Mr. Shawn Minks joined Cambridge Christian School after serving for six years as Headmaster at Foundation Academy in Winter Garden, FL. He arrived at Foundation in the summer of 2007 after serving for two years as the Upper School Principal at Bridgeway Christian Academy in Alpharetta, GA. This followed three years at the same school as Middle School Principal. Before migrating to Bridgeway, Mr. Minks was the Dean of Students for five years for grades 7-12 at Warner Christian Academy in Daytona Beach, FL. In addition to his administrative duties there, Mr. Minks taught Health, Bible, and Leadership classes to middle and high school students.

Furthermore, he coached the high school varsity girls’ basketball and tennis teams and coordinated all chapel programs. Prior to becoming the Dean of Students, Mr. Minks taught sixth grade (in the elementary) for four years at the same school. While doing this, he also implemented and supervised an intramural athletics program for the upper elementary students.

Mr. Minks received his Masters in Educational Administration from Columbia International University in 2001. He earned his Bachelors of Science degree in Elementary Education and Bible from Northwestern College in 1993. Mr. Minks holds a Lifetime ACSI All Levels Principal Certificate. He sits Executive Committee of Christian Schools of Florida and has served on five accreditation teams to other schools.

Mr. Minks is happily married to his wife of 27 years, Carol, who is also on staff at Cambridge. Mr. and Mrs. Minks have three children. Tal is a graduate of UCF, Tiana attends Florida Southern, and Tate is an 11th grader at CCS.

Mrs. Turk has been with CCS for 9 years and has worked in the business office as the Payroll and Benefits Coordinator and at PricewaterhouseCoopers as a Tax Process Specialist.  She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of South Florida and recently attained her CPA license. She has been married to her husband, Robert for 5 years and loves Cambridge because of the “close family environment and the wonderful people I get to work with every day.”

Mark Butler has a 27-year history in Christian Education with 18 years specifically being a Director of Athletics. Over the years, Mr. Butler has gained experience in coaching, teaching, and being a Principal. Mr. Butler brings to CCS a vast knowledge in Florida High School Athletics and in all aspects of building championship programs. Mr. Butler’s former school has won the 2A Private School Sunshine Cup in Florida for being the best overall athletic program in the state of Florida each of the last two school years. Mr. Butler has been a Director of Athletics in schools serving 1,000 students or more and in schools the same size as Cambridge. Cambridge is blessed to have been able to hire a leader with Mr. Butler’s résumé, success, and diversity in leadership experience.  Mr. Butler will be joined at Cambridge by his wife, Karen.

It is my great pleasure to join the Lancer community!  My heartbeat is to glorify God and serve Him forever.  To that end God has called me to carry out that task through education.  I received my bachelor’s from the University of Northern Iowa in Social Science Education.  I pursued my master’s and doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of South Florida and Temple University, respectively.  I have ten years in Christian education both as a teacher and secondary principal, and the last six were spent in public education as a teacher and elementary principal.

My personal verse for the 2020-2021 school year is Philippians 3:14, “I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”  Our job as Christians is to move forward, press on, and grow in our faith. Our job as Christian educators is to help our students press on in their faith and biblical worldview. I will lead with this conviction that we must press on in our faith, work, responsibilities, and become more like Christ every day.

I’ve been married to the love of my life, Sarah, since 2003.  We have four children, Jack-rising 9^th grade, Lydia-rising 7^th grade, Holly-rising 5^th grade, and Bethany-rising 4^th grade.  We love to get outside, hike in national parks, spend time in God’s Word, and eat at Chick-Fil-A!  We are excited to be a part of God’s movement at Cambridge Christian School and trusting God for great things to happen this school year.  I cannot wait to meet everyone and begin the journey of serving as the Upper School Principal.

Mrs. Shiver is a graduate from Samford University from where she obtained her BS in Business Management & Marketing. She went on to the University of Scranton to pursue her Masters in Educational Leadership and just recently completed the High School College Placement Counselor Certification with NACCAP at Anderson University. She has over nine years experience in Guidance & College Placement. Mrs. Shiver has been married to her husband, Brent, for 14 years and together they have two sons, Asa and Kade. Asa will be going to third grade and Kade will be in first grade.

Dr. Cara D. Lile, a Kentucky native, is a veteran educator with 19 years of experience in both public and private schools.  She most recently served as the Principal at CornerStone Preparatory School in Madisonville, Kentucky.  Dr. Lile holds a B.S. in Learning and Behavior Disorders, an M.A. in Elementary Education, an M.A. in Education Administration, and an Ed.D. in Education Administration.  She is passionate about implementing innovative and “out-of-the-box” methods that foster a learning environment that leads to success for all students.

