St. Stephen’s is pleased to welcome new faculty and staff members to campus as we kick off the 2025-26 academic year. These new employees will join other A-list faculty and staff across various departments.

Marko Biddle joins St. Stephen's as the Middle and Upper School Ceramics instructor. Biddle brings 10 years of experience as a teaching artist, most recently at Kentucky Country Day School. He also serves as the On-Site Assistant for The National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts' (NCECA) annual conference. Previously, Biddle was director of youth and arts programming at the Brockway Center for Arts and Technology. Biddle holds a bachelor's degree from Carlow University in Pittsburgh.

We welcome back Christopher Colvin, Ph.D., to The Hill on a part-time basis to teach mathematics. He previously taught mathematics and history at St. Stephen’s from 1995 to 2023.  Colvin served as faculty co-sponsor of Model United Nations, and was a consistent participant on St. Stephen’s West Texas trips and chaperoned many other student trips.

Bill Douglas joins St. Stephen’s as a leadership giving officer, the final addition to the Advancement office. He brings 20 years of fundraising experience, most recently at Roger Williams University in Rhode Island. Prior to that, Douglas was associate director of major gifts at Salve Regina University and spent 12 years at St. George's School, an Episcopal day and boarding school in Rhode Island. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Bryant University.

Dante Hurley is a new member of the St. Stephen’s security team. Previously, Hurley was a security guard at Northrop Grumman and served in the United States Army. He is currently studying business administration at Texas State University.

Julie McCain joins the Upper School faculty as an English instructor, and will be teaching English 9 and 10. Most recently, McCain served as the English Department Chair at Lamar Consolidated High School in the Houston area. She recently earned her master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology from Harvard University Extension School. McCain also holds a master’s degree in forensic juvenile psychology from Prairie View A&M University, and a bachelor's degree from the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor. It’s a family affair as McCain joins her brother, Athletic Director Jon McCain on campus.

Described as a beloved teacher, Jamal Middlebrooks returns to The Hill to teach Upper School history. He previously taught at St. Stephen’s from 2011 to 2018. While well-versed in many areas of history, he has a  special interest and love of the Renaissance and plans to revive his social science seminar on Haiti which continues to strengthen the school’s relationship with its sister school, St. Etienne. Middlebrooks earned a history degree from Duke University and a master's in liberal arts from St. John's College.  We are excited to welcome him back.

Frank Smith joins the St. Stephen’s as co-director of College Counseling after 13 years in the college counselling office at Sage Hill School in Newport Coast, California. Prior to his tenure at Sage Hill, Smith worked in the college office at Trinity Valley School in Fort Worth with  Head of School Chris Gunnin. Previous to his position in Fort Worth, he worked in the admission offices at Texas A&M University and Texas Christian University. With 35 years of experience in college counseling, Smith will be a strong addition to the school’s experienced College Counseling office.

Christopher Symms is the new Middle School Theology instructor. He previously taught 7th grade history at Bastrop Middle School. Symms has served as a student pastor at Restore Austin Church, a writing and academic coach at the Portland Writing Center and is a military veteran. He holds a bachelor's degree from Liberty University and a master's degree in theological studies from Portland Seminary at George Fox University. In his free time, Symms enjoys playing volleyball, hiking with his family, and reading and writing.

Paula Trejos is showing volleyball players how to bump, set, and spike as the new volleyball program director. She will also coach Middle School sports in the winter and spring seasons. Trejos most recently served as the volleyball program director at Brentwood Christian School, where she also taught art. Prior to that, she was a lead teacher in the Spanish immersion program at Magellan International School. Trejos holds a bachelor's degree in fine arts from Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano and a bachelor's degree in graphic design from Wayland Baptist University. As a player, she qualified for the World Cup in 2006. Trejos assisted in coaching the St. Stephen’s varsity volleyball team during the 2022-23 school year and we are excited she has rejoined the community.

Readers, please welcome Bethany Williams, the new head librarian. Williams also joins us from Bastrop where she served as public services librarian at the Bastrop Public Library for the past seven years. She was previously program director at the Lutheran Camp and Retreat Center and taught high school English at Troy High School. Williams holds a bachelor's degree from Texas Lutheran University and a master’s degree in library science from the University of North Texas.

Transitions on The Hill

Michelle Andrews has transitioned to Middle School Librarian where she will continue to develop and implement library programming, assist in supporting students and supervise the library space with a focus on Middle School information literacy and co-teaching the Expeditions class.

Danielle Horton, Upper School physics and engineering instructor, has been named interim chair of the Science and Technology Department. She succeeds Frank Mikan, Ph.D., who is stepping down from the role and will continue teaching astrophysics, geology and physics, as well as leading stargazing events on The Hill.

Lay Chaplain Morgan Stokes has moved from the Middle to Upper School and is teaching three sections of Theology 12. She will continue supporting the Spartans in Christ club.