Your giving spirit makes our parish possible…
Give Now

Melissa Passons

School Secretary

Melissa is thrilled to step into this new role at Ascension Catholic School and continue serving this wonderful community! Many of you may know her from Kid’s Time, our after-school program, where she has had the joy of working with students and meeting several parents along the way.

Before joining Ascension, Melissa worked as an administrative assistant at Reach for Survivorship at Vanderbilt, the Vanderbilt Eye Institute, and Journeys Corporate. For the past nine years, she has also ran her own photography business, combining her passion for storytelling with her love of capturing special moments.

Beyond her work, she truly enjoys being part of Ascension’s school family—not only as a staff member but also as a parent. Melissa’s child is in the preschool program here, and she loves seeing the incredible care and education our students receive each day.

Melissa is excited for this new chapter and looks forward to getting to know more of you. Please feel free to say hello—and she can’t wait to continue supporting our amazing school community!

You can reach Melissa at: mpassons@ascension-parish.com

Valerie Shell

Kids Time Director

Valerie grew up in St Louis, Missouri. She attended college at Southwest Baptist University where she obtained a bachelors degree in Early Childhood Education. She has worked in the field of early childhood for 25 years. Valerie and her husband Michael have three children; Trinity, Autumn and Justice. In her free time she enjoys shopping, hiking, pinterest projects, DIYing around the house and hanging out with friends and family.

You can reach Valerie at vshell@ascension-parish.com

Madison Miles-Kruer

School Counselor

Madison grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. She pursued her undergraduate education at Transylvania University, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Educational Studies. Continuing her academic journey, she obtained a Master’s Degree in School Counseling from Arkansas State University. Madison has a deep passion for helping students. During her free time, she enjoys hiking and traveling with her husband and dog. She is beyond excited to be a part of the Ascension community.

You can reach Madison at mmiles@ascension-parish.com

Katie Monaghan

Director of Afterschool and Summer Camp

Katie graduated from the University of Kentucky where she received a Bachelor’s degree in Communication with a minor in Community Leadership Development. Previously, she attended Assumption High School and is a graduate of Ascension (2011). Katie is excited to be back with the Ascension community serving old and new faces alike. In her free time, she enjoys coaching basketball, working out, and spending time with friends and family.

You can reach Katie at kmonaghan@ascension-parish.com

 

Ann Sinkhorn

3 Year Old Teacher

Ann is the three-year-old preschool teacher. She has been working in preschool for over 30 years. She attended the University of Louisville and has continued her education at JCC in the early childhood development field. She and her husband Kurt are parishioners at Ascension and they have a daughter Molly that graduated from Ascension. She enjoys gardening, sewing, crafting, and spending time with her family.

You can reach Ann at asinkhorn@ascension-parish.com

Laura Stout

Assistant 3-Year-Old Teacher

Laura is the assistant three-year-old preschool teacher. She has over 20 years of experience educating young children from six weeks of age through preschool. She has her Child Development Associate Credential and is a Certified Nursing Assistant. Laura recently married her best friend Stephen. She has a son named Justin who is the research manager in the Spinal Cord Injury Department at Fraiser Rehab. Laura enjoys spending time with her six grandchildren and loves being called “G”, attending plays, sporting events, and car shows with her family and friends.

You can reach Laura at lvogt@ascension-parish.com

Katie O’Bryan

JK Preschool Teacher

Katie O’Bryan has been teaching preschool since 2019. She is excited to bring her enthusiasm for teaching to the Ascension family! She has a bachelor’s degree in Communications from Indiana Wesleyan University. She and her husband Doug are both Louisville natives and their two children, Lily and Josh, attend Ascension. She enjoys reading, traveling with her family, writing, painting and growing deeper in her Faith.

You can reach Katie at kobryan@ascension-parish.com

Nancy Gatewood

Jr. Kindergarten Assistant

Nancy has been teaching at Ascension for 14 years. She enjoys watching the children grow throughout the years since she has been at Ascension. She has 3 children, Megan, Jake, and Ryan. In her spare time she likes to swim and read.

