Meet Our Team

Mike Nekritz, Co-Founder/Principal

Mike has thoroughly enjoyed his career in education beginning as a social studies instructor and concluding as superintendent. He has served as a high school principal, dean of students, department chair, and coach. Mike has worked in Cook, Lake, and DuPage counties and has extensive experience with at-risk and special education students. Mike earned three degrees at Northwestern University and is proud of his unique perspectives on education due in part to his MBA education, his time in the private sector, and his life experiences.

Kent Sullens, Co-Founder/Special Education Director

Mr. Sullens is one of our valued co-owners at Felicity School. His open heart, open mind and over thirty years of experience working with special education families, local districts and community agencies are what make Felicity a wonderful place for staff and students alike. Mr. Sullens is known for always giving our students chances to grow academically as well as engaging them in hands-on projects around the school such as helping put together sports equipment or assisting in making waffles for students and staff. Not only does Kent teach one of our high school classes and assists Mr. Nekritz in co-ownership of our school, but he also is our Special Education Director at Felicity and makes sure communication with our school districts are smooth, in and out of meetings to create great individualized plans for student success. Kent’s wonderful sense of humor and levelheaded nature is also a great addition to our team and helps make students comfortable at Felicity to grow in socially, emotionally and academically.

Dr. Susan Barker, Principal

Dr. Susan Barker has served in multiple roles as teacher and administrator in the general and special education settings, serving students from Early Childhood through Transition age. As a teacher, Dr Barker started at the primary levels teaching in general education classrooms. She quickly found her passion working with special education students and held a variety of instructional and administrative positions in both the public and private settings. Most recently, Dr. Barker was very involved in developing programs that provided special education students with the opportunity to be educated in their home school. Sue also enjoys working with animals, and over the years has partnered with her certified therapy dogs to help students with social emotional needs while at school.

Jenny Sugarman, Administrative Assistant

Ms. Sugarman is part of Felicity’s administrative team and focuses on providing a variety of lunch options for students and staff. She looks for creative and new ways to incorporate celebrations and fun into the school day. Ms. Sugarman is a former preschool and kindergarten enrichment teacher who enjoys working with kids. She is devoted to her family and loves to read and travel.

Amy Curley, Administrative Assistant

Mrs. Curley is excited to work at Felicity School as an administrative assistant.  She has worked in a school setting for over 20 years, and for the last 15 years she has worked as an administrative assistant.  She enjoys the opportunity to build positive relationships with both students and staff.  Mrs. Curley enjoys watching the Chicago Bears (even if they don’t win), spending time with family, and traveling, especially to Utah to see her two children.

Cheryl Wright, Lead Teacher

Cheryl is a Felicity lead teacher and has a proven track record of success with special needs students throughout her extensive career. Cheryl is from the area, matriculated from Northern Illinois University, and brings a wide array of expertise to the Felicity team. In addition to her teaching career, Cheryl has an entrepreneurial spirit which she displayed as a part of developing successful retail businesses including a family restaurant. Cheryl is committed to her wonderful husband and son. In her free time, Cheryl enjoys traveling and can be seen participating in local Zumba classes.

Melisa Weaver, Teacher

Mrs. Weaver earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Chicago and holds an MBA from The Ohio State University.  After working in the telecommunications industry, she found her passion for working in education and received her master’s degree in teaching from National Louis University.  Mrs. Weaver enjoys spending time with her family and cheering for the White Sox. 

Taylor Nightingale, Teacher

Ms. Nightingale is a graduate from Illinois State University. She received her bachelor’s in special education. Taylor also has her Paraprofessional License and worked two summers in an Early Childhood Autism Program. She has three semesters of field experience, two were in high schools and the third was at a therapeutic day school. Taylor is excited to begin her teaching career and build positive relationships with all students and staff at Felicity.

Stephanie Horwitz, Teacher

Ms. Horwitz received her undergraduate degree from Depaul University in Elementary Education with minor in Psychology. Stephanie went on to obtain her Master’s in Special Education from Northeastern University. Stephanie has approximately 20 years of teaching experience, with a brief leave from teaching to pursue other avenues of the education field and making a difference. In her free time, Stephanie loves physical fitness and working out as well as spending time with family. Stephanie’s favorite quote for her role in this field is as follows, “It’s not about your disability, it’s about your ability”.

Michael Farca, Teacher

Mr. Farca is excited to be starting his first-year teaching at Felicity. After beginning his career in Special Education at Grayslake North High School, his alma mater, he is also a proud graduate of Illinois State University (Go Birds) in English Studies. In his spare time, Mr. Farca is a part time actor on both screen and stage, he hopes to bring the perspective and experience to Felicity students.

