The Affiliated High School of Peking University's Dalton Academy
DR. LINGFANG TANG
Science Department Chair
Since joining Dalton Academy, Dr. Lingfang Tang has consistently brought passion and dedication every single day. Dr. Lingfang Tang goes above and beyond with her students: they have been extracting fish oil from both deep-sea fish and freshwater fish. They administered a test to see if the collected fish oil, when given to rats, could decrease blood lipid levels. This type of work is an example of how our science department is allowing our students to connect with real-world scientific practices.
JODI BERRY
English Liberal Arts Department Chair
Born and raised in the United States, Jodi has lived and worked in many different countries, including Puerto Rico, Ecuador, Guatemala and now China. She is the definition of an international teacher! Dalton is very fortunate to count Jodi among its faculty members. She has started a Writing Center at Dalton Academy, which will have a lasting impact on students writing ability as they move forward into higher education and their professional lives.
DR. ROGER L. RUSSELL
Independent Research Program Coordinator
Dr. Roger L. Russell has been working at the school for the past 3 years. Since his arrival at Dalton Academy, he has put his heart in the Independent Research Project, one of our core programs. He has developed a solid program, which today enables students to engage in a substantive year-long project of their choice informed by academic research under the supervision of a Dalton Academy teacher. Dr. Russell has pushed the boundaries and structured the program in a way that impacts students both academically and personally for university and their professional life after that.
Mathematics Department Chair
OUR PEOPLE
Passionate Educators
DR. GARAY MENICCUCI
Bridging Program Coordinator
Dr. Garay Meniccuci is an inspiring teacher who has developed an Experiential Learning Course called: Introduction to the Refugee Crisis in the Middle East. The course directly addresses global social justice issues and has been nothing short of life-changing for everyone involved. One outcome of the initial Refugee Crisis course and the student experiential learning trip to Jordan has been an institutional commitment to support two annual full scholarships for students at risk in Jordan to complete their last year of high school at Dalton Academy. We are really proud to say that we are the first and only high school in China with this kind of scholarship!
DR. WEIBO ZHANG
Biology and Chemistry Department Chair
Dr. Zhang has a passion and dedication for life sciences. She has a research background in immunology and microbiology, and has industry experience designing tumor immunotherapy and vaccines against infectious diseases. In the past five years, Dr. Zhang has been able to inspire Dalton students with engaging and challenging classes. She also coaches students who are interested in biology research with university-level lab research in and outside the campus. Furthermore, as the leader for both the biology and chemistry department and the math department of the Dalton Academy, she is dedicated to offering the best math and science curriculum to students with various learning demand through close collaboration with her passionate and professional colleagues.
Moana Teriitehau
English Liberal Arts Department Chair
Moana Teriitehau is an admirable, inspiring and progressive educator devoted to his students. He accepted the challenge of creating the first French language program at Dalton. Moana leads the English Liberal Arts department including the Dalton Writing Center and Writing Lab, which enhance students writing and presentation skills, both academic and professional, as they move forward into higher education. He never ceases to impress people with his enthusiasm and his creativity through involvement in academic projects both in and outside the classroom. From France and French Polynesia, Moana arrived in China in 2014, working in the linguistic department of the French Embassy and teaching at Renmin University where he researched socio-didactics and intercultural interactions in classrooms. He then joined Alliance Française in Beijing before coming to Dalton. His experience and empathy make him a caring and culturally-sensitive educator, building a safe space for students to feel empowered and take risks, express themselves with respect, perfect their analytical skills and grow as individuals. His teaching interests include didactics, language, literature, linguistics, philosophy, sociology and semiology.
Alex Sicurella
Arts Department Associate Chair
Since 2016, Alex Sicurella has been a meaningful part of the Dalton learning community. As a member of the Biology and Chemistry Department, the Fine Arts Department, and previously the College Counseling team, Alex has brought a dynamic set of multidisciplinary skills and ideas to our academy. Alex’s courses, such as Animal Behavior and Digital Photography, provide students with unique insights and first-hand experiences, through exciting topics and engaging activities. His students not only gain a deeper knowledge of Biology and Fine Arts, but are also inspired to discover their own passions and interests through guided exploration. Recently, Alex has been appointed to the role of Fine Arts Department Associate Chair, in this role he looks forward to using his personal experience in Arts, combined with his deep connection to the Dalton community, to continue growing and developing our current Fine Arts program. His goal is to continue providing opportunities for students to express and push their creativity, along with helping them understand the value that creativity will serve in whichever passion or interest they may choose to pursue.
