Virginia Hope

Ms. Brunk is an English teacher who studied at both JMU and GMU for Education.

Ms. Erin Brunk, an avid cross-fitter and dog walker, is in her third year of teaching and her second year at West Po. She is an English teacher currently, but has also taught World History at Annandale.

Ms. Brunk grew up in a military family, where her dad served for 30 years. She has lived in Hawaii, California, Washington, Michigan, Connecticut, Maryland and Virginia. 

Her maternal grandmother, Margie Moore, inspired her as she was a teacher and a community volunteer. “She loved helping out where she could; that always inspired me.” Margie had a huge positive impact on Ms. Brunk’s life and inspired her to start teaching.

Ms. Brunk attended James Madison University for undergrad and studied English with a minor in Secondary Education. She also attended George Mason University where she earned her Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with a concentration in secondary education English.

Aside from teaching, Ms. Brunk loves to indulge in a delicious grilled cheese every once in a while. Her favorite restaurant is “Grilled Cheese Mania” in Harrisburg, Virginia, near JMU. The owner of this restaurant would hand out stickers to students studying in the library as a reward with a discount at her restaurant. Ms. Brunks’ favorite order is a Classic Johnny with bacon and tomato soup.

Ms. Brunk’s favorite memory from teaching is when she set up an escape room for her students. During this activity, Ms. Brunk would jokingly call herself “Spy Master Brunk”, some of her former students still do. The students had such a fun time trying to escape. “That is probably the most excited and competitive I have ever seen [them]!”