Independent Education
Program Team
Program Directors
Samuel Martineau
General Director, Speech & Debate Director
Teaches Speech & Debate
Sam has taught speech and debate to thousands of homeschooled students over the course of seventeen years. He is the founder and director of the Wasatch Independent Debate League and the Independent Education Program. He is a 2021 U.S. Distinguished Teacher and a recipient of the KSL:Teacher of the Week award. He has seen significant success in coaching in the National Mock Trial Competition, International Public Policy Forum, and Utah Model United Nations.
Sam Graduated Magna Cum Laude from Weber State University with a B.S.and teaching certification in Communication Teaching and History Teaching.
Samuel Martineau
Email: sambmartineau@gmail.com
Phone: 801-244-6577
ToriAnn Perkey
Executive Director, English Director
Teaches English, ACT Prep
ToriAnn has been teaching English and writing in the homeschool community for almost 10 years, and she’s been involved with editing, curriculum development, and publishing for over 30 years. Her goal with all English classes is to create an engaging and stimulating environment that invites students to think deeply, communicate well, and appreciate the beauty of the English language. She homeschooled her four children from birth to graduation, with the youngest to graduate in 2025. She’s also mentored thousands of new and struggling homeschool families through online and live presentations. When she’s not curled up with her latest book, she loves watching British mysteries, helping entrepreneurs run their online businesses, or learning to play the mandolin.
ToriAnn graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Classical Studies (Latin Emphasis), with a minor in History and a “minor” in Editing & Publishing (the minor didn’t exist yet, but the classes did).
ToriAnn Perkey
Email: toriann@ieprogram.org
Phone: 801-405-9271
Mary Stoddard
Constitution Studies Director
Teaches Constitution, Debate
Mary is currently pursuing an M.A. in Constitutional Government, Civics, and Law at Utah Valley University, where she previously graduated summa cum laude with a B.S. in Accounting and a minor in Business Management. While in her undergrad, she also completed pre-medical studies. In high school, Mary was a successful competitor in the WIDL and participated in an independent, student-run debate and moot court club.
In her free time, Mary enjoys staying involved in church and community volunteer work and spending time with her family and friends.
Mary Stoddard
Email: marystoddard76@gmail.com
Phone: 385-414-0381
McKay Earl
Leadership & Entrepreneurship Director
Teaches Leadership & Entrepreneurship
McKay Earl is a God-loving, family-loving, homeschool dad of 7 and enjoys every minute of the fun ride. A product of homeschooling himself he gained a strong foundation that led to a love for a classically based, leadership-focused education.
An entrepreneur at heart, he has started multiple businesses and works now as a marketing consultant where he has helped hundreds of small business owners grow their companies.
McKay also loves cycling, camping, and the great outdoors - and especially when he can do all three at the same time! He and his beautiful bride of 24 years live in Gilbert, Arizona.
McKay Earl
Email: mckay@ieprogram.org
Phone: 480-268-0344
Adrianne Thygerson
Robotics Director
Teaches Robotics
Adrianne is a mother of four adult children and a new grandmother. She loved the years she spent teaching her own children and has mentored countless others through classes, camps, and outreach events. She is passionate about education for all ages and has a special place in her heart for STEM education, English language instruction for non-native speakers, and global cultural education.
Adrianne holds a degree in Biology from Brigham Young University, with a minor in Anthropology. Her love for science began at a young age. She enjoys fostering a love of science in others through hands-on, experiential learning.
With over a decade of volunteer experience in the FIRST Robotics program, Adrianne has held numerous roles, including coach, coach liaison, and mentor at both local and state levels. She has also served as a team manager, Utah FIRST Robotics Board Member, judge, and proud parent. As a coach and team manager, she mentored many award-winning teams that earned state and regional recognition at both FIRST LEGO League and the FIRST Robotics Competition events. Several of these teams advanced to world competitions. However, Adrianne firmly believes that every child wins when they work hard to learn new skills that apply in real-world settings.
Adrianne enjoys helping others discover their own passions and realize their abilities through exploration and trial and error. She believes that hard work should be both rewarding and fun—and she puts this belief into practice in her own life.
She currently serves as the Co-Director of Global Health Internships through Brigham Young University with her husband, Steve. Together, they travel annually with college students on programs designed to broaden students’ experiences and perspectives on a global scale. They have programs in Nepal, Brazil, Belgium, Spain, Peru, and Fiji.
Adrianne Thygerson
Email: adriannethygerson@gmail.com
Phone: 801-558-7400
Andy Huff
Math Director
Teaches Math
Andy Huff enjoys guiding students to find their love for math and has been doing so for the last seventeen years. Since he holds two engineering degrees, he teaches math from a practical perspective, rather than only a theoretical one. Andy began his career as a rocket scientist but fell in love with teaching while conducting training sessions at work. He returned to school to study various teaching philosophies, all the while homeschooling his three children.
