Jason Ellison Takes Over Newsletter

With this issue, we welcome Jason Ellison as the new writer and curator of the SpiderSmart newsletter.

Jason’s no stranger to SpiderSmart. He’s been with SpiderSmart since 1991. Jason’s title is Director of Curriculum Development, but in his 30+ years with SpiderSmart he’s done a little bit of everything.

“SpiderSmart wouldn’t be SpiderSmart without Jason,” says Jeannie Jung, SpiderSmart’s founder and CEO. “He’s been with us from almost the beginning. When I needed help, I knew I could always count on him, no matter what crazy thing I asked him to do.”

Actually, Jason hasn’t done a little bit of everything at SpiderSmart; he’s done a lot of everything the past three decades—from tutoring countless students to running SpiderSmart’s long-distance learning program way in the early days of the Internet. Today, Jason works remotely, from Ashville, NC, focusing most of his attention on handling all the diagnostic tests for virtual students. He also deepens and enriches SpiderSmart’s curricula, reading dozens of juvenile and young adult books every month. Many SpiderSmart families have probably seen his What’s New newsletter, which spotlights some of the most intriguing books he’s come across in the previous month.

“One thing I really admired about Jason from the beginning was his ability to connect with kids,” adds Jeannie. “If you saw him in real life, you might be a little intimated. Jason’s a big guy. But he has this wonderful, low-key approach to tutoring that attracted even our youngest learners. It’s his ability to empathize with kids that makes him such a great curriculum director. He’s able to come up with assignments that help our SpiderSmart kids not just become better writers and thinkers, but also become more informed about the world around them.”