Assisting our students to pursue their goals is our passion.
All our faculty bring a global perspective to the courses they teach and look for opportunities to integrate experiential education with class work wherever possible. Class Afloat exclusively hires teachers who are driven by a passion to engage young people in activities that allow them to develop their leadership skills and full potential as global citizens. Our teachers lead small classes that are tailored to meet the learning needs of each student.
Learn more about current faculty members by clicking on an image below.
Shipboard Director
David is a creative educator, writer, musician, and lover of all things outdoors and adventurous. His varied career has seen him teach in Bhutan, Kenya, England, Scotland and the DRC where he was a founding Principal of the British International School of Lubumbashi. A passionate advocate for progressive education, he believes that a radical evolution is necessary to better prepare the youth of today for the uncertain challenges of tomorrow. He’s released a few albums, written a few books and encourages everybody to dig deep into their creative side, get out into nature and become agents for positive change. David will also be working as Class Afloat Director of Curriculum Development, helping to design and deliver the experiential, place based curriculum. Along the way he hopes to learn with (and from) the Floaties about how education can best be used to inspire effective and impactful social change.
What’s something you’ve been meaning to try but just haven’t gotten around to it?
The Pacific Crest trail. I walked the Camino de Santiago in my twenties and have done a few other long distance hikes but the big one is always on my mind. Walking for that long through nature changes you. Also, sky-diving and learning to dance properly.
If you could have anyone as a dinner guest – living or deceased, who would you choose?
Is it too corny to say Alexander von Humboldt? What an inspiring legend. But he’d probably bore the pants off everybody because, bright and charismatic as he was, he never stopped talking. So maybe John Muir instead for the deceased and George Monbiot for the living.
What is one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned to date?
Everything’s in constant motion, always changing, never staying the same (also known as ‘You never step in the same river twice’ or ‘I’d rather be a river than a puddle’).
What book impacted you the most?
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. It taught me three things:
1) You can make conscious decisions about how you perceive reality
2) Why just read and listen to music when you can write and play
3) Everything’s relative and very few things are ‘right’
Rafael is truly a world traveler. He grew up in Caracas, Venezuela, attended his undergraduate studies in New York at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and later immigrated to Canada where he obtained a Bachelor of Education degree from York University in Toronto. Rafael started his teaching career with Class Afloat in 2013-14 where he sailed aboard the SS Sorlandet, teaching Biology, Chemistry, and Marine Biology and completed three Atlantic crossings. The call of the sea and strong sense of community fostered with Class Afloat have “called him back home” after having spent the last seven years as a landlubber teaching for the Edmonton Catholic School District. There he was instrumental in the development of a Spanish bilingual Mathematics curriculum.
Rafael brings his passion for dancing and community involvement projects wherever he goes.
Prior to becoming a teacher, Rafael worked as a Fitness Instructor, Dancer and Performer, and Show Manager for the non-profit Performing Arts organization, Up with People. He is also currently undertaking his Master’s of Hispanic Language and Cultural Teaching for primary and secondary teachers at the University of Alcalá, in Madrid, Spain.
What is the best single day on the Calendar?
No contest here… July 15th: National Gummy Worm Day.
What book impacted you the most?
After visiting Goree Island in Senegal, the place where slaves were held before being forcibly shipped all over the world to be sold, reading “The Book of Negroes,” by Lawrence Hill, became a harrowing, impactful experience that I’ll never forget.
What is one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned to date?
From a Maya Angelou poem: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
What’s something you’ve been meaning to try but just haven’t gotten around to it?
Definitely… parachuting!
Dr. Beth Warsof, PhD (she/her) is a licensed developmental psychologist, professional certified coach, and international experiential educator. In her work, Beth co-creates brave, compassionate spaces that empower individuals in their gifts, cultivate connection and community, and bring greater justice and belonging to our world. Beth is honored to return to Class Afloat (Gulden Leeuw, 2017-18) in her role supporting student and community wellness. Beth will work in person during Student and Faculty Orientation as well as remotely throughout the year.
Raised by marching bands in Calgary, Danielle took her talents out west to enjoy better weather while studying physics and completing her Bachelor degrees in Science and Education at the University of Victoria. Soon after, the prairies called her home to start her teaching career in a variety of unique schools with students from grades 2 through 12. Unable to resist the west coast for long, Danielle returned to Vancouver Island after completing her Master of Mathematics for Teachers through the University of Waterloo and joined up with a boarding school where she expanded her skills to include robotics and rock climbing and made plans to run away and join the circus as an aerial silks artist. Sadly, age and biology put a bit of a pause on the circus plan but opened doors for a new adventure with Class Afloat.
Being able to travel while working and exploring the world with a unique group of students.
The best adventures start when you abandon your carefully laid plans. Getting locked out of the amusement park makes for a great story even if all you got to see was the gift shop for the first 3 hours.
How anyone could choose only one book is completely beyond me. Most recently I would say Orange by Ichigo Takano
That would be the most ridiculous wardrobe and the largest home library of over 600 books covering the largest wall in my apartment
Rob grew up on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. Here he developed a love of the sea- learning to wind-surf, snorkel and scuba dive. He studied Cell Biology at Durham University and trained as a teacher at the University of Manchester. Rob has since taught in The Bahamas, Kenya and Vietnam. He believes in incorporating adventure, respect for the natural world and sustainability into education. His aim is to produce leaders who will positively impact the world. In his spare time, Rob enjoys tracking down and photographing interesting organisms (both on land and underwater). He also likes to hike up mountains, volunteer with conservation projects and try new extreme sports.