Throughout his teaching career, he has had the pleasure of teaching students from elementary to university levels. He even taught University Success classes at Utah Valley University (UVU). Two of his homeschooled children have already graduated from college. He has lived in Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Russia, Hungary, and Italy, loves traveling, camping, being outside, singing, and especially spending time with his beautiful family.
Andy graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. in Manufacturing Engineering and from the University of Utah with an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering.
Teachers
Arielle Hadfield
Teaches English
Arielle Hadfield started her career by wondering if she could write a book. She did, but it took a long time and was far harder than it needed to be. Her journey to publication taught her the skills she needed to work as a mentor to new authors on their writing journey so they could reach their goals easier. When she began homeschooling her four children, she learned about the opportunities to teach within the homeschool community. This inspired a shift in her focus from adults to homeschool teens, and she has taught online and in person classes for several years.
She focuses deeply on providing an uplifting environment where teens can confidently explore their writing styles, think deeply, dream big, and refine their talents so they have the ability to share their thoughts and ideas with the world.
She graduated from Utah State University and lives in Cache Valley with her husband Blake, her four children, and a whole bunch of chickens.
Arielle Hadfield
Email: ariellehadfield@gmail.com
Phone: 435-764-8465
Bekah Preston
Teaches Robotics
>Bekah is a WIDL and FIRST alumna with a passion for using education to explore the world around her. She recognizes that the skills she gained through both robotics and debate have been irreplaceable in all her endeavors since leaving the program—whether in school, at work, serving a full-time mission, or simply learning how to be a good citizen and person.
She can't wait to share that same joy and help others build the skills that have blessed her life.
Bekah is currently an undergraduate student at BYU studying Dietetics. She loves rock climbing and basically anything outdoors, and she can’t wait to dive in and explore the world through Legos.
Bekah Preston
Email: rrpb9b9@gmail.com
Phone: 801-708-2979
Becky Pitcher
Teaches English
Since childhood, Becky has had a fondness for beautiful words and well crafted stories. She studied children’s literature and creative writing at BYU before homeschooling her four children. Becky has taught both adults and teenagers and loves encouraging deep discussions and asking hard questions. She is passionate about creating resources for parents and has created many literature-based curriculums and guides and was the editor for a faith-based home education magazine.
Becky loves hiking and exploring (always with a book in hand and children in tow). She is excited and delighted by the beautiful, precious world around her and always has a new hobby or interest.
Becky Pitcher
Email: rebeccah.louise@gmail.com
Phone: 952-451-5076
Brittny Hansen
Teaches Robotics
Brittny Hansen has been working in web development for over 20 years, with experience ranging from agency work and freelance projects to creating and running her own web-based businesses. She’s passionate about using technology to solve real-world problems and helping others feel confident in tech spaces.
As a longtime homeschooling mom, Brittny embraces a flexible, child-led approach to education—supporting each of her five children in choosing the learning path that helps them thrive. Over the last decade, that has included homeschooling, dual enrollment, public school, charter school - and often all of the above in the same year! She is also the voice behind Hai Tech Mama, a blog where she shares her faith, homeschooling insights, tech tutorials, and self-reliance resources. When she’s not chauffeuring kids or failing to catch up on housework, you can find her organizing shareable resources, diving into her next business idea, or curled up with a great book.
Brittny graduated from Brigham Young University with a BA in Linguistics and a minor in Computers and the Humanities. She has a deep love for making technology feel approachable, useful, and empowering.
Brittny Hansen
Email: brittny.hansen@gmail.com
Phone: 801-851-0250
Casey Christensen
Teaches Robotics
Casey Christensen loves learning and has a passion for technology and innovation. He received his bachelor's degree in business management with a minor in statistics and later went on to receive his Masters in Business Administration from BYU. Casey has worked for technology companies, startups and political campaigns. These experiences have given him unique opportunities to find innovative solutions to tough problems.
Casey Christensen
Email: caseywchristensen@gmail.com
Phone: 385-498-1632
Cera Alger
Teaches Robotics
Cera was born and raised in Utah. She was part of an FRC team (3230 Prototype X) for two years in high school, which is where she discovered her love of engineering and mechanics. Cera received a degree in manufacturing engineering from BYU in 2023 and later started a small business making jewelry with people's wedding flowers.
Cera Alger
Email: algercera@gmail.com
Desiree Preston
Teaches English
Desiree Preston loves to explore big ideas with young people and has been teaching homeschool English classes for more than a decade, specializing in literary analysis. She draws on her degrees from BYU in English and Philosophy to ask hard questions. She also has a minor in Logic, so she expects to engage in well-reasoned discussion. She is always learning from her students, her peers, and the world at large.