Nancy can be reached at ngatewood@ascension-parish.com

Autumn Monaghan

Kindergarten

Autumn has a love of the adventure and wonder that Kindergarteners bring to her day. She has previously taught 2nd grade at Ascension and for JCPS. Her favorite thing about Ascension is getting to work alongside her mom sister, sister-in-law, and husband. When she is not teaching, she loves to spend her time with her husband, outdoors, shopping, and cooking!

You can reach Autumn at amonaghan@ascension-parish.com

Jenny Brown

Kindergarten Assistant

Jenny Brown is from Louisville and graduated from Sacred Heart Academy. She received her undergraduate degree in psychology with a minor in dance and then received a master’s  in occupational therapy. Jenny has been a pediatric OT for the past 12 years and is excited to continue working with kids in the school setting. She and her husband, Jeremy have two kids at Ascension, Desbry and Dean.

You can reach Jenny at jbrown@ascension-parish.com

Emily Pfeifer

1st Grade

Emily Pfeifer began teaching at Ascension in 2024. She feels blessed to be part of a school community where faith and learning go hand in hand. Emily is passionate about creating a classroom where students feel loved, supported, and excited to grow in both their academics and their relationship with God. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood and Special Education from Mount St. Joseph University. Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Emily now lives in Louisville with her husband, Matt. Outside of school, she enjoys fishing, pickleball, and spending time with her family, friends, and chickens.

You can reach Emily at epfeifer@ascension-parish.com

Emilie Balthrop

1st Grade Teacher

 

Emilie can be reached at EBalthrop@ascension-parish.com

Sherry Strohmeier

1st Grade Assistant

Sherry was a Pre-K teacher at St. Matthews Baptist for 13 years. She is married to Philip and they have 2 daughters and 2 grandchildren. Sherry is also a parishioner at Ascension. In her spare time, She enjoys visiting her daughters and grandchildren in Florida, going out to eat, and boating at the lake.

You can reach Sherry at sstrohmeier@ascension-parish.com

Lindsey Steltenpohl

2nd Grade Homeroom

Lindsey taught in Bullitt County Public Schools for 5 years before coming to Ascension in 2024. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2019 and her master’s degree in Elementary Education in 2023. When she is not teaching, you will find her enjoying time with family. She has a husband named Jacob a black lab named Lucy.  She also enjoys spending time with her nieces and nephews. She’s looking forward to another great year at Ascension!

You can reach Lindsey at lsteltenpohl@ascension-parish.com

Kathy Tudor

2nd Grade Assistant

Kathy has been working in education since 2006.  She began her career teaching pre-K at St. Matthews Baptist Preschool. In 2010 she followed her children to Christian Academy of Louisville to continue teaching Pre-K where she taught for 11 years. After hearing so many wonderful things about Ascension she was excited to have the opportunity to join the faculty in 2021.  She is originally from Cincinnati, OH (Go Bengals!) but she and her husband Mike have called Louisville home since 1997.  They have two grown children, Emily and Logan, and a Goldendoodle named Luna.  When she is not teaching she enjoys gardening, cooking, reading, playing games with her family, and hiking trails with her husband.

You can reach Kathy at ktudor@ascension-parish.com

Haley Phelps

3rd Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 3-5 Language Arts

Haley received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Kentucky in Elementary Education in 2010 and a master’s degree from the University of the Cumberlands in Teacher Leadership. She taught for 9 years in the public school system before becoming a stay-at-home mom for the past 3 years to her 3 children, Garnett (8), Jaxon (6), and Olive (4). Haley and her husband, also named Garnett, have been married for 10 years. Their family joined Ascension in 2022, and have been enjoying getting involved in all facets of the Longhorn community.

