High School
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At MIS, high school students are given the opportunity to lean in to their intellectual curiosity, develop their leadership and professional skills, and cultivate their social and intellectual independence to succeed in college, the workplace, and beyond. |
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MIS bases its curriculum design, instructional strategies, travel opportunities, and college preparedness activities on the ever-growing body of research in giftedness and the learning sciences. The MIS High School experience bridges a deep understanding of gifted students and their need for limitless learning opportunities with the constraints and limits of college preparedness, university admissions, and adulthood. |
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MIS High School Graduates:
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a message from our coordinator
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I want to take the time to welcome you to the MIS high school page. It is our mission to ensure that no one waits to learn and that each student understands their value and potential. Our high school program is designed to make sure that students are prepared to be leaders and learners for life. We do this through our rigorous academics, comprehensive school counseling services, as well as individualized college planning and advising services. Please take some time to browse this page for information regarding the high school and feel free to contact our admissions office should you have any questions regarding the enrollment process.
Sincerely, Ron King High School Coordinator/College Counselor |
High School Faculty & staff
Kangni Amouzougan
Physics My love for science and teaching began years ago. As a young man, I would spend time with my uncle at his schools in my spare time. Then after high school, I studied at The University of Mali in Physics and Applied Physics and received both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. I then came to America to study at what was then Southern Polytechnic University, but now Kennesaw State University where I studied Information Technology. Similarly, I speak 4 different languages and want to share my experiences with your children. In my spare time, I write code, travel, tinker with my cars, and consider myself a lifelong learner. |
Mr. Barich holds a Bachelor’s Degree in History from the University of California, Berkeley, a Master’s Degree in Theology from the Graduate Theological Union, and a Master’s Degree in Teaching from Emory University. He is certified to teach Social Studies grade 6-12 in Georgia. He has taught Social Studies and Religious Studies for 17 years, both in a public school and private school setting. He has coached lacrosse and baseball and sponsored Mock Trial and Model United Nations. Mr. Barich cycles, reads, and enjoys spectator sports. His greatest joy is spending time with his son, who is a senior at The University of Georgia. |
"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart." - Nelson Mandela Eli was born and raised in Nicaragua and attended college at King University in Bristol, Tennessee. At King, He received a bachelor’s in Spanish and participated in the men’s soccer program. Eli has previously worked with elementary, middle, and high schools around the tri-cities area, helping children with learning disabilities as well as teaching English to speakers of other languages. In the classroom, he focuses on broadening students’ perception of the world by teaching them the value of diversity in people, cultures, and languages. |
Amy Cutts
Math Amy is thrilled to be joining the MIS family this year to teach math to 5th and 6th grade learners! Amy believes that learners are most likely to take risks and try new things in an environment where they feel comfortable and accepted, and cultivates a classroom environment values kindness and respect above all else. Amy is a native Georgian and attended Auburn University where she was on the Dean’s List and received her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education. Over the past ten years she has taught a diverse group of learners, including two summers spent in Uganda, and eight years teaching fifth and sixth graders. She has enjoyed opportunities to continue her learning by becoming a Google Certified Educator, a Project Lead the Way trainer (a STEM based curriculum), and learning to build and program robots using Vex IQ kits and RobotC programming software. In her spare time, Amy enjoys being outdoors, spending time with her two dogs, reading, crocheting, and traveling just about anywhere. |
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Lisa is passionate about teaching students scientific literacy within the context of real-world issues. This will be Lisa’s sixth year as a member of the MIS science team, having joined the faculty in the school’s first year. Over the last six years, she has had the privilege to teach all ages K-10. She has previously taught biology, genetics, and microbiology, and will teach high school chemistry this year. Lisa is native of Charlotte, NC, but grew up in the Atlanta area and graduated with a B.S. in Microbiology from Auburn University. After working for one year at the Auburn Vet School, she completed an M.S. in Microbiology at Auburn in 1998. She worked at a small biotech company in Huntsville, AL for two years until 2000, when she then went to work in a forensic biology lab. Lisa and her husband moved to Maryland in 2002 to work at The National Institutes of Health. She has also held adjunct faculty roles at three community colleges where she taught biology and microbiology. Lisa returned to Atlanta in 2005 with her family. When she is not at school, she enjoys reading science fiction, playing her flute in a quintet group, working out, and traveling internationally as much as possible. |
