Carol Conelly
Age: 45
Hometown: Portland
Education: Harvey Mudd College, University of California-Berkeley, Mills College
Family: husband, Lloyd; daughters, Elena and Maia
Position: robotics teacher
Before Grant: physics teacher, stay at home mom, worked for Saturday Academy
What’s in the fridge? Chocolate
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I always had loved math and science, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to use it as an engineer…or teach it, but I just found that it was so rewarding to figure out ways to excite students about science, to show them that it was relevant to them no matter what they wanted to do to show them how important it was.”
Connelly never got to participate in robotics as a student, but it’s something she believes she would have loved. She is excited to provide this opportunity to students at Grant, and wants it to become known as an interesting and fun elective. A part-time teacher, Connelly wants to ease back into work after being a stay-at-home mom for seven years.Connelly shares many of the same interests as her two daughters and husband. They enjoy math, science, spending time outdoors, hiking and camping. Every summer, she takes each of her daughters on a trip for a couple days to a place of their choosing. This summer, she traveled to Sunriver and Orcas Island.Before Connelly and her husband had children, they agreed to spend a year in a foreign country to experience a different culture. They lived in Michoacán, Mexico, and Connelly taught science there. She and her husband traveled a lot while students at University of California-Berkeley. They’ve traveled to 20 countries, but her hikes in Nepal stand out the most in her mind.
Kristen Barsotti
Age: 37
Hometown: Portland
Family: daughters, Nataylee, Braelynn, Rhyann, Etta and Ellis
Position: bookkeeper
Before Grant: administrative assistant at Airstream Adventures
What’s in the fridge? Pasta
Why did you want to be a bookkeeper? “I think numbers are fun and I think working in the school is a lot of fun. I like high school generally because kids are really interesting.”Barsotti, a Grant alumna, loved being on the dance team during high school. Now, she coaches a team at Madison, which one of her daughters, Braelynn, is a part of. The oldest daughter, Nataylee, just graduated from Madison and is off to Mt. Hood Community College this fall. Although Barsotti never attended college herself, she says that’s not an option for her daughters. She wants them to be as educated as possible.Her family lives with Barsotti’s parents, but Barsotti wants to buy her own house in the future. She also wants to grow and learn as a bookkeeper. Math was never one of her favorite subjects, but now she loves it.“It’s grown on me,” she says. Barsotti is looking forward to challenging herself every day.
Erich Simon
Age: 41
Hometown: Hood River
Education: University of Colorado, University of California-Davis, Portland State University
Family: wife, Deanna; sons, Kyler and Jesse
Position: engineering and geometry
Before Grant: environmental engineer in California for a consulting firm and the State of California
What instruments do you play? “I’ve been an amateur guitar player for 20 years, but I’m not very good.”
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I worked as an engineer for about 10 years. I was mostly cleaning up messes from the past. I saw potential in helping educate the people of the future to be more conscious and aware.”As an engineer, Simon helped identify and solve problems with water quality in rivers. He is looking forward to helping introduce an engineering class to Grant. He hopes that the class grows into a more extensive program. Simon refuses to leave engineering entirely, and continues to take on minor projects when he has the time.Simon finds most of his joy while spending time with his kids, whether it be camping, biking, learning a new language or just being creative with them. In his free time, he likes snowboarding, hiking and rock climbing. He may have spent a while away from the Pacific Northwest but the beauty of his home state has always stuck with Simon. “I like the rolling orchard hills and the views of Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams,” he said, after naming his hometown of Hood River as the most beautiful place in Oregon. “It’s really nice,” he says.
