Administrative Staff

Mrs. Karen Browning - Executive Assistant to President
Mrs. Browning was born in Oscoda, Michigan, into an Air Force family. The family moved every two years, traveling to such exciting locals as: Wyoming, Texas, Nebraska, Louisiana, Michigan, Alabama and California. Now on her second career with Holy Spirit Preparatory School, Mrs. Browning enjoys being in the front office. Her husband, Lt. Tom Browning, is a veteran with the Fulton County Police Department. The Brownings are parishioners at Holy Spirit Catholic Church, where Mrs. Browning served as the publisher for the Holy Spirit Sunday bulletin for five years. The Brownings taught Religious Education for five years, have served for 10+ years as Eucharistic Ministers, and three years as Mass Coordinators. Their daughter, Emily, is in the Holy Spirit Prep Class of 2013. The highlight of Mrs. Browning’s workday is seeing the Holy Spirit Prep students’ smiling faces!

Ms. Christie Martin - Assistant to Principal / Office Manager- Lower School
Ms. Martin was born in Watertown, New York. She attended Robert Morris College in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where she earned her Associates Degree in Administrative Assisting. Upon moving to Atlanta in 1996, Ms. Martin has served as a volunteer with many different organizations such as AIDS Walk Atlanta, Avon’s Breast Cancer 3Day Walk, CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate) of Forsyth County and the Girl Scouts of America. She is a member of the Golden Key National Honor Society. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree from Georgia State University, with a major in History and a minor in Political Science in 2006. Ms. Martin is an active member of Holy Spirit Catholic Church where she serves as a Sacristan and has been a member of the Parish Council and Liturgy Committee. Ms. Martin is enjoying planning her May wedding to Upper School English teacher, Mr. Rumiano. She currently resides in Brookhaven with her German Shepherd Champion. She is has been a staff member at Holy Spirit Prep since 2004.

Mrs. Colleen Tyner - Assistant to the Upper School Principal
Mrs. Colleen Tyner grew up in Atlanta and graduated from North Springs High School. She attended Auburn University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. Colleen worked and traveled with Post Properties for 13 years doing property management and development. She has lived in Sandy Springs for over 25 years. Colleen and her husband, Jeff, have three children who attend Holy Spirit Preparatory School in the Class of 2013, 2016, and 2018. Mrs. Tyner works in the front office of the Upper School as Administrative Assistant to the Vice Presidents. She loves seeing and interacting with the students everyday! She and her family are active parishioners at St. Jude the Apostle in Sandy Springs, where she has taught PSR and works in the Ave Maria Gift Shop.

Mrs. Karen Buttermore - Director of Institutional Advancement
Mrs. Buttermore joined Holy Spirit Prep in 2003 and is responsible for the Founders Campaign, the Annual Fund, advertising, and new student recruitment. She was most recently Director of Development at Christ the King School, where she was responsible for the “Miracles at Work” capital campaign, the annual fund, internal and external communications, and alumni relations. Prior to that, she was Associate Director of Development at Marist School where she was deputy director of the $25 million “Second Century” capital campaign; directed the Annual Fund; was a member of the Public Relations Committee and the Fundraising Steering Committee; and worked with the Major Gifts, Special Gifts, and Foundation/Corporations committees. She spent four years as a senior consultant for an Atlanta public relations firm, specializing in strategic marketing, issues management, organizational communications, corporate identity, and corporate giving programs. For 12 years, she was Director of Marketing Communications and Advertising for three software companies. Her early career positions include Public Information Director/spokesperson for DeKalb County Government, and then Director of the News Bureau at Georgia Tech and editor of Tech’s Alumni Magazine and newspaper Tech Topics. She is a graduate of Saint Thomas More School, St. Pius X High School, and Georgia State University where she earned a B.A. degree in Journalism with a minor in Education. She and her husband, King, have two daughters.

