Staff

Heather Havel
Curriculum & Administrative Coordinator/Lead Teacher

Heather has been with Drama Kids of the Triad since 2015. She is super excited to meet new students, welcome returning students, and watch them all grow and progress throughout the year. Heather received her bachelor’s degree in theatre arts with a minor in dance from East Carolina University. She also has her Early Childhood Credentials for birth to age five. Heather has starred in Shakespeare’s “Comedy of Errors,” was assistant director for Disney’s “Aristocrats Kids” and “The Wizard of Oz,” and was director for an adaptation of “Snow Queen” for the local community theater group, POPs, in Okinawa, Japan. Her love for teaching began when her now 5th and 8th graders were born. She has also been a substitute teacher overseas and for Guilford County, but she truly loves sharing the world with students through the lens of drama!

Karen Hincher
Lead Teacher

Karen Hincher is a Kernersville native who is excited about her 4th year of teaching with Drama Kids! She graduated from Brevard College in 2015 with her degree in Theatre Studies and loves using her education to teach kids how to love theatre! When she’s not teaching, she’s also working as a stage manager and director with local community theatre. In her free time, she loves to play volleyball, play board games, listen to music, and hang out with her awesome husband and their herd of cats!

Kimberly Hume
Substitute Teacher

Kimberly has been a Lead Teacher with Drama Kids since 2010. She enjoys helping students find something to love about themselves, focus on their own unique potential, and reach beyond what they imagine possible. Kimberly has recently completed a certificate course in American Literature and Culture from Harvard as well as her level 3 certification in American Sign Language. She is a Veteran 20+ year Home school Educator and began acting at age 7. Recently, she has appeared in multiple on-screen features and background roles in several major motion pictures. In her spare time, Kimberly loves to train and hike with her four dogs, read, sew (she is our resident Drama Kids Costume Designer/Seamstress), write, act, and bake.

Elyse Rodriguez
Lead Teacher

Elyse has been a teacher for Drama Kids for four years. She recently graduated with a Masters in Speech-Language Pathology from UNCG and works as a pediatric SLP. Elyse also holds a BFA in acting from Elon University and loves combining her passions of acting and speech in her Drama Kids classroom. She is a proud Ravenclaw who enjoys spending time with her son and two dogs.

Judy Thompson
Teacher Mentor

Judy has been a Lead Teacher with Drama Kids of the Triad for over 7 years. She now supports the rest of the teaching staff by serving as our Drama Kids Teaching Mentor. She is originally from Germanton, North Carolina and has been acting since high school. Judy received her Bachelor’s Degree in Math and Physical Education from Guilford College. She taught math in the public school system for many years and then entered the corporate world to work for CPA firms, finally retiring from PAYCHEX, Inc. In her spare time, Judy is involved in community theatre and has performed with the Carolina Skyline Players. However, her most important role to date is playing “Grandmother” to her two grandsons, ages 9 and 15. She is excited to be a part of our Drama Kids family and has a true desire to make a lasting difference in the lives of her students.

Caitlin Wood
Media & Administrative Assistant/Lead Teacher

Caitlin is thrilled to return for her fifth year as a Lead Teacher at Drama Kids of the Triad. Originally from Delaware, Caitlin relocated to Greensboro after receiving her bachelor’s degree in drama from UNCG in 2015. She has over 10 years of experience in the performing arts and every week she combines her love of the theater and her love of youngsters to create one high-energy classroom full of movement, music and laughter.

Daphney Cochran
Lead Teacher

Daphney Cochran has been very blessed to be a Teacher with Drama Kids for six years!! She graduated from Forsyth Tech in 1998 with a Child Development Credentials 1 and 2 degree. She also completed Empire Beauty School in 2016 with a degree in Cosmetology!! She hosts parties and designs nails!! She loves every precious moment with her daughter and family, as well as her church family!!

Nic Kursonis
Lead Teacher

This is Nic’s second year with Drama Kids. He’s a Kernersville native but recently graduated from Indiana Wesleyan University with a degree in Media Communication. The past four years he was part of a sketch comedy group called Friday Night Live. Now that he’s back home he’s working on writing his first TV show while also pursuing a career in acting. His life was changed when his theatre teacher invested in him and he hopes to pay it forward.

Caitlin Holland
Lead Teacher

Caitlin’s love for theatre started at the age of 4 as a rat in the Pied Piper. Since then she has performed with several community theatres. She also has a strong background in various areas of production to include: stage management, script writing, and directing. Outside of the theatre world, she is active in several ministries at church such as: orchestra, handbells, and youth ministry. She is thrilled to be joining Drama Kids for a third year.

Shanice Goode
Lead Teacher

Shanice Goode is a North Carolina native originally from Forest City, NC. She currently resides in Greensboro, NC where she graduated in 2014 from the University of North Carolina – Greensboro with a BA in Theatre, concentration Acting and a minor in Dance and African American Studies. Shanice has been seen in multiple performances around the Triad including Peppercorn Theatre’s children’s production of “Stoo’s Famous Martian American Gumbo” in 2019. Her hobbies include singing, writing poetry, and watching movies. She is excited to teach for Drama Kids to boost self esteem and confidence in children through acting. Her favorite quote is, “Still I rise” -Maya Angelou.

Jacqueline Church
Lead Teacher

Jacqueline has been involved in theater since 2014 and has loved every minute of it. She graduated from Walkertown High School in 2018 and is currently attending Forsyth Technical Community College to earn her theater education degree. She is engaged to her childhood sweetheart and they are getting married in July of 2020. She is a huge Harry Potter and Marvel fan and her favorite holiday is Halloween because of the costumes of course! Jacqueline looks forward to a phenomenal year of teaching!

Emma Chaiken
Lead Teacher

Emma is a student at Guilford College and originally from Davidson, NC. She is pursuing her degree in Psychology with a minor in Theatre. She has previously been a gymnastics coach and loves working with children! This is her first year teaching with Drama Kids.

Tatyana Samone
Assistant Teacher

Tatyana Samone is a southern girl from Winston-Salem, NC. She dabbled in the acting community as a young kid, and after earning a scholarship, she moved to New York City at the age of nineteen to pursue acting at “The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts”. Her TV debut was on the hit investigative documentary series “Homicide Hunters” as Sheryl. Following her move to California, she has been participating in developmental projects both commercial and theatrical including “Valley Slice”, and “Lupus LA PSA”. Now that she’s back in her hometown, she’s so excited to be sharing her gift with the kids at Drama Kids Of The Triad!

Join our team! Drama Kids is seeking dynamic and fun part time teachers to meet our growing class schedule.  Please visit our Contact Us Page and submit your interest.