Erin McNulty
Age: 30
Hometown: Portland
Education: Western Oregon University
Family: parents, Jon and Debbie; brother, Conor
Position: health teacher
Before Grant: teen outreach program, summer school health teacher, substitute, Madison High School health and instructional coach
What’s on the TV? The Office
Why did you want to be a teacher? “It was something that was around me, and it was in my family, so it was something that was modeled for me. I just really always found a desire to spread knowledge and help other people.”McNulty grew up in a very active family. She played volleyball throughout her childhood and enjoyed playing in high school here at Grant. After graduating from high school in 2001, McNulty spent six years at Western Oregon University. She got her bachelor’s degree in health and psychology, and her master’s in arts and teaching in secondary education.Choosing to teach high school wasn’t difficult – McNulty had an amazing experience in her health class at Grant. She loved her teacher and felt inspired to enter the field of health.In the fall of 2010, McNulty took a break from teaching to travel to Costa Rica with someone she was dating at the time. The couple spent two and a half months experiencing a new culture. In the future, McNulty wants to feed her love of traveling by adventuring to countless new places.
Colin Oriard
Age: 33
Hometown: Corvallis
Education: Lewis & Clark College, Portland State University
Family: wife, Kelly
Position: Spanish 1 and 2 teacher
Before Grant: one year at Parkrose High School teaching Spanish
What’s on the nightstand? The Autobiography of Malcolm X written with Alex Haley, Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
Why did you want to be a teacher? “Education has always been an important part of my life. By sixth grade I would help my mother out with her kindergartners when I had days off.”Oriard played professional basketball around the globe after acquiring a bachelor’s degree in Hispanic Studies from Lewis & Clark College in 2003. Throughout his athletic career, Oriard discovered a love for high school while coaching basketball and teaching language and American Culture classes in Denmark. He moved back to the states because he craved a more stable lifestyle. He earned his master’s degree at Portland State University two years ago, and met the love of his life, Kelly Russell. They got married this summer.Oriard’s teaching style is unique. He never uses desks or tables, and starts off the class in a circle. He believes that in learning a second language, grammar should come after content and self-expression. “I lived in three different countries where I knew very little language. The more nervous or anxious I was about speaking, the harder it was to communicate, so I try to make my classroom a fun, positive place,” he says.
Mykhiel Deych
Age: 36
Hometown: Southfield, Mich.
Education: Evergreen State College, Columbia College and Lewis & Clark College
Family: daughter, Zorya; son, Hobbit; cat, Kiwi; dogs, Shiloh and Kinnikinnik
Position: freshman English and Writers Workshop teacher
Before Grant: taught writing at Columbia College, outdoor educator at Trackers in Portland
Favorite trip: Traveling to Greece with her daughter in 2001
Why did you want to be a teacher? “When I was teaching at the college level, I came across so many students not prepared to succeed in college. That caused me to start thinking about my own experience in high school. I really felt compelled to support students in a way that I never got.”Mykhiel Deych and her family emigrated from Azerbaijan when she was just a toddler. Deych, an English Language Learner, grew up in Southfield, Mich. - a suburb of Detroit. Conversationally fluent, Deych knew English fairly well but didn’t have the academic strength that her teachers desired. She ended up getting pushed out of high school.Deych fought hard for her education, receiving a masters in fine arts in creative writing and poetry, as well as a masters in art and teaching.Although she describes herself as a wandering soul, Deych plans on investing in Grant’s community and staying put for a while.
Kari Taylor
Age: 39
Hometown: Rockford, Illinois
Education: Illinois State University, Evergreen State College
Family: husband, Nat
Position: biology teacher
Before Grant: biology and environmental science teacher at De La Salle North Catholic
Favorite thing to do in Portland: Walk the dog, Bella, a bull mastiff
Why did you become a teacher? “Basically because of the state of the country and the poverty there is. Education is one of the biggest things to lift people out of poverty and the best thing in a classroom is a good teacher. It’s just my desire for social justice, to help people out of poverty.”
Taylor grew up a couple miles away from a small town in Illinois. Since leaving, she has ventured around the United States, a couple highlights being the green-sanded Papakolea beach in Hawaii and the evergreens on Mt. Hood. This past summer, she left North America for the first time for her honeymoon in Spain.Along with the outdoors and her husband, Taylor loves reading, listening music, and watching football. She played softball and basketball in high school, but doesn’t participate in any sports currently. Music is a much larger part of her life. She proudly states that she goes to at least one live-music performance per month.
