Cherie Bonder Goldman ’89

Cherie Bonder Goldman graduated from Georgetown University with a B.S. in Japanese and a minor in teaching and then from Stanford University with a Master of Arts in East Asian Studies. Her intention was to become a Japanese language teacher, but with those positions scarce, she pivoted and found herself in advertising account management, strategizing for Toyota at Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles and for Clorox at DDB San Francisco. Yet, all along, Cherie knew her heart had always wanted to be in the classroom. When she moved to Savannah, Georgia, to be near family, she earned her Master of Arts in Early Childhood Education from Armstrong Atlantic State University (now, Georgia Southern) and started a second career with the Savannah Chatham County Public School System. For 13 years, Cherie taught third grade followed by English to Speakers of Other Languages. In 2019, she went back to school again, earning her Education Specialist degree in Teacher Leadership with a Coaching Endorsement from Mercer University, and in 2022, she was named Georgia Teacher of the Year. In that role, Cherie represented Georgia teachers on the State Board of Education and around the state. Additionally, she led the Georgia Department of Education's Teacher Burnout Task Force. Now in her 15th year with the Savannah-Chatham school district, she was most recently named the district's Literacy Effectiveness Officer, responsible for integrating the district's literacy efforts internally across grades PK-12 and externally with families and community partners. In her free time, Cherie enjoys traveling and boating with her husband AJ, being a foodie, doing crossword puzzles with her son Emmett, reading on the couch with her dogs, and playing pickleball.