Desiree has homeschooled her seven children for over 20 years and thereby gained a measured perspective about homeschooling junior high and high school. Her homeschool philosophy has evolved over that time without compromising academic rigor or passion for learning and fun. She has been blessed to see her eldest children accepted to the university of their choice and develop into incredible young adults.
Desiree reads books whenever she can sit still, but has been known to devour audio literature while skiing, driving carpools, hiking, doing dishes, road tripping, and hammocking. She has a reputation for terrible puns, losing her car keys, and finding common ground with everyone she meets.
Desiree Preston
Email: desiree.preston@gmail.com
Phone: 801-259-8703
Ellinor Petersen
Teaches Leadership & Entrepreneurship
Ellinor Petersen grew up in Sweden, the daughter of two entrepreneurs. She is the mother of six children. At first attempting to gain permission to homeschool in Sweden, and fighting in court for about two years for this right (and losing), she relocated with her family to the United States in 2015, and she has been homeschooling since then.
She has encouraged her children to learn entrepreneurship from a young age, and has supported them with entrepreneur markets, selling door-to-door, taking orders and delivering, and marketing. She is also the founder and owner of Petersen Baked Goods, a home-based bakery with a specialty in Swedish cinnamon rolls.
Ellinor has taught music, Swedish, English, Scandinavian choir, conducting and science in a variety of settings, from public school grades 2-9, to university, to a homeschool co-op, and to teens in her neighborhood. She loves languages and keeps up a 4+ year streak on DuoLingo. She plays the viola, the violin, and the piano, but her main instrument in college was voice.
She graduated cum laude and with University Honors from Brigham Young University with a double major in Music Composition and Theatre Arts Studies. She also has a Master of Library and Information Science from Borås University in Sweden. If you want to hear some of her compositions, you can find recordings at ellinorpetersen.com.
Ellinor Petersen
Email: ellinorpetersen@gmail.com
Phone: 435-469-2047
Jantzen Russell
Teaches Debate
Marketing Director
Jantzen Russell has years of teaching experience from a variety of school, summer camps, and church assignments. He's passionate about education and helping teens.
He's a freelancer at heart, with an ever expanding list of projects and interest. He grew up homeschooled, and is an alumnus of the WIDL.
Jantzen Russell
Email: jantzen@ieprogram.org
Phone: 801-647-0212
Marisa Murdock Sharpe
Teaches English
Marisa has many years of teaching experience including public school, private tutoring, preschool, university undergrad courses, and homeschool classes. Language arts is her favorite subject to teach, and she is happy to be teaching English for IEP. She earned a Bachelor's in Early Childhood Education/Elementary Education and a Master's degree in Elementary Education from USU.
She has two children and enjoys poetry, riding her bike, hiking, traveling, quilting, and power naps.
Marisa Murdock Sharpe
Email: marisamsharpe@gmail.com
Phone: 801-529-6126
Mahayla Bassett
Teaches Constitution
Mahayla Bassett is passionate about viewing education as a transformational experience rather than a transactional one. A homeschool graduate, she holds a bachelor's degree in Classical Liberal Arts from Mount Liberty College and will complete her master's degree in Humanities from Ralston College in May 2025. With a strong foundation in history, philosophy, and classical education, Mahayla has taught classes on writing and history, helping students engage deeply with foundational texts and ideas. She enjoys helping students develop both technical skills and a deeper appreciation for an intellectual conversation that connects past and present.
As an accomplished pianist and composer, she has taught piano lessons for nine years and enjoys fostering both technical skill and artistic expression in her students. Her love for ancient languages has led her to study Ancient Greek, and she enjoys reading classical texts in their original form. In her free time, she loves hiking in the mountains, playing music with friends, and engaging in meaningful discussions about how philosophy, literature, and history apply to the modern world.
Mahayla Bassett
Email: alyaham934@gmail.com
NaLyn Nelson
Teaches Debate, Constitution
NaLyn has a passion for teaching and for working with youth, so she sees this as the perfect post-homeschooling job!
She has four adult kids that she homeschooled from birth. She also is a proud grandma to the cutest kids on earth. She has taught various classes for 10+ years. She loves learning and growing right along with her students.
Aside from teaching she loves reading, spending time with family, traveling, football, and cooking.
NaLyn Nelson
Email: raisinj@1791.com
Phone: 435-770-9783
Megan Lee
Teaches Debate
Megan Lee is a homeschool mom of five children. She has a deep passion for the constitution and received degrees in Law and Constitutional Studies as well as Communications. She worked as a director for a learning center for several years training and mentoring youth and has a passion for education.
