Teaching at La Jolla Country Day School

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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

Department

Grade

Last Name

Colin Dalton

Educator, US Humanities

(858) 453-3440 x301

Bio

I inspire greatness for a better world by creating an environment in my classroom for all students to be seen and heard. Our classroom is a safe space where everyone can try out new ideas or reflect thoughtfully without fear of judgment. Students recognize that being wrong is not final, but instead is a wonderful opportunity to grow and understand.”

Colin Dalton joined LJCDS in the middle of the 2019–2020 school year as an Upper School humanities educator. He teaches Justice and Injustice and AP Psychology.

Mr. Dalton earned a Master of Arts in Education from the University of San Diego and his bachelor’s degree in American History from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Before joining LJCDS, he taught AP U.S. History and AP Government at Summit Shasta Public High School in Daly City, CA. He helped develop a project-based curriculum and served as a mentor/advisor to a group of 25 students while there.

Mr. Dalton lives in La Mesa, loves rugby and is a huge Warriors fan. His main focuses in class are creating engaged citizens who understand the intricacies of American government and helping students explore the complexities of the human psyche.
Ransom Davis

(858) 453-3440
Joan Diener

Educator, US Strings and Orchestra and LS Strings

(858) 453-3440 x270

Bio

“I inspire greatness in my students by instilling a lifelong appreciation of music. Through the study of a string instrument, I teach students to develop creativity, self-expression, self-confidence, teamwork and innovative problem-solving skills as they become musical artists.”

Music is medicine for the soul and body. It is one of the few activities that involve using the entire brain. Music is intrinsic to all cultures and has surprising benefits not only for learning language and focusing attention, but also for physical coordination and development. Joan Diener’s role is to use music education to help students become better human beings and to encourage them to share their passion for music with others.

“For Einstein, music acted as a catalyst through which he could clarify, define and understand the complexities of his scientific studies. Music was not a pastime or distraction but a vital tool in focusing his mind upon the deeper questions he was analyzing in his work.”

As the Upper School orchestra director, Mrs. Diener believes that all children should be introduced to music at the earliest possible age. Mrs. Diener received dual bachelors’ degrees in performance and music education at the Philadelphia College of the Performing Arts, where she studied with principal violinists of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Mrs. Diener moved to San Diego in 1987, where she earned her master’s degree while playing with the San Diego Symphony. She started the strings program at LJCDS in 1990, and she is proud of an instrumental program that has demonstrated over 30 years of success. Mrs. Diener also enjoys competitive couples dancing as her second passion. She won two World Championships in Nashville, Tenn., in 2005 and 2007.
William Doerge

Educator, US Science

(858) 453-3440 x279

Bio

“How do machines and devices work? Automobiles, wind generators, smartphones? Why do objects move and behave as they do? An airborne soccer ball, a bicycle, an airplane, the solar system? What are the scientific ideas behind their operation? From my childhood to now, I have always wondered how and why things work, and through teaching physics I aspire to stimulate a similar curiosity and enthusiasm in my students. I inspire greatness by facilitating lab activities that allow students to directly gather evidence for physics ideas in a hands-on manner, such that they are able to better understand where the ideas and equations originate. Then my students apply these ideas to solve engineering-like problems, to explain how vehicles move and devices function, and to design and build their own devices.”

Bill Doerge hails from Pittsburgh, and he started his career as an electrical engineer for Motorola in Phoenix, Ariz. While working with middle school students as a volunteer, he became interested in teaching and has taught high school and college physics in both Arizona and San Diego. He also worked as a science curriculum developer and physics instructor at the Center for Research in Math and Science Education (CRMSE) at San Diego State University.

Mr. Doerge particularly enjoys working with students on engineering projects, which have included an electric vehicle conversion, robotics competitions, Rube Goldberg machines, solar-powered vehicles and a rideable hovercraft.

Outside of school, his interests include hiking and cycling, both on and off road.

Faculty and Staff Directory

Faculty/Staff Directory

La Jolla Country Day School

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