Mrs. Anne Marie Hooper - Director of Marketing
Mrs. Hooper has been involved with Holy Spirit Prep since her first daughter began attending the school in 1998. She joined the staff in 2005 as Director of Marketing. Mrs. Hooper is responsible for external public relations, marketing the school through local media via article and photographic content, internal marketing, and many special projects. She also coordinates the Preschool and Lower School Soccer programs. Prior to joining Holy Spirit Prep, she was Vice President of Operations for an Internet Development company and has served in senior management roles in a strategic consulting firm. Mrs. Hooper is the Girl Scout Troop coordinator for the school and is proud of our very active Scouting program. She is the troop leader for both a third grade Brownie troop and a sixth grade Junior troop. Mrs. Hooper earned an Industrial Engineering degree from Georgia Tech and an MBA from SMU, where she majored in Finance and Marketing. She and her husband, Chris, have three daughters at Holy Spirit Prep, Carson - Class of 2014, Riley - Class of 2017 and Jennings - Class of 2020.

Mrs. Sharon Higgins - Director of Admissions
Mrs. Higgins graduated from Penn State University with a B.A. in Liberal Arts, earned an MBA in Finance from Georgia State University, and she has a Certification in Developmental Observation from the Gesell Institute. She was raised in Pennsylvania and moved to Atlanta in 1995. Mrs. Higgins and her husband Dan have been members of Holy Spirit Parish since 1997 and Mrs. Higgins has served as a Lector since 2000. Additionally, she has served as a member of the board of Holy Spirit Parish’s “Families with Children Ministry” since 2003. Mrs. Higgins was previously Holy Spirit Prep’s Admissions Coordinator before being appointed as Admissions Director during the 2004/2005 school year. Mrs. Higgins has a daughter, Sarah, in Holy Spirit Preparatory School’s Class of 2020.

Mrs. Kelly Sickafoose - Registrar
Mrs. Sickafoose was born in Kansas City, Kansas. Her family moved to Atlanta in 1975, where she graduated from Dunwoody High School. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis in Physical Education from Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. Upon graduation she began her thirteen-year stint in higher education administration, ending at Vanderbilt University as a Financial Aid Counselor. Mrs. Sickafoose is excited to be back in the education atmosphere. She joined Holy Spirit Preparatory School in April, 2003, and enjoys being at Holy Spirit Prep with her husband, Mike, their three sons, Michael - Class of 2009, Daniel - Class of 2010, and Christopher - Class of 2012, three nieces and one nephew.

Mr. Samuel Fershteyn - Information Technology Manager
Mr. Fershteyn was born in the city of Moscow, Russia and graduated from Navai High School in Tashkent. In 1993, Mr. Fershteyn graduated with a Bachelor in Science degree from the University of Uzbekistan (Tashkent). In 1995, the Fershteyn family - including his wife Zarina and son David - decided to move to the U.S.A. They chose Rochester, NY where Mr. Fershteyn started working for Bausch and Lomb in the Research and Development division as a support Engineer. In 1998, he continued his education with majors in Information Systems Security, Network Design and Database Development at Bryant & Stratton Technical College. In 2000, he entered Rochester Institute of Technology to begin work on a Masters Degree in Information Technology. During those school years, Mr. Fershteyn worked as a systems engineer for various companies including Netview-Getronics, Emegapolis, Statworks, Morgan Chase, and Hewlett Packard; as well as for the University of Rochester. In 2002, the Fershteyn family moved to Charlotte, NC where Mr. Fershteyn worked on different projects within IBM, First Union and Wachovia banks. In 2003, Mr. Fershteyn became a Certified Microsoft Professional. After moving to Atlanta, he joined Holy Spirit Preparatory School in 2003 where he is Information Technology Manager and provides full Information Systems administration for all three campuses. Mr. Fershteyn’s son, David, is in the Holy Spirit Prep Class of 2013.