Brian McFadden
Age: 24
Hometown: Corvallis
Education: Oregon State University
Family: parents, Phil and Helen; brother, Tyler; sister, Jenna; dog, Pux
Position: instrumental music teacher
Before Grant: Hood River Middle School band and music teacher
Favorite sports team: Boston Red Sox or the Seattle Mariners
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I always found myself in leadership roles throughout my life, whether it be with my peers, or on the baseball field, or in band. But it wasn’t until my senior year of high school when I was drum major of the pep band and I got to go to a bunch of cool music conferences and work with some composers and conductors from around the world that really kinda transitioned my thinking into…‘I want to be a music teacher.’”McFadden grew up playing sports and the trumpet. He was a varsity pitcher in high school, but eventually stopped playing baseball to focus on music. While in college, McFadden traveled to China and Japan with his trumpet choir and wind ensemble. Although he didn’t speak the local languages, McFadden was able to communicate through music. “Music is kind of a universal language,” he says.In his free time, McFadden enjoys to cook, especially on the barbeque. He also enjoys going on walks, hikes and playing fetch with his dog. When he taught in Hood River, McFadden was part of an orchestra named Sinfonietta. After moving to Portland this summer, he is looking forward to finding a group of musicians to play with.One piece of advice McFadden tells his students is “celebrate the victories, but never be satisfied with where you’re at.”
Kianne Noakes
Age: 32
Hometown: Battle Ground, Wash.
Education: Mt. Hood Community College, Concordia University
Family: husband, Scott; daughter, Lyric
Position: Health teacher
Before Grant: physical education and health teacher at Centennial Middle School, Arleta K-8, Benson High School and Lincoln High School, substitute teacher
What's on the nightstand? Books about different methods of teaching PE and Health, and on classroom management.
Why did you want to be a teacher? "It wasn't until I started coaching ... where it was kinda like an 'aha' moment... like, 'Oh, you know, I could really do this, I could be a teacher.' Obviously, I would go right into health and PE teaching."Softball was always a big part of Noakes' life growing up. She started playing when she was eight and didn't stop until college.In high school, Noakes wasn't interested in college. \"It wasn't even on the radar,\" she says. But after receiving a full-ride offer from Mt. Hood Community College, she moved down to Portland.Noakes is the first in her family to pursue higher education.During college, she found it difficult to balance school, softball and her job at Safeway, so she took an extra year to finish school.It was against school policy to play softball for more than two years so she took up coaching in her third year. It was then that she realized she wanted to be a teacher.After Mt. Hood, Noakes continued on to Concordia University where she attained her bachelor's degree in 2007. Now, Noakes is working towards a masters. Noakes loves to spend time with her family. She has a younger sister and a younger brother and they get together with their parents about once a week. They love to play board games together.Noakes' career has been filled with losing positions to budget cuts but she is very excited to teach full time at Grant and wants to focus on growing and learning this year.
Megan Hull
Age:30
Hometown: Portland
Education: University of Oregon
Family: husband, Zach; dog, Chacho (“I really think my dog and I are twins, separated by a couple decades.”)
Position: special education teacher
Before Grant: special education teacher at Rowe Middle School in the North Clackamas School District for seven years
What’s in the DVD player? When Harry Met Sally
Why did you want to be a teacher? “My undergrad was family and human services, and part of that is internships, and so nonprofits, and schools, and that kinda stuff. I enjoyed the nonprofits but I found it a little boring working in a cubicle. But when I was at the school, I like fell in love with it and loved the community and I loved getting to know the kids.”Last month, Hull got married to her husband, Zach Hull. The couple met at a friend’s birthday party and recently purchased a house together. They spent their honeymoon in Mexico relaxing on the beach. Hull also gardened a lot during the summer – one of her favorite pastimes. Her backyard (which she calls her “mini farm”) is filled with fruits and vegetables.Hull prefers to go by Miss Megan in the classroom. “It’s a lot easier than a last name, and it describes more of who I am. I’m not a last name type of gal,” says Hull. She enjoys finding out what her students are capable of, working with their strengths, and highlighting their potential. After receiving a master’s in secondary special education, Hull started teaching at the middle school level. Now she is looking forward to a change and a new challenge.
