Faculty

  • Olivier Guilhem
    Classroom Teacher & Pedagogical Coordinator

    Olivier earned his teacher certification in the French Ministry of Education in 2005 and brings to FASTB a wealth of international teaching experience in AEFE schools. Beginning with his initial 3-year abroad experience in Bali in 2007, Olivier and his wife, Magali, have also taught on Mauritius Island, where he also served as Pedagogical Coordinator, in the South Pacific at the French School of Vanuatu, and most recently in Doha, Qatar, where he taught 5th grade and physical education and served as the assistant campus director overseeing 33 primary classes.

    Olivier has taught at multiple elementary grade levels and his experience also includes work as a special education teacher in France and as a middle school teacher in SEGPA, with students who have learning disabilities and come from difficult socio-cultural backgrounds.
    Born in Carcassonne, in the South of France, Olivier grew up playing many sports and playing the trumpet. While he earned a black belt in judo, his biggest success was in track & field – as recently as 2016, he has competed at an elite level, winning the World Cup Decathlon title in the Masters age 35-40 category. In addition to his teaching and pedagogical duties at FASTB, Olivier leads our physical education program.
  • Erika Ruhlmann
    Classroom Teacher

    A certified French Ministry of Education teacher with many years of experience as a lead teacher at the preschool and elementary levels, Erika serves as lead preschool teacher at FASTB. Teaching in multi-age classroom settings in the South of France for the past 8 years – 3 in Pre-K/K (TPS, PS, MS, GS) and 5 in K-2 (GS, CP, CE1), Erika uses hands-on and Montessori style activities and enjoys incorporating children’s literature into her lessons.

    Additionally, Erika has served as an elementary school director and has experience teaching children with learning disabilities. Born in Dijon in northern France, Erika knew from a young age that she wanted to work with children, going on to earn her bachelor’s degree with a double major in psychology and education sciences, and eventually her certification in 2006. Erika loves running, hiking, reading and traveling, and is very excited to be part of the FASTB team.

  • Claire Bergera
    Classroom Teacher

    Claire Bergera brings a variety of teaching experiences to FASTB, including a year at an immersion school in the United States, plus an excellent educational record that includes two Master’s Degrees.

    Born in a small town in the Loire Department of France to a family of educators, Claire initially pursued a career in communication and human resources, but decided to expand her studies and attained a degree in economic and social administration. This led to an opportunity to work in schools at the nursery and primary level, an experience that changed the course of her career.

    Inspired to teach, Claire pursued her Master’s Degree in Teaching, Education and Training from the Teacher Training Program of University of Lyon 1 and added a second Master’s in Public Health for children and adolescents as the first step in obtaining a PhD in Education.

    After teaching two years at Lycée Ampère de Lyon, Claire decided to combine teaching with a passion for travel and language learning and landed in Edina, Minnesota, where she taught at the Normandale Elementary French Immersion School for one year. The following year, she taught French at a Waldorf school in Costa Rica. These international experiences exposed her to Montessori, Steiner/Waldorf and Responsible Classroom pedagogies, which fit her teaching approach of positive education for the whole child:

    “I am very interested in continuing my immersion education in Florida,” said Claire, “because this opportunity represents the ideal work environment for my vision of teaching.”