Dr. Lile is married to Jeremy, a Green Beret stationed at MacDill Airforce Base, and they have five children, Kelsey, Emma, Pate, Lucie, and Cooper.  She enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and cheering for the Kentucky Wildcats!

Mrs. Hillier has been working at CCS for over 14 years. She graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.A. in Mass Communications and a major in Advertising and was in sales and sales management for over 10 years before joining our team. She is mother to two boys, Ethan and Tyler.  Ethan is currently a sophomore at Cambridge, and Tyler '14, is studying law at Stetson. Both boys are "lifers," starting Cambridge in K-3. Mrs. Hillier loves CCS because of the strong foundation it offers students. “It is the perfect combination of rigorous academics and faith in action. It allows your student to be involved, lead, and be mentored by an incredibly talented and godly faculty and staff. On top of that, it’s a wonderful place to work. CCS has been a blessing to our family in so many ways.”

Lisa has worked at CCS for ten years and graduated from the University of South Florida with a B.A in Mass Communications. She worked in sales at USF and has been a parent here for 14 years. Her son Ethan graduated from Cambridge Christian and is a junior in college. She loves Cambridge because of the close atmosphere and the opportunity she has to introduce others to Cambridge. “The best part of my job is meeting new families and welcoming them to be part of Cambridge Christian School.”

Mr. Shears has been working at CCS for 10 years and has an Associate’s Degree in Criminal Justice from Mott Community College. He is a retired Detective from the City of Tampa Police Department and has been married to his wife, Shelley, for 33 years. They have two children, Tabatha and Erik ‘08 and two grandchildren. Mr. Shears loves Cambridge because this is where he accepted the Lord into his life. He says, “This school will always have a special place in my heart.  I feel God’s presence every day that I am here.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to disciple your children.”

Mrs. Cortner received a Bachelor's degree in Health Science Education from the University of Florida and a Master's degree in Education from Mercy College in New York. Mrs. Cortner also received training at Columbia Teacher's College and has seven years of classroom teaching experience. She has three children who attend Cambridge Christian School - Chase, Olivia, and William.

Mrs. Gartner's undergraduate degree is from Bryan College in Dayton,Tennessee in Elementary Education. She then went on to receive further training to be a Professionally Certified Educational Therapist through the National Institute for Learning Development (NILD). For the last 18 years, she has served in a variety of roles—classroom teacher, educational therapist, and administration. She has two married children, one here in Florida and another in Virginia, and her youngest will be a senior at Liberty University this school year. She just celebrated the birth of a granddaughter and says,

Mrs. Mas-Beazel has been teaching in Hillsborough County for 6 years. Her experience relates to teaching Reading, ESOL, and Intensive - Intensive Reading (Block Class), which involves teaching Language Arts with a strong focus on understanding difficult text. Students in a block class must write essays in the main modes of writing supporting their claim with heavy textual evidence.

Mrs. Phinney has been teaching English and journalism for nine years in the public school system as a five-star educator. She is passionate about the arts and has a Secondary English Education degree cum laude from The University of South Florida. Currently, she is working on her M.Ed in English from Liberty University. She is a professional fine-art and family photographer and loves capturing God's masterpieces with her lens. She and her husband are high school sweethearts and have been married for ten years. They have three rescued pit bull terriers: Grace, Caesar, and Harper Lee.

Mrs. Raffa will be teaching Algebra 1, Algebra 1 Honors and Geometry in the Upper School this year. She received her M.Ed. from the University of South Florida and her BA from the University of Florida. This will be her 24th year of teaching. She has taught middle and high school, public and private schools in Tampa and rural Idaho. She has three adult daughters, three grandchildren and loves the outdoors, especially hiking and kayaking. She is excited and feels blessed to be teaching at Cambridge Christian School this year.

Mrs. Ruiz has been working at CCS for over 19 years as an Executive Assistant and in various other responsibilities throughout campus including Summer Camp Director. She has three children, Nathan, Sarah ’09 and Aaron '15. She also has a grandchild, Zane. Mrs. Ruiz loves Cambridge because her children have learned so much academically and spiritually. She says, “The faculty invests their knowledge and time into your child. This school is truly unique. Our sacrifices have been rewarded in the confidence we see in our children. The values we teach at home have been reinforced at school on a daily basis.”

Mr. Willeke has been teaching for 10 years in Hillsborough County schools, and has volunteered with the middle school children of his church for over 20 years.  He has taken students on mission trips to feed the homeless in Chicago, South Carolina and Washington DC.  He has also served on mission trips to Italy and Fiji. He is a graduate of the University of South Florida where he received a BA in History, and is an avid Bulls football fan.

Mr. Willeke will also be the Offensive Coordinator for the CCS Middle School Football Team where he hopes to develop players who will not only be leaders, but followers of God.