Faculty and Staff Directory

The La Jolla Country Day School faculty, administration and staff are strong, diverse and talented individuals who have been drawn together for a common purpose. Ours is a vibrant community with an exciting charge—to create a stronger, better place where our children and those of future generations can grow to become excellent individuals, citizens and adventurers of the world.
Below is a list of the administration, staff and faculty. To locate a member, click on the drop-down menus below to search by division, department or last name. Faculty and staff bios are also available below.

Faculty/Staff Directory

  • Photo of Valencia Valentine Hamman
    Valencia Valentine Hamman
    Director of College Counseling
    (858) 453-3440 x145
    Bio
     
    “I feel strongly that through the journey of the college admission process, I am able to inspire greatness for a better world. As I tell every student who steps into my office, they are exactly where they need to be with regard to the steps that lead to college. Each student has their own educational path, and I am poised to help them get from wherever they might be when they first walk through the door to where they are headed for college.”

    Valencia Valentine Hamman joined the La Jolla Country Day School college counseling staff in 2007 after spending more than 20 years working in college admission. A native of Peoria, Ill., Ms. Valentine Hamman began her admission career at Beloit College in Wisconsin, where she worked for four years. Then she moved to San Diego, where she was a member of the admission staff at the University of San Diego for more than 12 years. Ms. Valentine Hamman also worked as a West Coast regional representative for Cornell University for four years, recruiting students from all over the West to attend Cornell. Admission work began for her as a way to give back to her alma mater, but it has become a lifelong passion.

    Ms. Valentine Hamman attended Beloit College, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts with a double major in French and psychology. She has lived in San Diego since 1991 with her husband, Peter, a facilities engineer for a start-up biotechnology company. They have two children: Jackson (LJCDS class of 2020), who attends Ohio Wesleyan University, and Isabella, a Cal Poly San Luis Obispo graduate. They all love being a part of the LJCDS family.
  • Photo of Luke Jacob
    Luke Jacob
    Director of Writing, Communication and Media Literacy
    (858) 453-3440 x345
    Bio
     
    “I inspire greatness for a better world by helping young people develop their voices as writers and their skills as readers of all media—text-based, visual, electronic, and more. The gift of communication is one of the most fundamental aspects of being human; learning to appreciate and use that gift is, therefore, a humanizing, humbling, and rewarding process.”

    Lucas Jacob serves as LJCDS’s Director of Writing, Communication, and Media Literacy. This role involves working with all three divisions on initiatives related to communication, focusing especially on writing and on 21st-century literacies.
     
    Mr. Jacob is the author of two full-length poetry collections (Sympathetic Beasts, 2023, and The Seed Vault, 2019) and two chapbooks of poems (Wishes Wished Just Hard Enough, 2019, and A Hole in the Light, 2015). He serves as co-editor-in-chief of the Journal of Media Literacy Education. Mr. Jacob’s poetry, essays, and fiction have appeared in more than 70 literary and trade journals. He earned his bachelor’s in English and African/African-American studies from Carleton College and his master’s in creative writing and literature from Temple University. For the past 25 years, he has worked as a teacher, coach, advisor, and administrator in independent schools in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Texas, and California. He had the privilege of being a Fulbright Scholar in Budapest, Hungary, in 2004-05.
     
    When he is not writing or working with young people, Mr. Jacob plays guitar (sometimes in amateur bands featuring rock and blues repertoires, and more often in his living room), walks or runs for miles on end, follows the Chicago Cubs, and experiments with new dishes in the kitchen. Mr. Jacob and his wife are enjoying getting to know their new home city of San Diego.
  • Photo of Tiana Kelly
    Tiana Kelly
    Associate Director of College Counseling
    (858) 453-3440 x214
    Bio
     
    “I inspire greatness for a better world by challenging students to look past their own lens and truly see the greatness within. Through my commitment to empower students, I advocate for them to engage and take ownership in the college search process. It is my goal that we create a truly individualized experience, where students feel cared for, confident in their college decision and at the end of the day, on a path to success for graduation and beyond.”
     
    Tiana Kelly joined La Jolla Country Day School in July 2020, after spending seven years in the Office of Admissions at the University of San Diego, which also happens to be her alma mater. There she earned her BA in International Relations and is currently working on her MA in Higher Education Leadership. 
     
    Prior to her work in education, Ms. Kelly spent a decade in the corporate sector of Commercial Real Estate. However, her passion for working with students and continued learning led her to education. Her greatest sense of joy and purpose is being able to work directly with students, helping them navigate the convoluted landscape of higher education and cheering them on along the way!  
     
    Ms. Kelly enjoys traveling, is an avid sports fan, an outdoor enthusiast, and self-proclaimed foodie! This past summer, she and her husband welcomed their son, Dennen into the world! You can often find them and their two dogs Finn and Bunker playing in the waves at one of our local dog beaches.
  • Photo of Martin Vaughn
    Martin Vaughn II
    Associate Director of College Counseling
    (858) 453-3440 x190
 

Faculty and Staff Spotlights

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9490 Genesee Avenue
La Jolla, CA 92037
858-453-3440

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