Travis Multhaupt
Biology
Grandville APSI
Hello, my name is Travis Multhaupt, and I teach biology at the Utica Academy for International Studies in Sterling Heights, MI. I began my career in education when I was a graduate student at Michigan State University. While working on my Master’s Degree, I taught a variety of undergraduate courses in the life-sciences in addition to pursuing a post-baccalaureate teaching degree.
Upon graduation, I received a job teaching general science, and did so for the first seven years of my career. At the beginning of the 2006-07 school year, I was given the opportunity to revamp the AP Biology program in the high school where I worked. A few years earlier, one of my colleagues had done a similar overhaul of AP World History, and said the best way to improve the success of the students was to become a reader. At his urging, I applied to the College Board and became an AP Reader in 2008, thus beginning my involvement with the Advanced Placement Program outside of teaching. In 2015, I was invited to the AP Biology Reading as a Table Leader. Since 2016, I have served as an Early Table Leader which gives me the opportunity to work with others to craft the scoring rubric that is used to grade the exams.
In addition to grading AP Biology exams, I was involved in the AP Biology redesign where I piloted the Peroxidase Enzyme Lab and provided extensive feedback on how this lab worked, how it could be improved, as well as various suggestions for how to incorporate this lab into the classroom setting. As a result of this endeavor, I was encouraged to become a consultant. In the spring of 2013, I was trained to provide a variety of workshops for biology teachers all over the country. I look forward to meeting with you all and sharing ideas this summer!
Nikki Wilson
English Literature
Grandville APSI
Nichole Wilson currently teaches AP English Literature and Composition at William Mason High School in Mason, OH. She is an AP English Literature Workshop Consultant, Mentor, and Reader. She has spoken about best practices at a number of conferences, including the AP Annual Conference (2017, 2018, 2019), the College Board's National Forum (2013, 2015, 2017), the Ohio Teacher Leadership Summit (2020, 2021), and NCTE (2021). She was an organizer and speaker for Mosaic 2020 and Mosaic 2021, the unofficial AP English Literature & Language Conference. Nichole is also the Grade 12 ELA Teacher Leader at Mason High School, a Teacher Leader Ambassador with the Ohio Department of Education, and chair of the Ohio Teacher Leadership Summit (2021, 2022). She has been a contributor and review for a number of educational textbooks, including the third edition of Bedford's Literature and Composition. Additionally, she taught Literature, Language, and Media Studies in England as part of the J. William Fulbright program.
Kyle VanderWall
US History
Grandville APSI
Kyle VanderWall has taught AP US History for 15 years at Grandville High School in Grandville, MI. Over that span, the program has grown from 40 students enrolled to over 100. He has served the College Board in a number of capacities over the last several years. For the past eight years, he has participated in the AP Reading as both a Reader and Table Leader scoring the Long Essay and Document-Based Question. Kyle has lead numerous one-day and week-long workshops for the College Board in Hawaii, Texas, Colorado, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and back to his home state of Michigan. He was also an author of materials for AP US History Insight and the AP Online Professional Development modules, where he focused on developing strategies to help students and teachers understand the historical reasoning skills taught in APUSH. Additionally, Kyle has been an author of ancillary materials for multiple AP US History textbooks. Kyle completed his undergraduate work at Hope College, finished his first Master’s Degree at Grand Valley State University and is currently enrolled in graduate study at Western Michigan University in the History Department where he is focused on nineteenth century political party developments and internal migration patterns. Kyle and his wife Ashley have three children, Theodore, George, and Eliza. They reside in Grandville, MI.
Karen Sleno
Calculus AB/BC
Grandville APSI
Karen Sleno received her B.S. in Mathematics Education degree from Saginaw Valley State University and her M.A. in Mathematics from Oakland University. She has taught in both parochial and public high schools, most recently at Flushing High School for the past 27 years, teaching all math subjects from Algebra I through AP Calculus AB and BC. In addition, she serves as the department chair, a role she has fulfilled for the past 23 years. She is also an adjunct instructor at Mott Community College where she has taught for the past 12 years. Her experience with AP Calculus AB and BC led her to be a participant at the AP reading for the past 16 years, first as a reader, then as a table leader and most recently as a question leader. Karen has been a consultant for the College Board for the past 6 years and also served as part of the review team for the transition of Khan Academy to be a College Board-approved AP Calculus review site. Her efforts in education and in the AP program earned her recognition as Educator of the Year for her district in 2015.
Chris Groenhout
Environmental Science
Grandville APSI
Chris Groenhout graduated from Michigan State University with a major in biology and a minor in chemistry. He has been teaching chemistry, biology, AP biology, and AP environmental science since 2000. He also has a masters degree in biology and a masters degree in educational technology. Chris has a passion for the environment and education. Chris currently teaches chemistry and AP environmental science at Grandville High School in Grandville Michigan. He is excited to provide meaningful and useful experiences to facilitate growth in educational best practices.
Dr. Sherry Wynn Perdue
English Language
Grandville APSI
Since 2009 Sherry has been at the helm of the Oakland University Writing Center. As an AP Consultant she enjoys offering one-day workshop throughout Midwestern campuses and relishes sharing her passion for teaching during the week-long summer institutes.
Dr. Clarissa Peterson
US Government & Politics
Grandville APSI
Dr. Peterson currently teaches at DePauw University, a liberal arts college in Indiana and has been involved with the AP program in various capacities since 2001. She has completed numerous tasks for the College Board; writing exams, writing individual questions for the exams, scoring exams, previewing exams, facilitating workshops and institutes, reviewing syllabi, and many other things. Her research focuses on American voting behavior and racial politics, while her most recent research focuses on racial resentment across the world. She is an award winning teacher (2016 Anna Julia Teacher of the Year Award) and constantly works to improve her teaching. Over the years Dr. Peterson has been the recipient of multiple grants to complete summer research with undergraduate students and most recently has been a participant in grants to study in Australia, South Africa, Japan, China, and Hawaii.