You can reach Haley at hphelps@ascension-parish.com

Trinity Bennett

4th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 3-5 Math

Trinity has lived in Louisville all her life and loves everything it has to offer! Trinity attended Walden School K-8th grade and then graduated from Eastern High School. Following, Trinity attended the University of Louisville and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education with a concentration in Early Childhood. Trinity also had the opportunity to study abroad in Red Bank, Belize where she taught Math in a first grade classroom. She is in the process of obtaining her Master’s degree in Teacher Leadership from Bellarmine University. This will be Trinity’s fourth year teaching at Ascension and she continues to help in the Ascension Summer Program as well. When Trinity is not teaching or spending time with children, she enjoys crafting, kayaking, camping, spending time with family and friends, and traveling new places.

You can reach Trinity at tshell@ascension-parish.com

Christina Crush

5th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 3-5 Social Studies & Religion

Christina is entering her 10th year in education and her 5th year at Ascension. Throughout the majority of her teaching career, she has served as a 5th-grade homeroom teacher, where she is passionate about fostering a supportive and engaging learning environment. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, Christina moved to Louisville after marrying her husband, Patrick. They are proud parents to two children, Mary Catherine and Patrick.

Outside the classroom, Christina enjoys spending time with her family and friends, exploring the outdoors, sewing, and cheering on the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. She encourages her students daily with the reminder: “Your smile can change the world.”

You can reach Christina at ccrush@ascension-parish.com

Donna Jackel

Gr’s. 3-8 Science

Donna is the elementary and middle school science teacher. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and a Masters’s in Education from the University of Louisville. She has a lifelong passion for science. Donna has three daughters, two grandsons, and another grandchild on the way. Donna is a parishioner at Ascension. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, knitting, and going out to eat and during the summer she can be found enjoying outdoor concerts.

You can reach Donna at djackel@ascension-parish.com

Steve Farris

6th Grade Homeroom
Grades 6-8 Social Studies

Steve is a life-long Louisvillian.  He attended St. Joseph’s Catholic School & Trinity High School before moving on to Bellarmine University, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts in Education for Social Studies & English & Communications. He went on to earn his Master’s of Science in Teaching at Indiana University Southeast.  Steve has taught middle school for 27 years, with the last 22 of those years being almost exclusively as a Social Studies teacher.  He has a wealth of leadership experience as a team leader, department chair, new teacher trainer, head coach, and as a chair of numerous school committees.  Steve is married with two children.  In his free time, Steve enjoys spending time with family, playing with his two dogs, attending concerts & shows, traveling, & cheering on the Louisville Cardinals.  Steve is grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the wonderful Ascension Longhorn community!

You can reach Steve at SFarris@ascension-parish.com

Darlene Davis

7th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 6-8 Math

Darlene is a certified math teacher who retired from JCPS in 2015. She has done a lot of substituting at JCPS and most recently at Ascension,  Assumption and St. Albert the Great. Darlene graduated from IU and has a Master’a degree from U of L. She has lived in Louisville for most of her life and enjoys traveling, reading and watching sports. Darlene covered Mrs. Pendarvis’ maternity leave last year as well as Mrs. Bennet’s, so she is already familiar with Ascension and our students.

You can reach Darlene:

Ann Simms-Sullivan 

7th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 6-8 Math

Ann Simms-Sullivan has more than 30 years of teaching experience in JCPS and the Catholic School system. She grew up in the Ascension community and has recently taught at St. Albert The Great and Sacred Heart Model School. Ann has both a bachelors and master’s degree from the University of Louisville. In her free time, Ann enjoys spending time with her family, traveling and watching hockey.

You can reach Ann:

Leeann Gooch

7th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 6-8 Math

Leeann is a certified teacher who retired from JCPS in 2015. Later that year, she returned to JCPS to substitute teach, and to help with the 2020 teacher shortage during Covid (retiring again in May of 2025). She taught a variety of subjects to middle school students at Olmsted Academy South and Kammerer Middle School, including Math Recovery up through Algebra 1. Leeann has a Bachelor’s Degree in Secondary Education from the University of Kentucky, a Master’s Degree in Education from Indiana University Southeast, and a Rank 1 (30 hours above a Master’s Degree) from Indiana Wesleyan University. Leeann has lived and worked in the Louisville area her entire adult life. She enjoys quilting, pickleball, and spending time with her family (especially her grandsons).