Fan Jiatong
Independent Research Program Coordinator
Born and raised in Nanjing, I attended junior and senior high school at Nanjing Foreign Languages School. In my senior year, I was admitted to Renmin University of China (RUC) and then started my life in Beijing. During my college years, I was on the school debate team and was responsible for managing the largest scale English learning club on campus. My junior year I attend King’s College London as an exchange student where I gradually developed my passion for intercultural and linguistic studies. After graduating from RUC, I continued my Ed.M studies at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. As a researcher, I focused on bilingual studies, family education, class design, as well as social and intercultural studies. My work experience ranges from overseas education consulting to online and offline curriculum design. I traveled to many children’s museums in Boston and previously established a children’s museum in Beijing. In 2022, I joined BDFZ and was deeply attracted by the level of the students’ diversity and autonomy. I hope my courses will benefit students, not only in knowledge, but also by enabling them to recognize themselves and discover their potential.
Global Studies Department Co-Chair
James Vaughan is committed to curriculum design that is both tailored to students’ interests and cultivates academic skills necessary to perform at the university level. Over the past five years he has created a number of elective courses that reflect his varied academic interests that take an interdisciplinary approach to teaching the social sciences. He is currently teaching courses that explore the fields of evolutionary psychology, the intersection of neuroscience and law, the sociocultural construction of mental illness, trauma awareness, medieval philosophy and literature, and the social and psychological mechanisms behind political uprisings and revolutions.
Jacqueline Wheelock
Global Studies Department Co-Chair
Jackie Wheelock has been an important part of the Dalton faculty since 2019. As Co-Chair of the Global Studies Department, Jackie is not only passionate about offering the fundamental History courses but also giving students opportunities for hands-on, project-based learning in her Global Challenges and Conflicts course. Similarly, she encourages student-interest driven research and learning in her American History course. Jackie sees her role as a History and Social Science Teacher as an opportunity to arm students with the skills and experiences that social sciences are uniquely capable of introducing to students, which are: the ability to ask questions, develop arguments, and deal with complex, nuanced, and intractable dilemmas. As cochair, Jackie looks to bring even more collaboration and creativity to the department and to give students more opportunities to explore their interests and passions.
DR. HUANG XIAOJUAN
Chinese Liberal Arts Department Chair
Dr. Huang Xiaojuan joined Dalton Academy two years ago, and we are so thankful she decided to embark with us on this meaningful journey of transforming education. A devoted educator, Dr. Huang truly understands our students’ reality as she also graduated from The Affiliated High School of Peking University. She has an incredible academic background: Master’s degree completed at Peking University and a Ph.D. at Princeton University. Dr. Huang has lived abroad for a total of ten years (the United States and Canada). She also worked in France, Italy, and Belgium as a visiting scholar and a postdoctoral fellow focusing her research for a year on religious and social history in pre-modern China. We are extremely fortunate to count Dr. Huang among our faculty members. Not only does she passionately share her rich knowledge with our students but she also incorporates project-based learning into her Chinese Liberal Arts classes so students develop deep content knowledge as well as critical thinking, creativity, and communication skills. These meaningful projects help students define their cultural identity but also bolster their knowledge as it pertains to their cultural heritage.
DR. MA JIYUN
Physics & Engineering Department Chair
Born and raised in Shandong province (China), Dr. Ma is a passionate and dedicated teacher who has been part of the Dalton family for the past seven years. We feel very fortunate to benefit from Dr. Ma’s knowledge, skill set, and enthusiasm. Dr. Ma’s area of expertise is superconductivity. She is the Physics and Engineering Department Chair and teaches Physics 1 (Mechanics, Electromagnetics and Waves) and Physics 2 (Thermal & Modern Physics) courses. Apart from being a remarkable teacher, Dr. Ma also invests a lot of her time into the international physics competitions where she coaches students and prepares them to outperform other teams! She is wholly committed to transforming students into apprentice physicists as she often gives her students the chance to work on some projects with industry professionals.
James Vaughn