Jacob Townsend, Paraprofessional

Mr. Townsend loves working with children and students of all ages! Growing up in Northbrook, Jacob graduated from Glenbrook North High School, and attended Illinois State University. At Glenbrook North, Jacob played football, lacrosse, and was a bowler as well. Jacob went on to bowl all four years at Illinois State for the Redbirds after realizing his 5’9 frame was not a prototypical “build” the NFL is looking for. After previously working as a youth sports camp, and program director, he is excited to bring a positive attitude and high energy to the classroom! When Jacob isn’t locking down the students on the court during Gym Class, you can probably find him at any assortment of local bowling alleys. A cheesehead at heart, he spends year after year watching the Packers get so close, yet so far away. 

Matt Gielow, Paraprofessional

Matt enjoys working with kids of all ages! While studying at the College of Lake County, Matt worked full time in restaurants. He brings over 14 years of experience working in the restaurant industry, specializing in working alongside new team members in a training and management role. When not in the workplace, Matt enjoys playing video games or playing board games with friends. Matt is an avid Black Hawks fan and looks forward to seeing their rebuild come to fruition (and the Stanley Cup one day!).

Mike Skinner, Paraprofessional

Otherwise known as Coach, Mike has worked in residential for 10 years, psychological hospitals for 5 years, been a TA for 20 years, and has been coaching Basketball for 27 years! 

Sofie Solomon, Paraprofessional

Ms. Sofie is excited to be joining the Felicity team as a paraprofessional! She graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2023 with a BS in Psychology and a minor in child health and well-being. She has many years of experience working with children through nannying and working as a behavior therapist. Ms. Sofie is also going to graduate school in the fall to get her MA in professional counseling. Ms. Sofie is excited to begin her career and build positive relationships with all students and staff at Felicity.

Lawrence Patrick, Paraprofessional

This is my 37th year as an educator and I’m excited to be the gym teacher at Felicity School for the 2024-25 school year. My career has brought me many places: Illinois, Texas, Alaska and Hawaii. I have been a teacher, coach and administrator during my career and have degrees in Education, Administration and in Technology. I look forward to serving the students and staff this school year.

Collin Patrick, Paraprofessional

Collin is happy to have the opportunity to work at Felicity School and lead our students towards a positive path to success. He graduated with a bachelor’s degree in social work at the University of St. Thomas in 2022, located in St. Paul, Minnesota. After he graduated, he became a school counselor at a catholic school named St. Joseph Catholic Academy and worked with students grades Pre-K – 5th. He also played football for the same university for all 4 years and became a high school football coach at the same school he was counselor in. He enjoys watching or talking about sports, spending time with friends and family and is excited to work at Felicity School.

Tian Tian, Social Worker

Tian grew up in China and got her bachelor’s degree in social work and master’s degree in Education from two Chinese universities and then came to US for her PhD study of social work. She received her PhD and Master of Social Work degrees from the University of Utah in 2015 and worked as an educator of social work for 6 years in a small college. She is passionate about directly working with children and youth and is excited for the opportunity of working with the students in Felicity. 

Scott Gielow, Counselor

Scott is a veteran counselor who has extensive experience working with young people understands the complexities facing students. With an expertise in substance abuse, Scott has been encouraging students make more positive choices. He has worked with parent and family services within residential and outpatient programs for over 25 years. Scott has also provided counseling and support to at-risk children with mental health diagnoses, along with parent support in several mental health mentoring programs. Scott is a part-time Felicity team member and assists all staff by collaborating with clinicians, teachers and co-facilitating two groups a week with Felicity students.

Madeline Mitchell, Social Worker

 Carmela Medina, Art Therapist

Ms. Medina brings the artistic touch to Felicity School as our Art Therapist/ Counselor. Her passion for art and helping other is obvious to everyone that meets her. She is bilingual, and also has extensive experience in case management, and advocating for services and the rights of individuals and families in crisis. A graduate of the University of Illinois – Chicago, Carmela and her art studio provides great creative opportunities for Felicity students.

Catrina Hayes, Reading Specialist

Catrina is a Wilson Language Trainer who specializes in teaching decoding/spelling as well as reading comprehension. She is passionate about facilitating literacy development to prepare students for their optimal adult life. When not working with Felicity students, Catrina spends time training teachers locally and nationally on best practices for teaching reading.

Karen Schur, Speech Language Pathologist

Karen joined Felicity School’s clinical team as a Speech Language Pathologist. She strives to help her students become better communicators both in and out of the school setting. She believes that it is important for everyone to be able to articulate their thoughts effectively at all times.

Karen received her degrees from the University of Wisconsin, Madison and Illinois State University. She has worked as a clinician in public and private schools as well as in private practice throughout the northern suburbs. In her free time, Karen enjoys spending time with her family and friends along with traveling, knitting, reading and boating.

Lisa Johnson – COTA – Occupational Therapy