Betsy hopes to take her students on a hike, as Dante did, up to the heights of great literature in order to encounter God. Her love for the liberal arts began at home and blossomed in New York City, where she spent six years taking long walks, performing music, and studying philosophy and the arts at The King’s College. She received her MFA in creative writing from Seattle Pacific University and ventured to the desert of Arizona, where she became a published author and a master teacher at a classical charter network.

Betsy has spent over a decade teaching literature, composition, and history to students ranging from ages four to eighteen, with a focus on high school seminar courses. In 2015 she helped establish a new school, Cicero Preparatory Academy, and was appointed their first department head for 9th-12th grade humanities. She served at the school for ten years. Some of her favorite memories there are laughing and crying with students at the end of novels, helping “big kids” mentor kindergarteners, and jumping into creeks during hiking club. She writes and publishes books and essays on topics including architecture, adolescence, and prayer. Betsy’s husband, Sam, is a book editor and veteran teacher. They live in Phoenix with their son.

Courses taught by Betsy K. Brown McClelland