Faculty & Staff - Fines Arts, Foreign Language and STEM Lab
Mrs. Jaclyn farley / PreK-grade 8 STEM Instructor
Mrs. Farley holds a Bachelor's Degree in Elementary Education and a Masters in Administration and Supervision. She comes to SIJ from St. Francis Xavier School in LaGrange where she taught 4th grade Science and ELA for five years and third grade for one year. Her teaching career started teaching three year old preschool. Mrs. Farley has also taught first grade for four years at St. Christopher in Midlothian and 2nd grade at St. Barbara in Brookfield. She has also worked in Middle school with 6th through 8th grade Science, Social Studies, and ELA. She brings her knowledge of Science and love of STEM to our students. She is always looking for new ways to challenge her students and help them become great thinkers! Mrs. Farley lives in Naperville with her husband and two boys. She enjoys photography and spending time with her family. Mrs. Farley's goal is to work with her students as a team to help them accomplish their hopes and dreams. She does this by creating a welcoming and fun learning environment for all her students.
Mr. daniel donovan / Spanish/intermediate religion teacher
Mr. Donovan is excited for his first year at SIJ and looks forward to teaching Spanish and 5th grade Religion. He graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a Bachelor of Arts in the Teaching of Spanish and a minor in Integrative Biology. He lives in Darien and feels at home at St. Isaac's since he attended Hinsdale South and grew up in a Catholic faith. Mr. Donovan believes teaching a language in a real-life context is the best way to learn. When he is not teaching or working on lesson plans, Mr. Donovan enjoys visiting his sister in Denver, spending time in nature, or watching movies with friends.
Ms. Debra Coconate / Music Teacher
Ms. Coconate has been teaching Music in the Diocese of Joliet for 11 years. She received her BA from NIU. She has been performing in the Chicagoland area since she was 18. She is highly visible and respected in wedding and corporate events. Ms. Coconate was the house pianist at Inverness Golf Club for 18 years during dining hours and has entertained for many Fortune 500 companies as well as other country clubs including Barrington Hills, Medinah, Ruth Lake, Oak Park, and River Forest. She is also a private mentor to many piano students in the Hinsdale community for over 15 years. Ms. Coconate has performed jingles during her music career and has recorded several cd’s.
Mrs. Pamela Vlcek / Art Teacher
This is Mrs. Vlcek's first year teaching at St. Isaac's. She comes to us from St. Louise DeMarillac School where she taught Art and Spanish. She is passionate about developing a love for creating art in her students and is excited to share that love with the children of St. Isaac Jogues. In her spare time, she enjoys learning new art forms, decorating, building miniatures, and spending time with her children and grandchildren. She also squeezes in some time to design and build sets for her parish theatre group and decorate the church.