Joseph was born in Macau and spent his early years in Shanghai. He began his formal Mandarin studies after graduating from high school and spending a year in Guangzhou, China teaching English in local middle schools and taking Chinese classes. He then spent one year studying Education at the University of Hong Kong, followed by three additional years at UNC Chapel Hill, where he double majored in Chinese and Linguistics with a minor in Education. After earning his bachelor’s degree, Joseph then pursued a master’s degree in International Relations at Nankai University in Tianjin, China (with all coursework in Chinese). Most recently, Joseph worked as a consultant at a public affairs firm in Beijing, advising multinational companies on how to best operate in the Chinese market. This is Joseph’s first year at MIS, and he is looking forward to using second language learning approaches that energize students and give them as many opportunities to use Chinese in practical scenarios as possible. He is excited to create an immersive and hands-on Chinese environment, and to share the many tips and tricks he picked up along his own Chinese learning path. "三人行，必有我师焉；择其善者而从之，其不善者而改之 -- 孔子 “Walking among three people, I find my teacher among them. I choose that which is good in them and follow it, and that which is bad and change it.” ― Confucius |
Reshaundra has a passion for athletics and enjoys helping students find their inner athlete. As a former college athlete, she has the knowledge to help lead our students in the right direction. With a master's degree in health and physical education, she has been able to implement many new and fun activities for students in PE class. Her dedication to her craft makes her a great coach and an excellent addition to the MIS team. |
Cesar “Ephraim” Padilla is a retired Army Colonel with 30 years of service that included many places in Latin America and the Middle East. He was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico and grew up in several places in the United States and Latin America due to his father’s career as a mid-level manager for the Federal Aviation Administration. His native language is Spanish but learned English by attending schools in Puerto Rico, the United States and the Panama Canal Zone. Ephraim earned a Bachelors of Science Degree in Psychology from Georgia State University. He also holds two masters degrees. A Master of Arts Degree in International Land Warfare (Military History) from the American Public University and a Masters of Strategic Studies from the United States Army War College. Ephraim is a self-taught linguist who has worked with many cultures and has been exposed to many languages throughout his military career. He taught Spanish and other courses in the Army and learned Hebrew and Brazilian Portuguese on his own. He enjoys reading science fiction and playing board games with his family. |
Travis is very excited to be starting his fourth year teaching math at MIS. Before joining the team at MIS, Travis was a teacher at the International School of Helsinki, in Finland, where he learned about Finnish culture, explored Europe, and taught a diverse group of students from all of the world. Travis found working in an international environment to be extremely fulfilling and an ideal education setting where students are encouraged to become empowered, global citizens. These are just a few factors that make MIS such a great place! Before moving to Finland, he received his Master’s of Arts in Teaching Mathematics from Georgia State University after earning his Bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature from Emory University. Travis loves incorporating liberal arts into his math lessons, and believes that math can be found all around us. In his free time Travis enjoys playing tennis, cooking, and cheering on the Atlanta Falcons. |
World citizenship has always played a central role in Munib’s life: he was born in Belgium to Iranian parents and grew up in Brazil, Macau, China, and the United States. Munib received both his Bachelor’s in Film Studies & Creative Writing as well as his Master’s in Film Studies from the University of Miami in Florida, and holds a PhD in Communication with a concentration in Film and Media Studies from Georgia State University. He has presented original research in a number of regional and national conferences, including ones held by the Society for Cinema and Media Studies, the Association for Asian Studies, the American Men’s Studies Association, the Association for Bahá’í Studies, and the Popular Culture Association. Munib has also worked as a script reader and editor for a number of media projects. When not writing about himself in the third person, Munib enjoys playing drums and the ukulele, watching movies, playing video games, and exploring Atlanta with his wife Melanie and their two sons, Tristan and Thornton. |
