Meet the Staff – Magazine Columnists

Join us quarterly at The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine to hear from a wide range of well-known regular columnists, all of whom are experts in their fields. They are here to bless you and encourage you to make your homeschool journey as successful as it can be. Downloading the Apple or Android app will make their columns even easier to read! Download here.  Or read the current and all the back quarterly issues online here.

The Old Schoolhouse is here to help. We’ll see you in the magazine!

Paul and Gena Suarez – Tennessee

Paul and Gena Suarez have been privileged to support homeschooling since launching The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine in 2001. Their personal journey, homeschooling seven children now aged 11 to mid-30s, reflects their dedication to a faith-driven, family-centric education. They’ve since expanded their support through the membership learning platform SchoolhouseTeachers.com, offering over 400 online academic courses to a global audience, and the Schoolhouse Network, enabling families to join local church-based homeschool co-ops for a community learning experience from a Biblical worldview perspective. Based in eastern Tennessee, their work is focused on providing materials and mentorship that uphold a Christian educational philosophy. For more details or to access them directly, contact Publisher@TheOldSchoolhouse.com.

Deborah Wuehler

Deborah Wuehler is the Senior Editor and Director of Production for The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. She has eight children, ages 16 to 33, and has been homeschooling for 30 years. Deborah’s mission is to point homeschoolers to the Lord in all they do and to encourage them that they can find everything they need for life, Godliness—and homeschooling—in their knowledge of Him (2 Peter 1:3,4).

Robert Bortins – North Carolina

Robert Bortins is the CEO of Classical Conversations, Inc., a classical Christian homeschool program with communities in over fifty countries, curriculum in multiple languages, and a robust global network forty-five thousand families strong. Robert and his wife, April, live in Southern Pines, North Carolina, with their three young children. www.ClassicalConversations.com.

Dianne Craft – Colorado

Dianne Craft has a master’s degree in learning disabilities. She speaks widely at homeschool conventions across the country. Her books and CDs have helped hundreds of families remove learning blocks in their struggling children at home. Visit her website, https://diannecraft.org, for many articles on children and learning, and to download her free Daily Lesson Plans for the Struggling Reader and Writer.

Christine Hage – West Virginia

Christine Hage has been homeschooling in West Virginia for over a decade. She strives to live a simple, eternity-minded life as she raises her family and serves in the ministry with her husband. She and her husband lead a local homeschool support group offering encouragement and fellowship to other families. They also offer homeschool support at www.teachingnaturally.net.

Kristen Heider – New Jersey

Kristen is a housewife and mother to an adult stepson and two younger children. She is a certified social studies teacher and has worked as a volunteer at a National Park site, in the education department of a metropolitan zoo, and as a high school history teacher. Kristen has maintained a blog where she relates her family’s learning experiences at A Mom’s Quest to Teach since 2015. She is the Business Building Team Manager at The Old Schoolhouse®.

Michelle Howard – Michigan

Michelle Howard is a veteran home educator, author, columnist, speaker, consultant, and librarian who operates “living books” libraries in Michigan and Florida, including the first-known of its type. She wrote the deep, award-winning, literature-based curriculum, TruthQuest History (www.TruthQuestHistory.com), to probe history for spiritual truth.
Michelle offers a living-books database and consultations on home education and library development at www.LivingBooksLady.com.

Natalie Mack – Virginia

Natalie Mack is an author, TEDx speaker, and veteran military home educator. Natalie earned her BA in political science and Spanish and her master’s in education. A mom of four homeschool graduates and a homeschooled senior, she is also a newly retired navy chaplain’s spouse after serving alongside her husband for thirty-four years. She owns Natalie Mack, LLC, a homeschool consultation service, and is the founder of Military Homeschoolers Association and the podcast Base2Base Military Homeschooling. Additionally, Natalie serves as the Military Community Outreach Coordinator for HSLDA. A frequent podcast guest, Natalie is the author of 101 Tips for Homeschoolers and numerous magazine articles.

Stephanie Morrison – Saskatchewan, Canada

Stephanie, her husband, and two boys are comfortably nestled in Saskatchewan, Canada. She has educated her two youngest boys, ages 13 and 10, since birth. Pursuing her calling to help parents enjoy the responsibility of educating their children, she works for The Old Schoolhouse® in the Canadian division and in sales support helping to connect parents to the materials and programs that help them teach.

Douglas Pietersma – Wyoming

Dr. Douglas Pietersma is a retired military intelligence officer and currently an education researcher holding a Doctor of Education degree from Regent University with a research emphasis on homeschooling and Christian education. Dr. Pietersma is a research associate with the National Home Education Research Institute (nheri.org) where he serves as the editor of the Home School Researcher, a peer-reviewed journal which focuses on homeschool-related research work. He is also an adjunct professor of education in the School of Education at Regent University (regent.edu) teaching graduate courses in education, mentoring graduate and post-graduate students as well as serving on and chairing dissertation committees. In addition to research and editing work, Dr. Pietersma is the father of a homeschool graduate and continues to home-educate his youngest, special-needs high school student. He also is available as a conference speaker or home education consultant.

Brian Ray – Oregon

Dr. Brian Ray is president of the National Home Education Research Institute (NHERI.org). He has published numerous articles and books, been interviewed by major media, served as an expert witness in court cases, and testified to legislatures regarding educational issues. Dr. Ray is a leading international expert in research on homeschooling. He holds a PhD in science education from Oregon State University. Brian and Betsy have been married forty-two years and have eight children, all of whom have been homeschooled. Donate to the nonprofit NHERI (www.NHERI.org/donate) and sign up for free research updates.