About Faculty

Melissa Myers is originally from Idaho. With more than 28 years of professional teaching experience, Mrs. Myers has dedicated her career to elementary education. In addition to Alaska, she has also taught in Colorado, Idaho, and Washington.

“I believe that every child can learn,” says Mrs. Myers. “Children develop at different rates and have different needs, and I strive to honor all of these. I expose my students to many educational activities to challenge them while also focusing on their social and emotional learning.”

Mrs. Myers earned a Bachelor of Science Education from the University of Idaho with a major in Elementary Education. She also completed a Master of Science Education with an emphasis in Curriculum and Instruction from Seattle Pacific University.

With her husband, Jim, Mrs. Myers has a son Matthew who just recently got married. They also have a miniature poodle named Amber, who keeps them busy.

Sarah Afoa is a lifelong Alaskan with more than three decades of teaching experience. After retiring from the Anchorage School District, where she taught kindergarten for 29 years and in 2015 was recipient of the BP Alaska Teacher of Excellence Award, Mrs. Afoa joined Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton School in 2016.

“I am truly blessed to teach kindergarten,” says Mrs. Afoa. “My job is to make sure my students love school—how cool is that? I take them wherever they are and move them along the educational continuum.”

An inductee of the Alaska High School Athletic Hall of Fame for volleyball, basketball, and track, Mrs. Afoa is a former college athlete at the University of Alaska Anchorage where she earned both a Bachelor of Education and a Master of Edcation with an emphasis in Early Childhood Education and Language Arts.

Married for more than 30 years to her husband Stan, Mrs. Afoa is the mother of two sets of adult twins—Shaina & Savannah and Stanson & Sierra.

Originally from California, Lindsay Wackowski joined SEAS in 2023. Prior to moving to Alaska in 2013, she spent six years at Saint Perpetua Elementary in Lafayette, California, where she taught both kindergarten and first grade. Before taking some time off to be with her sons, she taught kindergarten through second grade in the Anchorage School District for five years.

Mrs. Wackowski holds both a Bachelor of Arts in Education and a master’s degree in technology integration in the elementary classroom from Saint Mary’s College.

Mrs. Wackowski’s family has a long history at SEAS. Her husband, Steve is a SEAS alumni, and her mother-in-law is a former teacher having taught at SEAS from 1994-99.  “I am so excited to be teaching in my mother-in-law’s former classroom,” said Mrs. Wackowski. “Being here really is a homecoming for my family.”

In her free time, Mrs. Wackowski enjoys spending time with her husband and their three boys where they can often be found outside skiing or hiking.

Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Mrs. McLaughlin joined SEAS in 2016 after earning a certification to teach in Alaska. She taught fourth grade for several years and now enjoys teaching second grade. Previously she taught at two Catholic schools in Boston.

“I love to teach at a Catholic school,” says Mrs. McLaughlin, “because I enjoy sharing my faith with young people.”

Mrs. McLaughlin is a graduate of Boston College’s Lynch School of Education where she earned a degree in Elementary Education and Theology.

Mrs. McLaughlin is the proud mother to ten children. Her youngest five children attended SEAS. In her spare time Mrs. McLaughlin loves to kayak on Kenai Lake, hike in the Chugach State Park, and read historical nonfiction.

Mrs. Hanson came to Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in 2021 as a substitute teacher after retiring from the Anchorage School District with 25 years of teaching experience ranging from pre-kindergarten to sixth grade in general education and special education settings. She joined the faculty full time in 2022.  She is also a parishioner at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish.

Prior to moving to Alaska in 1986, Mrs. Hanson lived in Louisiana briefly and Washington state where she attended and graduated from Catholic schools.

She earned a Bachelor of Science in Education from the University of Alaska Anchorage and also completed a Master of Special Education degree from George Fox University.  Mrs. Hanson is certified to teach kindergarten through eighth grade.

Mrs. Hanson has been married her husband Michael for nearly 40 years. Together they have three adult children who also live in Anchorage along with their black lab Green.

Mrs.  Hanson believes that an educator should provide an environment that encourages students to become independent successful adults with a good work ethic and a positive attitude.

Marcea Tjaden was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. As a child, she was a member of the Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish where she was in CCD and received her first communion. As an adult her own children were baptized at the Saint Elizabeth Parish.

Mrs. Tjaden graduated from Western Oregon State College of Education in 1993 where she triple majored in speech communication, earth science, and geography. With a desire to “come back home” to work as a teacher, after  graduation she returned to Anchorage. In addition, she is a graduate of the University of Alaska Anchorage where she holds a Bachelor of Science in Education and certification to teach kindergarten through eighth grade and also a Master of Elementary Education degree.

After more than 25 years of service as an elementary school educator with the Anchorage School District, Mrs. Tjaden retired in May 2021. She joined SEAS as the fourth-grade teacher in Fall 2021.

Mrs. Bradshaw was born and raised in Anchorage and is the oldest of five children.   After graduating from Service High School, she earned a Bachelor of Science in Geology from Northern Arizona University.  After completing her degree, Mrs. Bradshaw and her husband moved back to Alaska to be closer to family and raise their two sons.  She spent the next 12 years enjoying family life and working part-time for a small mining exploration business.

In 2000, Caroline and her family entered the Catholic Church through the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) program at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish. Throughout their elementary education, both of her sons attended SEAS.  Mrs. Bradshaw loved volunteering at the school while her children attended and she realized that she was being called to teach.  After working at Romig Middle School as a Special Education Teaching Assistant, in 2014 she earned a Master Arts in Teaching from the University of Alaska Southeast and began teaching the fifth grade at SEAS.

“The biggest gift we can give to our children, and the primary role I play as an educator at St. Elizabeth, is to facilitate within each child a deep sense of faith and relationship with Jesus, interwoven with a passion for learning,” said Mrs. Bradshaw.

Outside of school, Mrs. Bradshaw loves spending time with family and friends, going on outdoor adventures, gardening, and creating good things in the kitchen.

Eddie Ezell was born in North Little Rock, Arkansas and spent much of his childhood growing up in Oklahoma. His family eventually moved to Fort Worth and where graduated from Castleberry High School in 1984.  The following year, Mr. Ezell moved to Alaska to attend college at the University of Alaska.

After college, Mr. Ezell worked for the Union Pacific Railroad for a number of years before returning to Alaska. Prior to joining St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in 2006 as the sixth grade teacher, he taught at Kodiak and the Anchorage Public School District.

Mr. Ezell holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and History from the University of Alaska. He also has Master Degrees in Environmental Science, Education, and Business Administration from Alaska Pacific University. Additionally, in 2019 he earned a Certificate in Catholic School Leadership from Loyola Marymount University.

In his free time, Mr. Ezell enjoys reading, bicycling, and hiking. In the summers, he likes going back to Oklahoma to visit his dad.