Speech and Debate was something she competed in throughout her entire education. It was the first class in high school that she truly felt a spark of what education could be and found it so engaging and challenging she just couldn't get enough. Speech and Debate built her confidence in critical thinking and gave her the ability to really consider, communicate and discuss important ideas. It stirred up a love for learning and for the constitution that was foundational in her life and she loves seeing her students experience those same "aha" moments.
Megan Lee
Email: m.sondere@gmail.com
Phone: 801-895-9611
Mary Stoddard
Teaches Debate, Constitution
Mary is a proud homeschool grad with a passion for quality education and mentorship. In high school, she was a successful competitor in the WIDL and participated in an independent, student-run debate and moot court club. Prior to her work with the IEP, she taught American history and civics for homeschooled teenagers. She has also worked as a music teacher for the past ten years, giving piano and voice lessons from her home.
Mary graduated summa cum laude from Utah Valley University with a B.S. in Accounting and a minor in Business Management. While at UVU, she also completed pre-medical studies. She enjoys staying involved in church and community volunteer work and spending time with her family and friends.
Mary Stoddard
Email: marystoddard76@gmail.com
Phone: 385-414-0381
Shannon Wilkinson
Teaches English
Shannon is a mother of 6 and lives on a small farm. Her family has chickens, goats, cats, a dog, and sometimes pigs or a cow. Shannon also loves beekeeping. She has a large garden and therefore also has to love canning! When she isn't pulling weeds or sweating in the kitchen, Shannon can be found reading a good book or spending time out in nature. Her family loves camping, hiking, kayaking/paddle boarding, and traveling.
A favorite tradition that her family loves to do is hike Waterfall Canyon every Christmas Eve! One of her favorite trips was her 20 year wedding anniversary trip to Peru with her husband. They spent several days in the Amazon and did a 4 day hike on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. Shannon spent several years teaching in the public school system primarily as an elementary school teacher. She left after the 2021-2022 school year and began homeschooling some of her children. Shannon graduated from Brigham Young University with her teaching degree.
Shannon Wilkinson
Email: shannon.wilkinson0510@gmail.com
Phone: 801-200-5508
Teri Lund
Teaches Debate
Additionally, Teri is an accomplished pianist currently teaching private lessons from her home and virtually. She has homeschooled her four children from birth and loves living in the small community of Star Valley, Wyoming. Her hobbies include hiking, reading, and spending time with her four daughters.
Teri Lund
Email: teriannclark@yahoo.com
Phone: 801-856-4864
Zach Young
Teaches Debate
Zach loves the outdoors, movies, and reading. He is passionate about politics, philosophy, psychology, and character development. He is excited to continue working with youth in the IEProgram.
Zach Young
Email: zach3198@gmail.com
Phone: 801-573-1776
Administration & Support
Charlotte McKenzie
Director of Operations
Charlotte McKenzie is a homeschooling mom - now for over 20 years. She has organized, taught and coached many classes over those years including Mock Trial, Shakespeare and lots of Knights of Freedom and Liberty Girls. So far, 4 out of her 5 children have participated in speech and debate and all of them have loved and benefited from it.
Charlotte graduated from BYU in Human Development and has started several businesses. She loves to organize, get things done, plan a great trip or experience, and take on big projects.
Charlotte McKenzie
Email: charlotte@wasatchdebate.org
Phone: 801-750-3665
Kristy Bitter
Administrator
Kristy Bitter has been homeschooling her 6 children for 13 years. She has taught many different classes from Shakespeare to Art to History to support her children in various homeschooling groups.
Kristy graduated from BYU with a degree in Elementary Education. In her free time she loves to read, quilt, put together a puzzle or have a great discussion with her husband and children.
Kristy Bitter
Email: admin@ieprogram.org
Phone: 801-750-3665
Jared Johnson
Director of Tournaments
A successful homeschool and college graduate,Jared Johnson is committed to providing high-quality courses for students pursuing alternative educations. His own education was rich and diverse, including high school college courses, AP classes, Mock Trial, Model UN, and the Wasatch Independent Debate League. These experiences prepared him for early college at Utah Valley University, a mission in Kentucky for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Brigham Young University.
Jared taught Speech and Debate for four years before transitioning to an IT career. He also coaches junior high and high school mock trial teams, and serves on the Communications and IT committee of the National High School Mock Trial board. He lives in American Fork, Utah, with his wife and two kids.
Jared Johnson
Email: jared@wasatchdebate.org
Megan Sigrest
Accountant & Events Coordinator
Megan has been homeschooling her 3 kids for 8 years while also helping run a family business. With a background in accounting, she loves finding ways to keep things organized and running smoothly, whether it’s balancing the books or pulling together all the details for a project.
When she’s not working or teaching, you’ll find Megan spending time with her family, dreaming up new ideas, or heading to the mountains for a camping trip. She loves any chance to be outside, relax by a campfire, and soak in the simple joys of life.