Joe Ferguson
Age: 35
Hometown: Reno, Nevada
Education: University of Nevada-Reno
Family: wife, Mary; son, Reid; dog, Violet; cat, Kita
Position: biology and ecology teacher
Before Grant: science teacher at Rainshadow, a charter school in Reno, and at Leadership & Entrepreneurship Public Charter High School in Portland
What’s on the iPod? Hardcore punk
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I just love seeing young people learn about the world, teaching them really cool skills and values that will help them in the future. I just want to do my part to serve the next generation that’s coming up, to hopefully inspire them to take on the challenges that the future holds, whatever those may be.”A vegan since the age of 17, Ferguson has always loved animals. He spent his childhood in the outdoors with his two younger brothers. Science and math were the best parts of school days and he played several sports in high school. After getting his high school diploma, Ferguson moved to Europe alone. He spent three months backpacking across the continent.After college, Ferguson spent a year in Boston through a domestic exchange program and became friends with his future wife, Mary, who works as a bicycle mechanic. Three years ago, the family moved to Portland, where Ferguson got a job at LEP. “I’m really excited to start teaching at Grant. I’ve been teaching for the past eight years at really small charter schools, so I’m excited to be a part of a bigger community of teachers.”
Kesia Micheletti
Age: 36
Hometown: Port Alexander, Alaska
Education: Humboldt State University, Portland State University
Position: special education instructor
Family: husband, Dustin; sons, Jasper and Aram
Before Grant: special education instructor, transition coordinator at Parkrose High School
Favorite “Young Adult” Novel: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Why did you want to be a special education instructor? “I grew up with an aunt with special needs. Before I even went to college I did an AmeriCorps program where I worked at a camp for students with special needs. I just enjoyed working with that population and it just led me to be a special education teacher, since that’s kinda the realm where you work with those students.”Micheletti grew up in a small town in Alaska that was so tiny and remote they had no phones, cars, TV, or even running water. However, her family moved to “the lower 48” when she was still young. While at college in Arcata, California, she met her husband, Dustin. The two of them went on a road trip through the U.S. 10 years ago, visiting different cities in an attempt to figure out where they wanted to live, and eventually settled on Portland.She enjoys traveling, exercising, camping and making jewelry. This hobby was adopted in high school and has stayed with her through her life. Camping was something she started to do after her kids were born in place of the backpacking she used to do with her husband. Most recently, Micheletti has started gardening, reaping her rewards in the form of homegrown produce.
Sang Lee
Age: 38
Hometown: Los Angeles before moving to Chicago
Education: Northwestern University, University of Michigan, Portland State University
Position: special education teacher
Family: wife, Grace; sons, Ryan and Owen; daughter, Lauren
Before Grant: social worker in Chicago, Christian pastor in L.A., social worker in Portland
What’s on the iPod? The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Bob Marley
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I love serving people who are underserved. I loved the special ed students ‘cause I feel like they have amazing potential. But a lot of that potential is sometimes unrealized and I love being part of that process of making their hopes and their dreams come true.”Sang Lee converted to Christianity as a high-school student in the Chicago suburbs. His mom and dad, an atheist and an agnostic, were supportive, but wary that his faith might hinder his grades.Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea and moved to L.A. at age 2. His parents, both artists, were searching for more opportunities than their life in Seoul could provide. After college, Lee worked at a school in a troubled neighborhood, but wasn’t satisfied.Since moving to Portland with his wife and kids, Lee earned a masters at Portland State University. While being a teacher at Grant will be a new experience for him, Lee is eager to begin his teaching career.
