12th Grade Counselor, AP and DE Counselor for Grades 9-12 
Head of High School Counseling Services, Naviance & x2VOL Administrator; AIMS/504/ISP Lead Coordinator, College Testing Coordinator, NHS/NJHS and Student Council Advisor

Ms. Yohe has been with Enlightium since 2017. She earned her bachelor's degree in Education from Lewis-Clark State College. While raising eight children, she earned her Master’s Degree in Guidance and Counseling from City University of Seattle. Currently, Ms. Yohe is earning her Doctorate in Education with an emphasis in eLearning through Northcentral University. Ms. Yohe is an ESA and ACSI certified guidance counselor with a Professional Teaching Certificate.

During her spare time, she and her husband enjoy camping, hiking, reading and spending quality time with their children.

11th Grade Counselor
NCAA Consultant, High School Consultant, and Webinars Coordinator

Ms. Allen has been with Enlightium since 2015. She grew up in Seattle, Washington and attended a Christian school through 12th grade. She received her bachelor's degree in Social Work at Washington State University. While raising three children, she also became passionate about education and college and career planning. Ms. Allen returned to school and received her Master’s degree in School Counseling K-12 from Gonzaga University. Kim is state and ACSI certified.

During her spare time, she and her husband enjoy playing volleyball, reading, and spending time with friends and her three adult children. Spending time with family usually includes traveling, which Ms. Allen also loves to do. It is her desire to get to know all of her students, and her hope is to build a trusting relationship so her students can come to her with any issue, no matter how big or small it may seem. She especially likes helping students explore their own goals and passions for life beyond high school.

11th Grade Counselor
Graduation Coordinator

Ms. Towner graduated from Northwest University with a bachelor’s in Psychology and a minor in Pastoral Care. She received a Masters in Education with an emphasis in School Counseling from Heritage University. She works as a Guidance Counselor for 11th grade families and students at Enlightium Academy. She is ACSI certified.

Prior to joining the Enlightium team, Ms. Towner worked as a high school counselor in a public school in central Washington state. She also volunteered as a registered therapeutic riding instructor through the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (now known as PATH International). Ms. Towner volunteers at her local church as a bassist and vocalist for the music team. In her free time, she and her husband enjoy spending time with family, their dog, Grady, and horse, Aspen.

10th Grade Counselor
Middlebury Program Coordinator

Ms. Van Egdom obtained her bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington, with a double major in Community Psychology and Society, Ethics, & Human Behavior, and a minor in Education and Society. During her undergrad, Mrs. Van Egdom worked as an Academic Advisor for the college preparatory program TRIO Upward Bound. It was then when her passion of working with high school students grew. Mrs. Van Egdom is currently attending Whitworth University for her Master’s of Education in School Counseling.

Growing up, the value of education was instilled in Mrs. Van Egdom, and she wishes to do the same with her students while also building a trusting relationship and sharing the love of Christ with them.

9th Grade Counselor
NHS-NJHS & Student Council Co-Advisor

Ms. Benedict began working with Enlightium Academy in 2019. She graduated from Western Washington University with a bachelor’s degree majoring in Business Management and minoring in English. While she was in the business world, she began volunteering with the youth program at her church and teaching Junior Achievement classes in local elementary schools. This fostered her passion for encouraging and working with students and lead her to attend Eastern Washington University. She graduated with a Master’s of Science degree in School Counseling in June, 2019. During her time there, she became invested in working with high school students on social-emotional issues, particularly anxiety and post-secondary planning. She believes in fostering nurturing, encouraging relationships with students and parents and loves seeing students grow through cooperation and learning self-advocacy. She is currently working on her ASCA U Specialist Training in Anxiety and Stress Management.

In her free time, Ms. Benedict loves taking long walks with Hank, her golden retriever, reading, spending time with her friends and family, writing, baking, and trying new foods and recipes.

7th-8th Grade Counselor
Head of PreK-8 Counseling

Ms. Vagin has been working with Enlightium Academy since 2009. She has an associates degree in Business Management and Marketing, and a bachelor's degree in Social Services from Whitworth University. She was heavily involved in developing the Enlightium counselors and admissions departments and contributed to the expansion of many other areas of our rapidly growing school. She is the Director of Admissions and the Elementary Counseling department. Ms. Vagin also serves as a middle school counselor for 7–8 grade students. She loves working with parents and students and making a difference in people’s lives.

Ms. Vagin is happily married to her husband and together they are raising their daughter. Mrs. Vagin teaches Sunday School at her church and is involved with the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) ministry.

7th-8th Counselor Assistant

Olesia received her Diploma of Bible Educator at International Christian College in 2003, and her Bachelors of Fine Arts in music at Gonzaga University in 2006.

Although Olesia did not graduate from a Christian school, yet she was able to receive a Christian foundation at home and watched both of her parents serve in the local church. She served as a Sunday School teacher, was a member of the youth choir, and served as an accompanist to the choir and congregation. Watching her mom (Elena Solodyankin) pursue her dream of bringing Christian Education first to the Slavic people, and later to all nationalities, allowed Olesia to take part in many of the Christian seminars and workshops, deepening her knowledge of the Lord and Christian education.

Family is very important to Olesia, and she does what she can to spend meaningful time with her husband and their children in order to build that Christian foundation in them. When time permits, she likes to read, garden, and do freelance graphic designing.

3rd-6th Grade Counselor

Ms. Crisp joined Enlightium Academy in 2018. She received a bachelor’s in Psychology with a minor in Sociology, a certificate in Leadership, and a Master of Social Work Degree from Eastern Washington University.

Ms. Crisp enjoys spending time with her family and friends. She enjoys reading, creating photo books, and exploring nearby cities. She has a passion for helping others and telling people about Jesus.

Pre-K - 2nd Grade Coordinator

Ms. Fenina received her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of South Florida and is ACSI Certified.

Ms. Fenina has been substitute teaching in public elementary and middle schools since 2012 and has been teaching at Enlightium Academy since 2015. She is the Primary School Coorindator. Ms. Fenina believes that education with Christian values will empower a life committed to Christ. Ms. Fenina volunteers in the nursery and in a children's Bible program at her church.

Bridge Coordinator

Ms. Sha has a triple AAS business degree in Business Management and Marketing. She would like to further her education by acquiring a bachelor's degree in Business Administration or a similar field. She has been the women’s ministry leader for her church as well as a small group bible study leader.

For the majority of her life Reshanna has lived in the Spokane area. She was raised primarily on a farm surrounded by different animals, her favorite being her horses. She currently lives in the Spokane Valley with her husband of over 20 years, their two teenage children and their small farm of critters. She enjoys spending time with her family, exploring the woods, reading a good book and traveling.

Gifted & Higher-Level Learner (GHHL) Coordinator

Mrs. Lopez earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Cognitive, Educational, and Developmental Psychology from the University of Hawaii. Additionally, she studied the Hawaiian language. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Gifted Education. She is ACSI certified.

Mrs. Lopez is the Gifted and Higher-Level Learner Program (GHLL) Coordinator and Primary Mentor/Teacher at Enlightium Academy. She has experience teaching at learning centers, online, and in students’ homes since 2011. Her students ranged from elementary school children to adults. She mentored gifted students and students with disabilities. To meet the needs of these children, she designed specialized learning programs and intervention methods.

Mrs. Lopez focuses on creating educational opportunities for every unique learner so that all students can succeed. She strives to encourage student enthusiasm for learning, and eagerness to pursue and achieve individual goals. Mrs. Lopez is motivated to help students become independent so that they can learn beyond her instruction. Her teaching philosophy is based on the principle: "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”