Taylor holds an undergraduate degree in German Language and Culture with a concentration in Business from Kennesaw State University. She is an active member of the Delta Phi Alpha National German Honor Society, and has spent two summer semesters studying abroad, attending local German courses in Münster, Germany. Aside from her passion for language, Taylor is also an experienced musician, and a local piano teacher. Joining the MIS faculty in Spring 2020, she is excited to engage and guide her students through their own cultural journey and language growth. "And now we welcome a new year, full of things that have never been" - Rainer Maria Rilke |
Christine loves to read, but more importantly, Christine loves discussing and exchanging themes and ideas which emanate from stories with adolescents. Christine has a Bachelor of Arts in English and Educational Studies from Emory University and furthered her pedagogy by obtaining a Masters of Arts in Teaching for Secondary English Education at the University of Georgia. Regardless of time or culture, she believes that the abundant themes and topics found in literature or novels do not remain on the page, but rather transcend into our environment, minds, and hearts challenging us to question or enhance our values in order to become better people in various aspects of our lives. In her classroom, Christine seeks to help students use reading and writing as a tool to help them acquire, express, and challenge their opinions according to their unique abilities about experiences that occur within their personal lives and the world. Christine does not have one “particular” favorite book, but some novels that have inspired Christine are the Bible; The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho; Matilda by Roald Dahl; Animal Farm by George Orwell; and many more! In her personal time, Christine enjoys the following activities which include but are not limited to: reading, running, volunteering, dining out at delicious, local restaurants, researching recipes for baked goods and nutritious foods; wandering through Publix, Trader Joe’s, or Kroger for groceries; watching movies; attending local street festivals;and browsing at quirky items and smelling aromatic candles at T.J. Maxx or Marshalls. |
Leah was born in Connecticut and decided she’d had enough of the snow, so she made her way south to University of Lynchburg in Virginia, where she majored in English and worked at a variety of on-campus jobs, from tutoring in the writing center to giving campus tours to helping first-year students adjust to college as an orientation leader. She also pet sat for most of her professors, which helped her land a job as a kennel attendant at a local animal hospital. In the summer before her senior year, Leah studied abroad in London, earning credit in British Drama and Theory and in Travel Writing. In May 2014, she graduated with highest honors in the major after writing a thesis on Thomas Eccleshare’s play, Pastoral, one of her favorite productions she saw in London. Before heading to graduate school, Leah spent a month on the island of Thasos with Writing Workshops in Greece. After taking classes in food and travel writing in the mornings, she would spend her afternoons exploring the island, enjoying delicious food, and attempting to learn the language. In 2017, Leah earned her Master’s degree in Composition and Rhetoric from University of South Carolina, where she also taught first-year English courses and tutored in the university writing center. During her time there, she adopted a rescue dog named Penny, an adorable 20-pound Blue Heeler-Miniature Pinscher mix. After graduating from U of SC and accepting a job teaching high school English at an independent school, she and Penny moved to Georgia. Leah is thrilled to begin her career at MIS, and can’t wait to share her love of literature and writing with students! |
James Williams
World History James is from Texas and has a BA in History and Africana Studies. His first teaching position was at Peterschule in St. Petersburg, Russia. He enjoys reading, biking, and tennis. |
High School & College Counseling
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High School Counseling
At MIS, we are as committed to the social and emotional well-being of our students as we are to their academic success. To that end, we offer a comprehensive counseling program that addresses those needs. Some of our counseling services include:
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College Counseling
MIS is a college preparatory school that strives to ensure that each student finds the college or university that is the best fit for them and their life-long goals. The college advising program begins in the 8th grade and becomes increasingly individualized throughout their high school career. Services include:
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High School students visit Mercer University during the 2018 Georgia College Tour.
Academic offerings
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Teaching Philosophy
At MIS, we recognize that the high school experience can more fully support the advanced cognitive and/or creative abilities of gifted learners by implementing these strategies across the curriculum:
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Problem-Based Learning
With problem-based learning, students employ research, inquiry, and collaboration to formulate solutions to global, academic, and intellectual problems. At MIS, problem-based learning:
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clubs & sports
More details coming soon!