You can reach Leeann:

Hannah Pennington

8th Grade Homeroom
Gr’s. 6-8 Language Arts

Hannah Pennington is excited to be starting her first year of teaching at Ascension. Hannah has been a long-time member of the Ascension community, having graduated from Ascension herself in 2013. Hannah is a recent graduate from Western Kentucky University, where she received her Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education. Outside of school, Hannah enjoys anything sports-related, reading, and spending time with her family and friends.

You can reach Hannah at hpennington@ascension-parish.com

Dr. Michael Shell

Gr’s. 6-8 Trivium

Dr. Shell teaches philosophy, logic, and ethics at Jefferson Community and Technical College here in Louisville and earned his Ph.D. in Education from the University of Kentucky.  He earned two Master’s degrees at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Biblical Languages and Archeology and did his undergraduate work in Bible and Biblical Languages at Southwest Baptist University in Missouri. Michael and Valerie have three children: Trinity (who is well known to the Ascension family), Autumn, and Justice. Dr. Shell also pastors a small church in the west end of Louisville. In his free time, he enjoys reading and the great outdoors.

you can reach Michael at mshell@ascension-parish.com

Mary Michelle Crush

Gr’s K-5 Spanish

I am excited to join the Ascension teaching team and bring my passion for Spanish education to the classroom. Originally from Louisville, Kentucky, I graduated from Sacred Heart Academy and earned my degree in elementary education with a Spanish minor from Ave Maria University. I previously taught Spanish at St. Athanasius and later moved to Miami, where I taught 3rd-5th grade. Outside of the classroom, I love reading, spending time in nature, and exploring different cultures—having already visited six countries with plans to visit more. I also enjoy spending time with my two nephews and four nieces, who keep me on my toes and always bring joy to my life.

you can reach Mary at mcrush@ascension-parish.com

Paige Stettler

Art

 

You can reach Paige at Pstettler@ascension-parish.com

Barbara Wagner

Librarian / Computer Teacher

Barbara is the Library / Technology teacher.  She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Louisville.  She also has an Associate’s Degree in Data Processing Technology from Speed Scientific School at UofL.  She was a volunteer in Ascension’s Library for 12 years and a substitute teacher. Barbara is a parishioner at Ascension. She has been married to Tom for 28 years and has two children, Lauren and Madison. She enjoys walking, hiking and traveling.

You can reach Barbara at bwagner@ascension-parish.com

Matt Henson

Music Teacher

 

You can reach Matt at MHenson@ascension-parish.com

Kellie Hood

Learning Coordinator

Mrs. Kellie Hood, born and raised in Louisville, earned her B.S. degree in Elementary Education from Brescia College in 1998 at which time she began her teaching career.  In May of 2005, Mrs. Hood earned her M.S. in Elementary Education from Indiana University Southeast. In 2010, she earned her Rank I in Instructional Leadership from Bellarmine University.  In over a twenty-year span in Catholic education, she has served in numerous capacities including teacher grades K-6, assistant principal, principal, and learning coordinator.

Mrs. Hood is committed to Catholic education and its importance in shaping young lives.  She cherishes spending time with both her extended and immediate family which includes her husband David, and their children Robin and Nash.

You can reach Kellie at khood@ascension-parish.com

Margaret Steurer

Cafeteria Manager

You can reach Margaret at: msteurer@ascension-parish.com

Jim Grider

Custodian

Jim Grider attended Chenoweth Elementary and graduated from Waggener High School. He has three children, Mary Ann, Patricia and Sid, Jr. and eight grandchildren. Jim has worked as the maintenance supervisor at Ascension since 1999. When not at Ascension, Jim enjoys Nascar Racing and spending time with his grandchildren.