Debbie C. Ray is a graduate of East Carolina University where she obtained a BS Degree in Intermediate Education with concentrations in Science and Language Arts. In 2005, Mrs. Ray obtained a Masters of School Administration Degree from North Carolina State University. She has been an educator in the Wake County Public School system since 1989. Before accepting the principalship at Crossroads Flex High School, Mrs. Ray served as the Assistant Principal of Instruction at Wake STEM Early College High School, an assistant principal at Panther Creek High School and West Cary Middle School. She also served as an administrative intern and Instructional Resource teacher at Leesville Road Middle School. Her educational career began as a classroom teacher at A.G. Cox Middle School in Pitt County, North Carolina before joining the Wake County Public School System community as a teacher at West Cary Middle School.

She is honored to be the principal at Crossroads Flex High School, where innovation and high expectations will continue to inspire high performance. She is looking forward to working with an extraordinary group of educators who have fearlessly broken away from the norms of a traditional public-school classroom into a world of digital blended learning where students are actively engaged in a 21st-century learning environment. She is also looking forward to forming productive partnerships with families and community leaders as we prepare Crossroads Flex students to be college and career-ready while working towards becoming experts in their individual pursuits.

Nartarshia Sharpe comes to Crossroads FLEX after working the past nine years as a professional school counselor at Panther Creek High School in Cary, NC.  This is her twenty-third year in education.  She began her career in education as middle school language arts and social studies teacher went on to work for several years in Central Office for Wake County Schools. 

Ms. Sharpe is a graduate of UNC Charlotte where she earned a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Sociology. She holds two Master’s degrees from NC State University, one in Curriculum and Instruction and the other in School Counseling.  She earned National Board Certification in K-12 School Counseling in 2012.  In her free time Ms. Sharpe likes to read, travel and take pictures.

Mrs. Turcol's 1-to-1 Support Appointments

Kasey Turcol graduated from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia with her undergraduate in Sociology and History.  As an undergraduate, Mrs. Turcol focused her studies on institutions and their impact on society. She wrote her thesis on Alcatraz, tracing the manner in which the National Park Service interprets prison history through the federal penitentiary as societies views on crime evolve. Additionally, she spearheaded two major research projects: a quantitative study for Rappahannock Legal Service in which she was able to indicate the strengths and weakness of their free legal services, and an in-depth qualitative study of young adults with vision impairments and how they navigated early education. The latter research project was presented at Pi Gamma Mu’s Triennial International Conference in 2014 and truly inspired Mrs. Turcol to continue work in the field of education.  In 2015, she earned her Master’s in Education implementing an action research project aimed at teaching twelve grade government students media literacy skills necessary to be politically aware citizens in the digital age.

Mrs. Turcol moved to North Carolina after getting married in August of 2015. She is endorsed in the state of North Carolina to teach 6-12 Social Sciences and 6-12 English Language Arts. She believes that education must be interdisciplinary for it to have a lasting impact on the student.  As a teacher, she emphasizes the importance of reading and writing skills through primary source analysis. Mrs. Turcol encourages all students to continue learning as she, too, intends to continue her education and return back to school for a doctorate degree.  She is excited to work with the talented and innovative students at Crossroads FLEX!

Karen Oviatt graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor of Science in Education degree, majoring in English Education and minoring in Psychology. She has been a teacher at both Orange High School in Orange County and Panther Creek High School in Wake County and has taught all levels of 9-12 English. She is a National Board Certified teacher and is Advanced Placement certified, having taught both AP Language and Composition and AP Literature and Composition for over a decade. Ms. Oviatt has experience teaching online courses as a writing instructor for Duke TiP's eStudies program and has also been an instructor at Duke's Young Writers Camp. In addition, she developed, and coordinated an in-school, peer-staffed Writing Center and has served as a department leader and Teacher Mentor.

After serving over 20 years in a traditional classroom, she is excited to be joining the staff at CrossroadsFlex and to be a part of the blended learning experience. Ms. Oviatt likes to read, travel, and spend time with family and friends. She's a bit of a performer and will tell you stories and show you pictures of her dog if you show the slightest inclination of interest. She also loves to learn new things: she's currently taking acting classes and is thinking about learning to knit or crochet and starting a podcast. She is eager to meet the students at Crossroads Flex and learn about the pursuits they passionately follow.

Miller Cheatham is joining Crossroads FLEX after working as a Secondary Math Lead Teacher for Lee County Schools.  Prior to that Ms. Cheatham taught at Lee Early College in Sanford, NC. Ms. Cheatham was a North Carolina Teaching Fellow at Meredith College, where she graduated with her BS in Mathematics, a minor in English, and a Secondary Teaching Licensure.  She also holds a Master’s in Educational Media from Appalachian State and is currently pursuing graduate coursework in Mathematics. In her free time she enjoys traveling, cooking, and exploring the local greenways.

Ms. Cheatham is passionate about making math accessible and relatable to students.  She is excited to be a part of the unique and innovative educational experience provided to students at Crossroads FLEX!

Ms. Lusher's FLEX Coaching Appointments

Rhonda Lusher comes to Crossroads FLEX after working the past eleven years as a Career Development Coordinator at Wake Early College in Raleigh, NC.  She began her career in education as an adjunct faculty member at Marshall University.  After relocating to North Carolina in 2003, she took a job in Chatham County as a middle school teacher where she spent three years.

Ms. Lusher is a graduate of Marshall University where she earned both her Bachelor’s of Arts and Master’s of Science degree in Adult Education.  She received her Career Development Certification in 2011.  Ms. Lusher feels very passionate about helping students.  She is very excited to build the Career Development Program at Crossroads FLEX high school.

Bonnie Russell joined Crossroads FLEX in the fall of 2017, coming from Apex Friendship High School and being part of the Wake County School System since 2005 with additional experience at Panther Creek High School and Green Hope High School. Ms. Russell’s wide range of experience also includes being a coach and leader with Weight Watchers since 1981, as well as experience in the aerospace industry, bookkeeping, and hospital experience as a surgical technician.

Ms. Russell earned her bachelor’s degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology under the College of Communications at Florida State University, with additional education at California State University, Miami Dade Community College, and passing the Florida Teacher Certification Examination.

Ms. Russell is a big fan of the digital blended learning style that is implemented at Crossroads FLEX and is honored to support the staff and students to make Crossroads FLEX the successful benchmark for others to model.