Juli Vitello, Grade 7 & 8 Language Arts & Social Studies

Juli Vitello marks her fourth year at Green Woods Charter School with a leap from the third grade classroom to teacher of seventh and eighth grade Language Arts and Social Studies.  An honors graduate in Literature from Albright College in Reading, Pennsylvania, Ms. Vitello spent many years using her communications skills in radio, public relations, and as an Emmy award winning television producer.  In 1999 graduate school beckoned.  Ms. Vitello earned her Masters’ in Education at Chestnut Hill College with a certification for middle school.

As an instructor, Ms. Vitello embraces an inclusive classroom and “real life” learning such as current events, dissecting media and its messages, and understanding how we are governed.  Students need a strong understanding of these areas in order to take their rightful place in tomorrow’s world.  Language Arts and Social Studies are naturally integrated and will be taught concomitantly.  Since no two students learn the same way, course materials will include novels, non-fiction text, readers’ theater, primary documents, and websites.  Ms. Vitello’s goal is for students to recognize that learning opens many doors. 

Ms. Vitello is an avid reader and big fan of vocabulary words.  Her family includes her husband Don, a television director, her son Carson, a guitar-playing honor student at Plymouth-Whitemarsh High School, and a precious little dog named Buster.  Ms. Vitello studies the mandolin and is an active member of the Philadelphia Folksong Society.

Green Woods Charter School is a great place to teach.  The serene setting fosters an understanding of the importance of nature in staff members and students alike.  The small size of the school makes each child stand out as an individual and allows teachers to teach each child in a positive way.  Collaboration by the staff is complete and friendly.  If it truly “takes a village,” then Green Woods provides one with involved parents, many siblings, and a safe, nurturing environment.  In addition, there is nothing like seeing a heron swoop low over the playground on a sunny day, or watching a turtle walk across the road to lay eggs in the brush.

Jean Wallace, CEO

As the CEO of Green Woods Charter School, Jean is responsible for guiding the design and implementation of our award-winning curriculum and for supporting the direction of all areas of school life. Jean works in collaboration with our staff, Board, community and educational partners to build on our successful past towards an even greater future.

Charter schools are public schools.  As such Jean is accountable to the Department of Education for ensuring that our students are receiving a standards-based learning experience, from qualified teachers, within the guidelines and mandates of Federal, State, and Charter School Law. In addition to the many responsibilities associated with curriculum and instruction, Jean supports Green Woods through ongoing communication and collaboration with the school’s Controller, to ensure that Green Woods is not only achieving as a school, but also as a business.   

As a member of the State Council for Environmental Education, Jean works with many of the State's environmental experts and agencies. "By working collaboratively with the Department of Education and the outstanding environmental agencies throughout our state, Green Woods is able to gain both valuable resources along with well-deserved local, state and national recognition for the exceptional work being done by our teachers and students," Jean said.

In addition to the daily interactions with Green Woods dedicated staff and parents, Jean enjoys those rare and special times when she gets to trail along on hikes with our budding naturalists. "Hiking with even our youngest students and seeing how they interact with the natural world always presents a wonderful learning opportunity for me. Green Woods students are skilled observers, able to take in the big picture of the field ecosystem while at the same time patiently exploring the leaf litter in search of the smallest signs of life."

Jean is extremely proud to have been selected to be a member of a cohort of educators who will pave the way for a new doctoral program in Educational Leadership at Arcadia University this Fall. Jean currently holds four Pennsylvania education certifications: Principal K-12, Supervisor of Curriculum and Instruction, K-12 Environmental Education, and Elementary Education. She earned her post-graduate certifications and her MAEd in Environmental Education; a BA in Elementary Education, and an Associate Degree in Health Science.

Jean lives with her husband, her mom, her daughter Mary (our awesome Art Room volunteer) and two very lovable Labradors, Murphy and Kodi Bear.  

Each day is a new day of exploration and discovery as we challenge each other to provide the best possible learning environment for our students.

In less than four years time our amazing teaching staff has taken teaching and learning to a whole new level. Working in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Education, our teachers, themselves, developed our K-8 award-winning EIC Curriculum which engages our students in integrated learning experiences that span all disciplines. Utilizing our 350-acre learning laboratory as an outdoor classroom, our partnership with the Schuylkill Center continues to grow and thrive as the Center’s expert educators spend many hours working with our classroom teachers to enhance the teaching of environment and ecology concepts.

Green Woods is the only public/charter school in the entire country to be housed directly within a nature center. Years ago I earned my graduate degree by utilizing this same setting as a laboratory for learning. It is so rewarding to now spend time observing our students as they explore and discover new things while hiking in the same woods where I learned so much about the natural world.