MaLynda Wolfer
Age: 34
Hometown: Salem
Education: Portland State University, University of Oregon
Position: geometry and algebra support
Family: husband, Mario Randall
Before Grant: student teacher at Marshall High School, math teacher at St. Mary’s Academy and Gresham High School.
Useless objects around the house: “I will say family pictures clutter my walls.”
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I think that it’s just always been in my heart. Teaching is reciprocal for me. I learn as much about myself from the students that I teach as they learn about math from me. It’s about helping everybody achieve their potential.”Growing up as the eldest of five children in a low-income area of Salem was a two-fold experience for Wolfer. There were the immediate issues of whether there was going to be food on the table each night, but she also looks at it as an obstacle that made her a stronger person. She’s the first person in her family to attend college, despite dropping out of high school her junior year and not coming back until halfway through her senior year. After studying tirelessly, Wolfer was accepted into Portland State University.Despite all of her hard work to get into college, Wolfer had no clear path once she got there. She transferred to University of Oregon after her freshman year, encouraged by her then boyfriend and now husband, Mario Randall. She started out as a journalism major but later switched to math. She says she is always standing, moving around – eager to help. Her energy is infectious. “It’s an addicting profession,” she grins.
Lynn Yarne
Age: 30
Hometown: Portland
Education: Rhode Island School of Design, School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Family: parents, Jeff and Kathy; brother, Brian
Position: Art 1 and printmaking teacher
Before Grant: Artist in Portland
What’s on the TV? The Wire and Adventure Time
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I actually never thought that I’d be a teacher. It was kind of just in the last five years I realized that the work I was doing in education and then my artwork kinda were similar types of work. I think I really enjoy working with other people and learning from other people, and classrooms allow me to do that in a way that is really exciting.”Yarne has always enjoyed making art. She spent a semester in Beijing learning how to become a printmaker. After college, Yarne returned home to Portland, where she struggled to make it as an artist. She tried to sell her art.She worked various jobs around the city before attending graduate school at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2012. Drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpting are all types of art that Yarne enjoys.She also likes to make videos, sing and do art with groups of people. This summer, she spent time with high school students from all over Chicago doing digital art projects. They held an art show with video, installation art and graphic design. The internship program was based around the concept of beauty and how it connects with marketing.Yarne loves to call Portland home and is excited to come back. “I’m really excited about the students at Grant, about a lot of the things that are happening there. I think it’s a really cool school,” she says.
Carol Conelly
Age: 45
Hometown: Portland
Education: Harvey Mudd College, University of California-Berkeley, Mills College
Family: husband, Lloyd; daughters, Elena and Maia
Position: robotics teacher
Before Grant: physics teacher, stay at home mom, worked for Saturday Academy
What’s in the fridge? Chocolate
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I always had loved math and science, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to use it as an engineer…or teach it, but I just found that it was so rewarding to figure out ways to excite students about science, to show them that it was relevant to them no matter what they wanted to do to show them how important it was.”
Connelly never got to participate in robotics as a student, but it’s something she believes she would have loved. She is excited to provide this opportunity to students at Grant, and wants it to become known as an interesting and fun elective. A part-time teacher, Connelly wants to ease back into work after being a stay-at-home mom for seven years.Connelly shares many of the same interests as her two daughters and husband. They enjoy math, science, spending time outdoors, hiking and camping. Every summer, she takes each of her daughters on a trip for a couple days to a place of their choosing. This summer, she traveled to Sunriver and Orcas Island.Before Connelly and her husband had children, they agreed to spend a year in a foreign country to experience a different culture. They lived in Michoacán, Mexico, and Connelly taught science there. She and her husband traveled a lot while students at University of California-Berkeley. They’ve traveled to 20 countries, but her hikes in Nepal stand out the most in her mind.
