George School Welcomes Back Evonna Bruner ’99 as Director of Learning Center Services

“I think asking for help is one of the greatest things you can do for yourself,” said Director of Learning Center Services Evonna Bruner ’99. Evonna moved back to the area from Atlanta, Georgia in July 2023 with her family and is excited to be back on campus making an impact in her new role. Her husband, Lazarus, also joined the community as an assistant dean, dorm parent, and JV basketball coach, and together they live with their children Jordan ’24, Jalen, Jada, and their dog, Obasi, in Lower Drayton. “We are about community,” shared Evonna. They are happy to call George School their home. 

Evonna earned her BA in Psychology from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. Inspired by her mother’s work in the field of education, she felt motivated to craft a career path where she could use her dynamic skillset to support all types of students, their learning differences, and make a difference in their education. Her prior experience as an early intervention teacher, instructional coach, gifted specialist, her work at private residential treatment facilities, and her commitment to helping create effective curricula to support student success, illustrate her sustained commitment to education and honoring differences regarding learning support and styles.  

“Education is not a passive profession,” said Evonna. “All of us learn differently.” Evonna believes education means meeting every student where they are and respecting that no two students are the same. 

Evonna’s memories of George School are ones of fondness and growth. She transferred to George School during her sophomore year. “George School was definitely a welcoming place that taught me how to have my voice and still remain authentic to myself,” she shared. Reflecting on her own transitional and transformational experience as a student, she credits former faculty member Nancy Kryven for helping shift her perspective on what it means to ask for and receive help. For Evonna, it demonstrates strength, resilience, and an ability to trust and lean on one’s community to support one another, which is a philosophy she intends to instill and promote in her new role to help current students thrive and succeed at George School and beyond. 

Working closely with students, parents and guardians, coaches, faculty, staff, and the greater community, Evonna supports accessible and inclusive learning at George School. Alongside her staff, she works directly with all students, including those with learning differences or who are neurodivergent, on executive functioning, time management, and study skills, as well as assignment completion across disciplines. Her team also provides testing accommodations, and she is available to recommend resources for psycho-educational testing, compose Learning Difference Bulletins (LDBs), and to connect students with internal peer tutoring and external tutoring as needed. 

In addition to managing the Learning Center, Evonna also coordinates New Student Study Hall and Quiet Study Hall in the Mollie Dodd Anderson Library in the evenings and works regularly with campus partners, including the Student Health and Wellness Center and the Student Support Team, to address student learning and socio-emotional needs.  

Evonna finds genuine joy in helping students discover how to access and utilize the vast amount of supports in place at George School in ways that work for their individual needs and advance not only their academic success, but overall holistic wellness. “We have a great support system here that all students can access,” shared Evonna. “If we can focus on prevention rather than intervention, I believe we’re a healthier community.”  

“The Director of Learning Center Services is a huge and critical role, and Evonna has made a remarkably swift and successful transition back to George School,” said Scott Spence, Associate Head of School. “Warm and accessible, she connects well with students and colleagues alike, making her truly effective at holding us all accountable. Her capacity for hard work, organization, and attention to detail make her a valued and appreciated colleague and mentor to students. We are so lucky to have her back at GS!” 

It is important to Evonna that the Learning Center is a place that is open to all students in the community. “For me, ‘ASK’ stands for ‘Always Seek Knowledge,’” she said. The Learning Center is a place where each and every student can receive help when they need it.” 

Looking ahead, Evonna envisions offering a course on executive functioning for first-year and new students, continuing the new S.T.E.P.S. To Supporting Executive Function in Students Lunch and Learn series with the Parent Guardian Association (PGA), expanding collaboration with faculty and staff across campus, working more closely with residential life, and creating a local network of learning center directors and leaders to learn about how peer institutions are supporting their students, and how we can help one another in the greater community to benefit all students.  

“I want to make sure we are providing students with what they need to be successful,” says Evonna. “We can all learn from each other.”