Riverdale Welcomes New Faculty Members
Jake Crowley-Delman
Outdoor Education
Riverdale Review: What most excites you about the year to come?
What most excites me is also what most scares me: this is all new. There have been some times in the past few months where I have seen things that I have never seen before. That’s exciting.
RR: Hobbies?
I am really good at traveling alone.
Nelson Arroyo
English Department
RR: What has been your most memorable teaching moment so far?
A parent got on a Zoom call at 9 AM while I was teaching. At first I was a little taken aback, but the parent actually gave some very positive feedback, which was really awesome.
RR: Unique abilities?
I’m an ordained minister. I’ve actually done three non-denominational weddings.
Kyle Augustine
Science Department
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I was a chemistry teacher in Baltimore.
RR: What most excites you about the year to come?
I am looking forward to doing my first experiment in the lab, whenever that may be.
RR: Hobbies?
I really enjoy mountain biking. I am new to the Greater New York Area, so I have been trying to explore good areas.
Jeremy Clifford
Math Department
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I was the head of school at St. Ignatius School in the Bronx.
RR: Unique abilities?
I have run five marathons in my life—at least one in each decade of my life: 20s, 30s, and 40s.
RR: Anything else?
I have family at Riverdale. My wife, Ms. Monti, teaches science, and my daughter is in the Class of 2022.
Ruben Gonzáles-Jiménez
Language Department
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I grew up in Puerto Rico and left to become a member of the US Marines when I was 20. I spent 5 1⁄2 years with the Marines, and then returned to Puerto Rico to attend college. Then I attended Stony Brook University to get my PhD in Spanish, and then worked for six years at Professional Children’s School in Manhattan.
RR: What most excites you about Riverdale?
I’d like to teach a specialized Spanish course on war literature from the Spanish Caribbean. I have been to war myself, and that’s not something many teachers can say.
Omar Quershi
History Department
RR: What most excites you about the year to come?
To be perfectly honest, it’s tough joining a new school under these circumstances. Despite that, I have been enjoying slowly getting to know the students.
RR: Hobbies?
Well, does Riverdale have a squash team?...I coached squash for a long time at Brearley, and have played for even longer. Now that I know that Riverdale has a team, I’d certainly like to be one of their fans.
Tyler Walker
Choral Accompanist
RR: What will you be doing at Riverdale?
I am the choral accompanist.
RR: Unique abilities?
I can clap with one hand!
RR: Anything else?
I have a ten year old Cocker Spaniel. His name is Parker and he is like my child.
Meg Johnson
History Department
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
Immediately before, I was a grad student at Teachers College at Columbia.
RR: Hobbies?
I like outdoor stuff a lot. In the summers, I’ve lead month-long backpacking trips in Alaska.
Baunnee Martinez
Math Department
RR: What has been your most memorable teaching moment so far?
Watching students fight off bees in the tents and then having the sunlight bounce off the whiteboard, blinding me.
RR: Unique abilities?
I can fall asleep pretty much anywhere and I have seen every episode of Catfish: The TV Show.
Nilda Nystrom
Nurse
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I worked in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Mount Sinai Hospital. Most of my nursing experience is in intensive care.
RR: Is there anything else you would like to share?
We are all in this together. It is up to all of us to be part of keeping the school COVID-free,
JP Jacquet
Admissions
RR: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
I was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and grew up in the Boston area, which means I am a huge Boston and New England sports fan.
RR: Why did you choose to enter school admissions?
Having gone to an independent school myself, I want to bring more people into this community to enrich our learning experiences and pay forward some of the opportunities that I have had.
Tyler Perry
Technical Theater
RR: What excites you most about the year to come?
I’m excited to dive in with technical theater students who are really used to building and creating live performances through a new medium that we are developing on our own; we’re sort of reinventing the wheel as we’re teaching it.
RR: Hobbies?
I build Legos a lot. I can build a Lego set pretty quickly.
Rebecca Zimmerman
History Department
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I worked at an American international school in Santiago, Chile, where I taught 10th, 11th, and 12th grade history and psychology. I was also the dance coach and I spent a lot of time backpacking through South America.
RR: Anything else?
Register to vote if you are 18!
Tom Taylor
Head of Upper School
RR: What did you do before coming to Riverdale?
I was the Upper School Head at Breck School in Minneapolis for seven years. Before that, I worked at Riverdale as a Dean, Director of Financial Aid, tennis coach, physics teacher, and a few other things.
RR: Anything else?
I’m in graduate school right now, working on my doctorate. When I was in high school, I never really liked school, which is a little ironic. But ever since, I’ve rediscovered how much I love learning. Look for that joy of learning here—it’s not impossible to find.