Kristen Barsotti
Age: 37
Hometown: Portland
Family: daughters, Nataylee, Braelynn, Rhyann, Etta and Ellis
Position: bookkeeper
Before Grant: administrative assistant at Airstream Adventures
What’s in the fridge? Pasta
Why did you want to be a bookkeeper? “I think numbers are fun and I think working in the school is a lot of fun. I like high school generally because kids are really interesting.”Barsotti, a Grant alumna, loved being on the dance team during high school. Now, she coaches a team at Madison, which one of her daughters, Braelynn, is a part of. The oldest daughter, Nataylee, just graduated from Madison and is off to Mt. Hood Community College this fall. Although Barsotti never attended college herself, she says that’s not an option for her daughters. She wants them to be as educated as possible.Her family lives with Barsotti’s parents, but Barsotti wants to buy her own house in the future. She also wants to grow and learn as a bookkeeper. Math was never one of her favorite subjects, but now she loves it.“It’s grown on me,” she says. Barsotti is looking forward to challenging herself every day.
Erich Simon
Age: 41
Hometown: Hood River
Education: University of Colorado, University of California-Davis, Portland State University
Family: wife, Deanna; sons, Kyler and Jesse
Position: engineering and geometry
Before Grant: environmental engineer in California for a consulting firm and the State of California
What instruments do you play? “I’ve been an amateur guitar player for 20 years, but I’m not very good.”
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I worked as an engineer for about 10 years. I was mostly cleaning up messes from the past. I saw potential in helping educate the people of the future to be more conscious and aware.”As an engineer, Simon helped identify and solve problems with water quality in rivers. He is looking forward to helping introduce an engineering class to Grant. He hopes that the class grows into a more extensive program. Simon refuses to leave engineering entirely, and continues to take on minor projects when he has the time.Simon finds most of his joy while spending time with his kids, whether it be camping, biking, learning a new language or just being creative with them. In his free time, he likes snowboarding, hiking and rock climbing. He may have spent a while away from the Pacific Northwest but the beauty of his home state has always stuck with Simon. “I like the rolling orchard hills and the views of Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams,” he said, after naming his hometown of Hood River as the most beautiful place in Oregon. “It’s really nice,” he says.
Erin McNulty
Age: 30
Hometown: Portland
Education: Western Oregon University
Family: parents, Jon and Debbie; brother, Conor
Position: health teacher
Before Grant: teen outreach program, summer school health teacher, substitute, Madison High School health and instructional coach
What’s on the TV? The Office
Why did you want to be a teacher? “It was something that was around me, and it was in my family, so it was something that was modeled for me. I just really always found a desire to spread knowledge and help other people.”McNulty grew up in a very active family. She played volleyball throughout her childhood and enjoyed playing in high school here at Grant. After graduating from high school in 2001, McNulty spent six years at Western Oregon University. She got her bachelor’s degree in health and psychology, and her master’s in arts and teaching in secondary education.Choosing to teach high school wasn’t difficult – McNulty had an amazing experience in her health class at Grant. She loved her teacher and felt inspired to enter the field of health.In the fall of 2010, McNulty took a break from teaching to travel to Costa Rica with someone she was dating at the time. The couple spent two and a half months experiencing a new culture. In the future, McNulty wants to feed her love of traveling by adventuring to countless new places.
Colin Oriard
Age: 33
Hometown: Corvallis
Education: Lewis & Clark College, Portland State University
Family: wife, Kelly
Position: Spanish 1 and 2 teacher
Before Grant: one year at Parkrose High School teaching Spanish
What’s on the nightstand? The Autobiography of Malcolm X written with Alex Haley, Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
Why did you want to be a teacher? “Education has always been an important part of my life. By sixth grade I would help my mother out with her kindergartners when I had days off.”Oriard played professional basketball around the globe after acquiring a bachelor’s degree in Hispanic Studies from Lewis & Clark College in 2003. Throughout his athletic career, Oriard discovered a love for high school while coaching basketball and teaching language and American Culture classes in Denmark. He moved back to the states because he craved a more stable lifestyle. He earned his master’s degree at Portland State University two years ago, and met the love of his life, Kelly Russell. They got married this summer.Oriard’s teaching style is unique. He never uses desks or tables, and starts off the class in a circle. He believes that in learning a second language, grammar should come after content and self-expression. “I lived in three different countries where I knew very little language. The more nervous or anxious I was about speaking, the harder it was to communicate, so I try to make my classroom a fun, positive place,” he says.
