, and as long as you keep practicing, you’ll be able to play and learn new things.

What do you hope students will remember most about your class years from now? 

I hope when you look back on our time together as a class, you’ll remember the fun you had learning and growing, choosing and playing repertoire you loved, and the joy we shared as a community of musicians.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.

Coach Jacki is a dedicated Physical Education teacher with a background in exercise science and a passion for helping students develop confidence and discipline, as well as a lifelong commitment to health and fitness. She holds a Master’s degree in Exercise Science with a concentration in Performance Enhancement and Injury Prevention, and brings experience from both school-based teaching and athletic training environments. Her approach focuses on creating a structured, positive, and engaging learning environment where students can build skills, improve their physical abilities, and learn the value of teamwork and sportsmanship. Drawing from her own experience playing multiple sports including basketball, soccer, water polo, softball, and baseball, Coach Jacki strives to expose students to a wide range of activities and to help them discover ways to stay active for life.

What drew you to join our school community?

I was drawn to BASIS Independent Schools because of its strong emphasis on high standards, student accountability, and overall excellence. I appreciate that the school values both academic success and the development of the whole student. I believe physical education plays an important role in building discipline, confidence, and teamwork, and I was excited about the opportunity to contribute to a community that prioritizes those qualities.

What are you most excited about in your first year here?

In my first year, I’m most excited about building strong connections with students and creating an environment where they feel supported and motivated. I look forward to helping students grow in their skills and confidence, while also establishing routines and expectations that keep them engaged and active.

Are there any highlights you’d like to share about your teaching philosophy or approach?

My teaching approach focuses on helping students feel both supported and appropriately challenged as they develop their skills. I design lessons that allow for steady progress so students can recognize their growth, while also promoting collaboration and accountability. I adapt activities to meet different ability levels, ensuring all students remain engaged and have opportunities to succeed.

What goals do you have for your students to take away from your PE classes?

My goal is for students to leave my class with confidence in their physical abilities and a positive attitude toward staying active. I want them to develop strong movement skills, understand the importance of fitness and injury prevention, and build lifelong habits around health, teamwork, and perseverance.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.

Mr. Ravikumar holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Davis, where he double-majored in Economics and History. He then went on to complete a master’s degree in Economics from Boston University, focusing on applied economic theory and social policy. Outside the classroom, he worked for several years in the industry as a data scientist, utilizing economic principles to analyze business policies.

Mr. Ravikumar first joined BASIS Independent Schools as a Subject Expert Teacher in Economics and Computer Science at BASIS Independent Silicon Valley, where he taught courses ranging from AP Economics to an Econometrics Capstone Course. His teaching philosophy is centered around a dynamic learning environment that connects theoretical concepts to real-world examples and critically engages with political and social implications of the course material. As an educator, he takes pride in developing a classroom milieu that is both rigorous and approachable: scaffolding challenging concepts with the support necessary for students to succeed at their fullest potential. 

In his free time, Mr. Ravikumar enjoys video games, reading a good book, and spending quality time with his wife and cat.

What originally drew you to teach at BASIS Independent Schools, and what brought you back now?

I was originally inspired to teach at BASIS Independent Schools by the environment of genuinely inquisitive and curious students and families I saw. It was a joy to see teachers, parents, and students collaborate to foster an open, inclusive, and understanding learning environment. I am excited to return to a new community that holds learning in such esteem across a variety of subjects and the development of critical thinking along with reasoning skills.

What is one of your favorite memories from your previous time at BASIS Independent Silicon Valley?

I found it deeply rewarding to see my Econometrics capstone students take everything they had learned about statistical techniques and apply it to their own term projects. My students chose a wide variety of topics, from optimal basketball plays to stock market performance to competitive video game results, using their own skills and newfound knowledge to devise hypotheses, collect data, and present their completed projects. Seeing them do it all on their own was one of the greatest joys I had as a teacher.

What are you most looking forward to as you join a new school community? 

