Back to School: Meet Apple Valley's New Teachers

We asked all the teachers new to the Apple Valley schools in the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan school district to answer a few questions to introduce themselves to the Apple Valley Patch community as the 2011-12 school year began. Get to know a little more about the educators who provided responses.

Stephanie Brown   

School:
 
Grade Level/Subject: Third Grade
 
Previous Teaching Position/Job: N/A
 
Education: University of Wisconsin-River Falls; Bachelor of Science- Elementary Education; Social Studies minor
 
Hometown: Wausau, WI
 
Hobbies: My favorite past time is reading. I also enjoy jogging, and watching sports.
 
Why I'm a Teacher: I became a teacher because of that moment what a child grabs hold of a concept, and you see the excitement in their eyes!

Jamie Nikolai

School:

Grade Level/Subject: Seventh and eighth grade science

Previous Teaching Position/Job: Seventh and eighth grade science teacher

Education:

• BA in Education from the University of St. Thomas
• M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction in Environmental Education from the University of Minnesota

Hometown: West St. Paul
 
Hobbies: Reading, traveling, and spending time with my family
 
Why I'm a Teacher: I’m a teacher because I love science and I love students, and teaching allows me to focus on both.

Krista Pawlicki

School:

Grade Level/Subject: I will be teaching ninth and 12th grade social studies (civics and economics), and coaching the girls varsity tennis team.

Previous Teaching Position/Job: Bloomington Kennedy for seven years, Eastview for five and starting my first year at AVHS this fall.  This will be my sixth year in district 196.

Education: I went to high school at Bloomington Kennedy, got my undergraduate degree at Gustavus Adolphus College and my master's in teacher leadership at the University of Minnesota.

Hometown: Bloomington

Hobbies: Enjoying time with my family, playing sports (tennis), taking walks and reading

Why I'm a Teacher: To make a difference in student's lives and to see the "aha" moments that students have when they learn something new.

Richard Rozales

School: Diamond Path Elementary School of International Studies

Grade Level/Subject: Third Grade

Previous Teaching Position/Job: This is my very first year teaching!

Education: BA in English from the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities; currently completing a Masters of Elementary Education Initial Licensure with Middle School focus in Communication Arts and Literature from the U of M.

Hometown: I grew up in St. Paul and lived there for most of my life.  My wife and I now live in Minneapolis.

Hobbies: I enjoy playing acoustic guitar when I have the time as well as writing stories. Music and writing have interested me for as long as I can remember.

Why I'm a Teacher: Some of the most influential people in my life have been the teachers who've pushed me to realize my full potential. They were the teachers who transformed my learning environment from one in which I felt a bit uncomfortable to an environment I felt I contributed a valuable component to. I want students to realize that their own diverse backgrounds contribute to their—and their classmates'—learning. As our world continues to become ever more connected via technology, I want to teach students that their diverse backgrounds bring valuable skill sets to the classroom. As students progress through school, these skill sets will prepare them to contribute to their local, national, and even their global communities.

Beth Swenson

School: (half-time); , Echo Park, Glacier Hills, , Oak Ridge, Parkview, Westview, Woodland

Grade Level/Subject: Fifth-grade literacy at Westview; literacy intervention trainer at other elementaries. I teach the way they teach in New Zealand and Australia, so we will integrate all subject areas into Literacy so the kids will become researchers.

Previous Teaching Position/Job:

• Fifth- through eighth-grade math with a fifth-grade language arts homeroom (Michigan)
• First- and fourth-grade at a mission school in the Appalachian Mountains (Kentucky)
• K-6 literacy in Minnesota. I trained literacy coaches, coached teachers, and taught K-6 in literacy.
• I have been a national/international trainer for the last 12 years. I have trained on RtI and literacy across the United States, as well as Canada, New Zealand, Australia, England, and India.

Education:

• BS in Elementary Education. Major: Mathematics; Minor: Language Arts
• MS in Education. Emphasis: School Change
• PhD (in dissertation phase): Training and Performance Improvement

Hometown: Birmingham, MI

Hobbies: Learning, learning about learning, traveling, researching, learning about different cultures, missions, learning about people, studying the brain

Why I'm a Teacher: When I was in sixth grade, I had the most amazing teacher for reading and science. Mr. King helped us learn to research and explore the world. He made us so curious about how everything worked in the world. We built radios, took carburetors apart, learned about rocks and how planes fly. We read books about amazing places and people. He made us fall in love with learning. I went from hating reading, writing and words... to loving to learn. He ignited a passion in me that keeps burning to this day. I will forever be a life long learner because of Mr. King.  

If Mr. King hadn't come into my life, I probably would have struggled through junior high and high school and not been sure of who I was, or what I was interested in. Instead, I knew from the first week of sixth grade that I wanted to be a teacher just like Mr. King. I wanted to turn children on to learning and help them discover their curiosities and feel great about themselves. I wanted to develop a sense of wholeness in every child that made them sure of who they were and what makes them smart and special. I love teaching. I love turning my kids out at the end of the year with a goal for their life... and a passion about something they feel called to. 

The ripple effects of the hour and a half a day that Mr. King invested in my life have washed over many, many school districts around the United States. I love telling my story as a learner, because it helps teachers know to never make a judgement about a child and their abilities. It just takes a very special person to look past the outside, into the insides of a child and help them to discover the ways they learn and what they are curious about. I truly believe all children can learn. I will forever be paying forward the investment that Mr. King made in me.

Carly Thomforde

School: Falcon Ridge Middle School

Grade Level/Subject: Seventh and eighth grade language arts and communications

Previous Teaching Position/Job: I have been a long-term substitute at several schools, including Adams Spanish Immersion, St. Paul Academy and Falcon Ridge Middle School. I have also been a middle school coach at St. Paul Academy for the past five years.

Education: North Park University, Chicago IL

Hometown: Apple Valley

Hobbies: I enjoy staying active by playing soccer, basketball and volleyball, and I love to travel with friends when I get the chance.

Why I'm a Teacher: I enjoy the energy that comes with working in a school. Discussing the beliefs, ideas and feelings that come with literature is a passion for me. Having those discussions with middle school students make it even better!