Mykhiel Deych
Age: 36
Hometown: Southfield, Mich.
Education: Evergreen State College, Columbia College and Lewis & Clark College
Family: daughter, Zorya; son, Hobbit; cat, Kiwi; dogs, Shiloh and Kinnikinnik
Position: freshman English and Writers Workshop teacher
Before Grant: taught writing at Columbia College, outdoor educator at Trackers in Portland
Favorite trip: Traveling to Greece with her daughter in 2001
Why did you want to be a teacher? “When I was teaching at the college level, I came across so many students not prepared to succeed in college. That caused me to start thinking about my own experience in high school. I really felt compelled to support students in a way that I never got.”Mykhiel Deych and her family emigrated from Azerbaijan when she was just a toddler. Deych, an English Language Learner, grew up in Southfield, Mich. – a suburb of Detroit. Conversationally fluent, Deych knew English fairly well but didn’t have the academic strength that her teachers desired. She ended up getting pushed out of high school.Deych fought hard for her education, receiving a masters in fine arts in creative writing and poetry, as well as a masters in art and teaching.Although she describes herself as a wandering soul, Deych plans on investing in Grant’s community and staying put for a while.
Kari Taylor
Age: 39
Hometown: Rockford, Illinois
Education: Illinois State University, Evergreen State College
Family: husband, Nat
Position: biology teacher
Before Grant: biology and environmental science teacher at De La Salle North Catholic
Favorite thing to do in Portland: Walk the dog, Bella, a bull mastiff
Why did you become a teacher? “Basically because of the state of the country and the poverty there is. Education is one of the biggest things to lift people out of poverty and the best thing in a classroom is a good teacher. It’s just my desire for social justice, to help people out of poverty.”
Taylor grew up a couple miles away from a small town in Illinois. Since leaving, she has ventured around the United States, a couple highlights being the green-sanded Papakolea beach in Hawaii and the evergreens on Mt. Hood. This past summer, she left North America for the first time for her honeymoon in Spain.Along with the outdoors and her husband, Taylor loves reading, listening music, and watching football. She played softball and basketball in high school, but doesn’t participate in any sports currently. Music is a much larger part of her life. She proudly states that she goes to at least one live-music performance per month.
Brian McFadden
Age: 24
Hometown: Corvallis
Education: Oregon State University
Family: parents, Phil and Helen; brother, Tyler; sister, Jenna; dog, Pux
Position: instrumental music teacher
Before Grant: Hood River Middle School band and music teacher
Favorite sports team: Boston Red Sox or the Seattle Mariners
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I always found myself in leadership roles throughout my life, whether it be with my peers, or on the baseball field, or in band. But it wasn’t until my senior year of high school when I was drum major of the pep band and I got to go to a bunch of cool music conferences and work with some composers and conductors from around the world that really kinda transitioned my thinking into…‘I want to be a music teacher.’”McFadden grew up playing sports and the trumpet. He was a varsity pitcher in high school, but eventually stopped playing baseball to focus on music. While in college, McFadden traveled to China and Japan with his trumpet choir and wind ensemble. Although he didn’t speak the local languages, McFadden was able to communicate through music. “Music is kind of a universal language,” he says.In his free time, McFadden enjoys to cook, especially on the barbeque. He also enjoys going on walks, hikes and playing fetch with his dog. When he taught in Hood River, McFadden was part of an orchestra named Sinfonietta. After moving to Portland this summer, he is looking forward to finding a group of musicians to play with.One piece of advice McFadden tells his students is “celebrate the victories, but never be satisfied with where you’re at.”
Kianne Noakes
Age: 32
Hometown: Battle Ground, Wash.
Education: Mt. Hood Community College, Concordia University
Family: husband, Scott; daughter, Lyric
Position: Health teacher
Before Grant: physical education and health teacher at Centennial Middle School, Arleta K-8, Benson High School and Lincoln High School, substitute teacher
What’s on the nightstand? Books about different methods of teaching PE and Health, and on classroom management.