I’m excited to meet my new students! Building this new community will be the collective work of the teachers, staff, students, and parents, and I can’t wait to meet the students who will play such a major role in shaping it. I also look forward to helping students develop new relationships with the world around them through a deeper understanding of history.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.

Ms. Atkins holds a master’s degree in Classics, specializing in the languages, cultures, and history of the ancient Mediterranean world. She is particularly fond of the Roman Empire, which has been her lifelong passion, and she can’t wait to introduce BASIS Independent Dublin students to her favorite Latin authors.

In addition to Latin, Ms. Atkins has a broad academic background. She studied ancient Greek as part of her master’s program, translating epic poems, religious texts, and slapstick comedy. Her bachelor’s degree is in history, and she is fascinated by the common humanity that people share across time and culture.

Are there any highlights you’d like to share about your teaching philosophy or approach?

My teaching approach emphasizes creativity and critical thinking. In Classics, my goal is for students to imagine history in fresh, complex ways, noticing the similarities between us and ancient people while also recognizing our significant differences. Students should expect to read and write quite a bit of historical fiction. They should also expect a variety of hands-on projects, such as grinding wheat and mummifying apples.

My approach to Latin is similarly focused on narrative, critical thinking, and historical reasoning. As the language of the ancient Roman Empire, Latin is the closest thing we have to a time machine because it allows students to understand ancient people on their own terms. Reading stories is the primary method of instruction, though I also include hands-on projects to visualize different aspects of Roman culture.

Latin education has traditionally focused on grammar — and I love grammar! However, I don’t simply give my students a textbook and expect them to regurgitate the rules. Instead, I prefer that students study a sentence as though it were a point of scientific data, then work backwards and investigate why, exactly, words are chosen, structured, and arranged in a particular way. This approach helps the students understand that grammar is meaningful, not an arbitrary collection of rules, and that every choice of word reveals something about the author.

After the first two years of Latin, students will have an advantage in many different academic and professional areas. As the origin of the modern Romance Languages, Latin is useful for studying Spanish, French, Italian, and Portuguese. Knowledge of Latin will also come in handy when learning medical terminology, legal jargon, and advanced English vocabulary. Finally, students will gain a broad understanding of European art and literature, which will enrich their lives no matter what career they pursue. Those who continue with Latin beyond the first two years will find these advantages multiplied even further as they explore advanced grammar, epic poetry, and ancient history.

What are some of the most rewarding parts of being a Subject Expert Teacher and working with BASIS Independent School students?

When I first began teaching at BASIS Independent Schools, I was consistently amazed at the students’ passion for learning. These are the type of kids who teach themselves pigpen cipher for fun and draw diagrams of Hannibal’s forces at Cannae. My students ask such thoughtful questions that I am always challenged to dig deeper into Latin and history.

Latin is a subject that I’d imagine can be daunting to students.  What advice do you give to students to help them succeed in your class?

Latin is a language – the fact that it’s ancient doesn’t make it more difficult than Spanish, Hindi, French, Mandarin, or any other language still spoken today. In fact, since Latin focuses on reading more than speaking, it may come more naturally to students who enjoy solving puzzles and express themselves best in writing.

To succeed in Latin, students should pay attention, take notes, do their homework, and take advantage of my office hours – the same good study habits that help in any class. However, learning a language does present some unique challenges. I recommend that students review vocabulary often. They should also make sure that they know how to conjugate verbs and decline nouns, which I explain in depth during class.

Are there any thoughts you’d like to share with families who are joining – or who are thinking of joining – the BASIS Independent Dublin community?

If you’re joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community, then welcome! Meeting new students is one of my greatest joys every Fall and I can’t wait to see how we will all grow over the course of the year.

If you’re thinking about joining BASIS Independent Dublin, then I would love to connect with you during one of our open house events! There, you can get a tour of the school, ask questions about our curriculum, and get a feeling for our school culture.

BASIS Independent Dublin is a Grades 5 – 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Dublin community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.