Mrs. Molly Walker - Director of Institutional Technology; Technology & Computer Science Department Chair
Mrs. Walker joined Holy Spirit Prep in 2005. She and her husband, Jimmy, are native Atlantans. Mrs. Walker attended St. Jude the Apostle Catholic School, The Marist School and graduated from the University of Georgia with a B.B.A. in Management Information Systems. Prior to joining Holy Spirit Prep, Mrs. Walker was an International Marketing CRM Manager for UPS. During her corporate career, Mrs. Walker was involved in systems development as well as various other technology training and education responsibilities. At Holy Spirit Prep, Mrs. Walker is the Webmaster and she manages various technology-related projects. Additionally, she oversees the technology and computer science curriculum and has taught programming and robotics courses at the Upper School. She is excited to now be working with young people in the field of technology and helping Holy Spirit Prep get the most out of its tremendous technology resources.

Mr. Bill Clark - Business Office Assistant
Mr. Clark was born and raised in Dunwoody Georgia and graduated from the Marist School in 1999. He received a B.S. in Physical Education and Sport Management from Florida State University in 2002 and an M.S. in Health, Sport and Exercise Science from the University of Kansas in 2003. Mr. Clark joined Holy Spirit Preparatory School in August of 2005. Mr. Clark enjoys being the Assistant Coach of the Varsity football team at Holy Spirit Prep. He also helps coach the Junior High basketball team. Mr. Clark plans on pursuing a degree in accounting in the near future. He married Dana Watkins in the spring of 2006.

Mrs. Joana Dutcher - School Nurse
After receiving her BSN nursing degree from the Superior School of Nursing in Oporto, Portugal, Mrs. Dutcher pursued her nursing career as a hospital nurse and a public health nurse. She also worked for a time at Dow Portugal as their plant nurse. In 1997, Mrs. Dutcher moved to the United States with her family and continued her work in the health field. She is an active member of the Association of Private School Nurses. Her son Diogo is a student at Holy Spirit Prep in the Class of 2009. Nurse Dutcher is happy to be part of the Holy Spirit Preparatory School family.

Mrs. Liz Winkler - Assistant to the Director of Admissions
Mrs. Winkler grew up in a suburb of Chicago, Illinois. She graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Business from the University of Iowa. She was a general manager for Talbots, residing in Illinois, Virginia and Florida before settling in Atlanta in 1994. The Winkler's have five children, all of whom attend Holy Spirit Prep in the Class of 2010, 2013, 2015, 2020, and 2022. Mrs. Winkler, along with her family, are active members of St. Jude the Apostle Catholic Church located in Sandy Springs. Her hobbies include running and teaching fitness classes.

Mrs. Jessica Kaeding -
Mrs. Kaeding was born in Suffern, New York. She attended Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois and graduated from Kennesaw State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. Upon graduation, she began pursuing a graduate degree while working with the Adolescent Substance Abuse Program within the Cobb County Juvenile Court System. A relocation to Chicago brought her back to Benedictine University where she worked as a coordinator for the University’s Adult Accelerated Undergraduate Program. Mrs. Kaeding has a Certification in Developmental Observation from the Gesell Institute. She and her husband Michael reside in Atlanta and have 3 daughters who attend Holy Spirit Preparatory School in the Classes of 2010, 2019, and 2021.

Mrs. Denise Dale - College Advisor
Mrs. Dale was born in Massachusetts, but has lived most of her life in Atlanta. She is an alum of St. Jude’s, St. Pius and the Georgia Institute of Technology from which she graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in Industrial Management. Prior to the birth of her children, Denise spent most of her career working in the information technology field. While staying home with her children, she was blessed with 8 years of home schooling. Denise taught preschool through 7th grade. She has traveled extensively and enjoyed living in Germany and Ireland. Denise, her husband, James, and their five children are parishioners of St. Jude’s parish and live in Sandy Springs. Her four youngest children attend HSPS in grades 4, 6, 8, and 11. Her oldest child is a member of the first graduating class of HSPS and a Georgia Institute of Technology Honors Program student majoring in Aerospace Engineering. Mrs. Dale joined the Holy Spirit Prep staff in 2006. She is looking forward to another great year in the College Counseling office!