We would like to welcome the following staff and faculty to Lausanne!
Early Childhood and Lower School
Lisa Ferrante - SK
Lisa Ferrante is thrilled to be part of Lausanne! She said she is looking forward to joining the SK teachers this year. A native Memphian, Mrs. Ferrante received her Bachelor's degree from the University of Memphis and my Master of Education from Christian Brothers University. For the last eleven years, she taught at Incarnation in Collierville. She has been married for 29 years to her husband John, and they have four children: Anthony, Alexandria, Erica and Marco. Anthony lives and works in Louisville, Kentucky, Alexandria and Erica both attend Mississippi State University and Marco attends school here in Memphis. She loves to spend time with her family on the beach, host holidays and entertain family and friends. In her spare time, Mrs. Ferrante also loves working on interior decorating projects, gardening, cooking and yoga. She said she feels that working with children is both a passion and a privilege and she is excited to embark on this new journey within the Lausanne community!
Middle School
Michelle Locastro- 8th Grade Math
Michelle is starting her 14th year of teaching and is so excited to be at Lausanne. She has taught everything from 7th-grade math to AP Calculus and all math in between. She joins us from West Collierville Middle School, where she taught Algebra I Honors and 7th Math Honors. In the past, she taught high school at Ridgeway High School and Rossville Christian Academy. Michelle graduated from Crichton College with a Bachelor of Science in Education and received her Secondary Math Certification from TN State University. Mrs. Locastro has been married to Jay Locastro, one of Lausanne's football coaches, for 29 years. They have three sons: Will, Weston, and Wyatt, and three grandchildren. Wyatt is a sophomore at Lausanne and plays football and baseball. Michelle enjoys spending time with her family, going to sporting events, reading and traveling to the beach.
Dave Lewellyn- 8th Grade Science
Mr. Dave Lewellyn is a retired Naval Officer and current Science/STEM educator. He is from Uniontown PA just south of Pittsburgh. Dave earned a BS in Biology from University of South Carolina. While still on active duty he earned a master’s degree in Education from ODU. Upon retirement from the Navy he started his teaching career, with one catch; his wife, Captain Mary Lewellyn remained on active duty. Dave followed Mary’s naval career from duty station to duty station which has given him a unique education resume. He has held teaching positions in USNA Annapolis MD, DoDEA Japan, upstate NY, Pensacola, Fl, Memphis, TN, DoDEA Italy, Norfolk VA, and back to Memphis. When the school in Pensacola closed because of damage from hurricane Ivan, he earned a master’s degree in Environmental Science from the University of West Florida while employed as the Director of Curriculum for the NJROTC program. Dave’s son Evan attended Lausanne for the 5th and 6th grade, but after Mary retired in 2016 the family moved to Norfolk VA for two years where David taught at Nansemond Suffolk Academy. The family returned to the Memphis area in 2019 and Evan returned to Lausanne as a 9th grader. Dave and Mary’s family also includes their son, Dylan, a graduate of Boston University living in Boston; Amanda 24-year-old daughter, a graduate of Duke University who lives in New York City; and, of course, Jimmie their rescue dog of unknown age.
Brianna Whitmore- 7th Grade English
Brianna Whitmore is the 7th grade Language Arts teacher as well as the middle school volleyball coach here at Lausanne. She has earned her Bachelor's degree from the University of Memphis and she is currently pursuing her Master's degree in Education at Christian Brothers University. She is also originally a native of Minnesota and comes from a military brat background, but Memphis has been her home now for about 13 years. In her off time, she enjoys being a mom to her twin girls, playing pick up volleyball games and traveling with her family. She is excited to start the school year at Lausanne and is looking forward to a great school year!
Upper School
Scott Hsu – Mathematics
Scott has been teaching high school Mathematics for 13 years and joins us from Saigon South International School, where he spent four years and taught IB Math. Scott holds a Master's in Mathematics Teaching.
Benjamin Kegerise – Mathematics
Benjamin holds a Bachelor's degree in Secondary Mathematics Education. He is joining us from Stevens, Pennsylvania, where his most recent experience was teaching at Centerville Middle School and Hempfield High School. 
KG Shepherd-Walker – Mathematics
KG joins us from Ridgeway High School where he has been teaching Math for the last two years. He is a graduate of the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, where he gained his Bachelor of Science in Mathematics..jpg)
Melanie Weyland – World Languages
Melanie has been teaching Spanish and French since 2002 and joins us from Cape Cod Academy. Before that, Melanie taught for 11 years at the Antilles School in Saint Thomas. Melanie holds a Masters in Spanish and Latin American Literature.
Samuel Bissbis – World Languages
Samuel has been a Spanish and French high school teacher since 2002 and was most recently at Chatham High School, where he had been since 2014. He holds a Master of Arts in Spanish Language and Literature.
Daria Schwartz – English
Daria has been teaching English since 2014 and joins us from Germantown High School, where she has been teaching for the last three years. She holds a degree in English and a Masters of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction.- Also, Chris Jordan will be moving into the Upper School Faculty in his new role as the Dean for Student Affairs and Inclusion.
School Nurse
Jo Turnage
Jo has 45 years of nursing experience, including 29 years dedicated to pediatrics, with 13 years at Le Bonheur and 16 years at St. Jude. Earning her RN at the University of Memphis, her most recent experience was working as the triage nurse at West Cancer Center for the Gynecologic Oncologists. She has three children and four grandchildren and a Great Dane named Lulu! In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, sewing, canning foods, and also working with various recovery groups. Jo is going to be an amazing resource for Lausanne. She will be implementing best practices and measures to ensure the promotion of a healthy school environment. She will be in our new clinic near the lobby of the lower school (used to be the conservatory). Nurse Turnage will provide direct student care, health education and counseling, and policy management.
Admissions
Rayann Jaber
Rayann Jaber has been a familiar face at Lausanne since she joined the staff in 2014. She has worked in Lausanne’s afterschool program, summer camps and as the interim Librarian. She graduated from the University of Memphis with a concentration in Child Development and Family Studies in December of 2019. She is delighted to be working with prospective families and their children during the application process.
Development
Cameron Sanford
Cameron Sanford is a Certified Nonprofit Professional joining us from Habitat for Humanity of Greater Memphis, where he was the Corporate & International Relations Manager. Prior to that, he gained extremely beneficial experience at ALSAC. Cameron received his undergraduate degree from The University of Memphis, where he studied Nonprofit Development and Administration with a minor in Political Science. He has nearly 5 years of development experience in event planning as well as working with donors, volunteers and corporate partners. In his free time, Cameron enjoys spending time with family, volunteering, aviation and traveling. He is very excited to be joining Lausanne as the Director of Parent Relations and Special Events!
Teaching Substitutes
Samantha Hirte- Upper School English 
Jin Powell- Upper School World Language
Please join us in welcoming all our new staff to the Lynx faculty. We are so glad you are here and a part of the Lausanne family.