Questions:
Skydiving! I’ve always wanted to do it and have even booked it twice, only for it to be cancelled both times due to inclement weather… Maybe it’s a sign?
Normally, when you’re teaching you are stuck in the same old room every day, so it’s going to be amazing to be somewhere new all the time. I also can’t wait to see what kind of students would sign up for such a mad cap adventure- I’m going to guess they’ll be pretty awesome!
“It’s not the destination, it’s the stuff you happen upon along the way!” Weekend trips in Kenya and Vietnam really showed me that the best experiences aren’t always the big touristy attractions, but the weird little café, secluded beach or lay-by-with-a-view on the way that makes it special!
I am a big fan of Douglas Adams’ “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”. It’s endlessly quotable, completely bonkers and surprisingly profound. It also provides some important mantras to live your life by; namely “Don’t Panic!” and “Always know where your towel is”.
Olivia grew up in England, where she completed a psychology degree in Cardiff, before training to be a science teacher in Bristol. She began her teaching career in The Bahamas, where she spent her free time increasing her knowledge of and love for the ocean and its inhabitants. After a bit of teaching (and a lot of safaris) in Kenya, she moved to Vietnam to be a one-woman psychology department. While she will miss Vietnamese food and bike trips with amazing scenery, she is excited to add many more places to that list this year and beyond. Olivia has always had a keen interest in animals (especially humans!) and their behavior. She is a promoter of positive psychology, and enjoys organizing activities to promote good mental health. She always encourages her students to volunteer in order to discover anddevelop their talents, knowledge and confidence.
1.What’s something you’ve been meaning to try but just haven’t gotten around to it?
Bungee jumping. I really, really want to do it, whilst being really, really scared at even the thought of it! And my mum might kill me…
2. What makes you most excited about teaching/working with Class Afloat?
After being unable to leave Vietnam for two years, I am very excited to be able to explore new and different places so regularly! I am also looking forward to discovering what it is like to be nowhere whilst we are crossing the Atlantic, and to learn more about sailing.
3. What is your best advice for having a great adventure?
Read about where you are going as much as you can, but don’t plan your itinerary too rigidly.
4. What is one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned to date?
That everyone is carrying things that you may not be aware of, so it’s important to always be kind to others. There may be reasons for people’s behavior that you do not understand yet.
5. Among your friends or family, what are you famous for?
As a child I had the nickname “Fearless Liv” for my ability to jump into freezing cold water. I have got distinctly less fearless with age, but a very encouraging thought for whenever I am being overly hesitant.
Growing up in Rural Ontario, I always felt the need to explore more of the world. After studying Art History at Concordia University in Montreal. I knew I needed to find a career that allowed me to travel and see what the world had to offer. After completing my B.Ed at Queen’s University, I moved to Quito, Ecuador for two years to teach grade 6-10 Design at a bilingual school. After living far away, home called me back to work at a boarding school caring for students from all over the world. That was short lived though as the stories my students told me encouraged me to go abroad again and I found myself in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam for 4 years, first teaching art, and then moving into my second passion of assisting students in Student Support ranging from Guidance to Learning Resource. Teaching abroad allows me to pursue many of my passions by helping me find inspiration for my art, eating really amazing food, and seeing new places.
What makes you most excited about teaching/working with Class Afloat?
I’ve waited a couple of years to be able to do this, I feel like it’s definitely going to be an adventure of a lifetime. I’m excited for all the places I will get to see and the new experiences I will be able to have with new people and new places. I am excited for the new opportunity and myself and to challenge myself in new ways.
If you could have anyone as a dinner guest – living or deceased, who would you choose?
I love this question and I often ask this to new people. For me, I would choose someone that is close to me that I never got to meet, probably my Grandfather on my mother’s side. He died before I was born but my mom always has the greatest stories about him and how much love he shared for his family. I would like to meet him in person and just get filled in on his life experiences and what he lived through.
What is your best advice for having a great adventure?
Be spontaneous, try not to fill your day with too many things. Leave room for the unexpected.
What is one of the most valuable lessons you’ve learned to date?
Don’t hold on to negative experiences. Do your best to find the positives in your every day and move forward from there. Live in the now and not the then.
Eric was raised on Canada’s west coast, on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.
Taking up sailing at an early age, he learned how to sail lasers and 420’s, a skill that led down a path of sailing instruction, and eventually to the broader pursuit of teaching and education.
Eric has continued to foster his love of sailing and the sea, having worked as a sailing instructor at the Royal Vancouver Yacht club, and most recently, with a non-profit organization that teaches all interested youth how to sail. He is looking forward to watching the upcoming Floaties gain their sea legs as they grow their maritime skills and confidence.
Eric studied Political Science and Sociology before going on to gain his BEd, both at the University of Victoria. He has taught in English in Hiroshima, Japan, worked as a classroom teacher in northern Alberta, and most recently back on Vancouver Island in Comox, BC. In the previous academic year he enjoyed teaching robotics as an elective and learning more about this interesting field alongside the students. His interests include hiking, traveling, being on the ocean, reading, and writing.
What is your best advice for having a great adventure?
Forethought: planning and research in order to pack lightly.
What book impacted you the most?
The Life of Pi.
If you could have anyone as a dinner guest, who would you choose?
Michael Faraday.
What’s something you’ve been meaning to try but just haven’t gotten around to it?
The West Coast Trail.
