Staff Spotlight: Michelle DelBuono and Amy Hess
Instructional Coaches Shaping Teaching at Keystone Academy
This month, we highlight two educators whose work reaches every corner of Keystone Academy’s classrooms: instructional coaches Amy Hess (grades 4–8) and Michelle DelBuono (grades K–3). For more than two decades, they have supported teachers, strengthened instruction, and helped shape the school’s daily life—from lesson planning and classroom management to Mrs. DelBuono’s leadership in book ordering and staff culture, and Mrs. Hess’s Title One coordination.
Their professional paths began in the same charter school network and have run side by side ever since. They have traveled between schools together, raised their families alongside one another, and become close friends in the process. Today, their combined experience and steady guidance help ensure that Keystone’s teachers—and students—have what they need to succeed.
Meet Michelle DelBuono
Instructional Coach and Textbook Procurement Lead
Keystone’s greatest strength is its people. Mrs. Michelle DelBuono, our dedicated kindergarten-through-3rd-grade instructional coach, embodies this spirit. She has served in this role at Keystone since 2012, following many years as an educator in schools across Philadelphia and within the charter network that now includes what is now known as Keystone Academy Charter School.
What Does an Instructional Coach Do?
When asked how she describes her role to friends, Mrs. DelBuono said, “I help teachers with curriculum or classroom management.”
As the K–3 instructional coach, Mrs. DelBuono supports teachers with curriculum challenges and classroom management and models new methods as needed—for example, demonstrating effective ways to teach specific skills or manage flexible groups. She helps teachers maintain instructional pacing, assists with scheduling and lesson planning, and tailors her support to individual needs by observing classrooms and then providing targeted assistance.
Supporting new teachers and watching them grow in their craft.
Decades of Dedication
Education & Background
Mrs. DelBuono is a lifelong South Philadelphia resident who attended St. Maria Goretti High School. She went on to Neumann College (now Neumann University), where she earned her degree in elementary and early childhood education.
After graduating from college, she taught at a Catholic school for half a year and then spent three years teaching in the School District of Philadelphia. In 2002, she joined the cohort of charter schools that includes what is now Keystone Academy, beginning as a first-grade teacher at Laboratory Charter School and then at Ad Prima, both housed in the same building, where she taught first grade from 2002 to 2011.
In 2011, she was tasked with traveling among the cohort schools as an instructional coach, and in 2012 she was permanently assigned to Planet Abacus, which is now Keystone Academy Charter School. She has served as Keystone’s K–3 instructional coach ever since.
What Inspires Mrs. DelBuono?
When asked what inspires her most about working at Keystone Academy, Mrs. DelBuono’s answer was simple and heartfelt: “The students.”
She treasures the bonds she forms with students and enjoys creating positive incentives, such as this year’s “Lunch Bunch” with third-grade students and similar supports she has offered to students in previous years.
I enjoy watching our new teachers as they grow from when they first start.
She added that she takes pride in seeing new educators blossom into classroom leaders, knowing she has played a part in their success.
Beyond the Classroom
Mrs. DelBuono’s contributions extend to staff culture as well. She coleads the school’s Sunshine Club, bringing cheer to the building throughout the year.
Textbook Procurement
And, for roughly the past decade, she has also overseen the complex task of ordering books for all classrooms. It is a responsibility she handles with care—gathering teachers’ requests, coordinating with multiple publishers, securing quotes and approvals, checking orders for accuracy, and helping inventory and distribute materials so teachers have what they need. When shipments are misdirected or mixed up, she works through the issues so the school receives the correct books.
A Personal Touch
Outside school, Mrs. DelBuono treasures time with her family. She and her husband of 21 years have two children, both of whom are celebrating graduations this year—one heading to Drexel University and the other entering high school. She is also the proud owner of a lively Yorkie and a cat.
Baking is one of her favorite pastimes, and she enjoys treating both family and colleagues. In March, Keystone’s staff benefited from her passion for baking when she brought in pies for our annual Pi Day celebration.
A Special Bond
Perhaps what makes Mrs. DelBuono’s story so uniquely Keystone is the friendship she has built with her fellow instructional coach, Amy Hess, with whom she shares this month’s spotlight. Their 20 years of working side by side have shaped both their own careers and the lives of countless students and teachers:
We traveled together. We’ve been best friends for the past 20 years because of our work, which is a big part of why I so much enjoy my job.