Why did you want to be a teacher? “It wasn’t until I started coaching … where it was kinda like an ‘aha’ moment… like, ‘Oh, you know, I could really do this, I could be a teacher.’ Obviously, I would go right into health and PE teaching.”Softball was always a big part of Noakes’ life growing up. She started playing when she was eight and didn’t stop until college.In high school, Noakes wasn’t interested in college. \”It wasn’t even on the radar,\” she says. But after receiving a full-ride offer from Mt. Hood Community College, she moved down to Portland.Noakes is the first in her family to pursue higher education.During college, she found it difficult to balance school, softball and her job at Safeway, so she took an extra year to finish school.It was against school policy to play softball for more than two years so she took up coaching in her third year. It was then that she realized she wanted to be a teacher.After Mt. Hood, Noakes continued on to Concordia University where she attained her bachelor’s degree in 2007. Now, Noakes is working towards a masters. Noakes loves to spend time with her family. She has a younger sister and a younger brother and they get together with their parents about once a week. They love to play board games together.Noakes’ career has been filled with losing positions to budget cuts but she is very excited to teach full time at Grant and wants to focus on growing and learning this year.
Megan Hull
Age:30
Hometown: Portland
Education: University of Oregon
Family: husband, Zach; dog, Chacho (“I really think my dog and I are twins, separated by a couple decades.”)
Position: special education teacher
Before Grant: special education teacher at Rowe Middle School in the North Clackamas School District for seven years
What’s in the DVD player? When Harry Met Sally
Why did you want to be a teacher? “My undergrad was family and human services, and part of that is internships, and so nonprofits, and schools, and that kinda stuff. I enjoyed the nonprofits but I found it a little boring working in a cubicle. But when I was at the school, I like fell in love with it and loved the community and I loved getting to know the kids.”Last month, Hull got married to her husband, Zach Hull. The couple met at a friend’s birthday party and recently purchased a house together. They spent their honeymoon in Mexico relaxing on the beach. Hull also gardened a lot during the summer – one of her favorite pastimes. Her backyard (which she calls her “mini farm”) is filled with fruits and vegetables.Hull prefers to go by Miss Megan in the classroom. “It’s a lot easier than a last name, and it describes more of who I am. I’m not a last name type of gal,” says Hull. She enjoys finding out what her students are capable of, working with their strengths, and highlighting their potential. After receiving a master’s in secondary special education, Hull started teaching at the middle school level. Now she is looking forward to a change and a new challenge.
Joe Ferguson
Age: 35
Hometown: Reno, Nevada
Education: University of Nevada-Reno
Family: wife, Mary; son, Reid; dog, Violet; cat, Kita
Position: biology and ecology teacher
Before Grant: science teacher at Rainshadow, a charter school in Reno, and at Leadership & Entrepreneurship Public Charter High School in Portland
What’s on the iPod? Hardcore punk
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I just love seeing young people learn about the world, teaching them really cool skills and values that will help them in the future. I just want to do my part to serve the next generation that’s coming up, to hopefully inspire them to take on the challenges that the future holds, whatever those may be.”A vegan since the age of 17, Ferguson has always loved animals. He spent his childhood in the outdoors with his two younger brothers. Science and math were the best parts of school days and he played several sports in high school. After getting his high school diploma, Ferguson moved to Europe alone. He spent three months backpacking across the continent.After college, Ferguson spent a year in Boston through a domestic exchange program and became friends with his future wife, Mary, who works as a bicycle mechanic. Three years ago, the family moved to Portland, where Ferguson got a job at LEP. “I’m really excited to start teaching at Grant. I’ve been teaching for the past eight years at really small charter schools, so I’m excited to be a part of a bigger community of teachers.”
Kesia Micheletti
Age: 36
Hometown: Port Alexander, Alaska
Education: Humboldt State University, Portland State University
Position: special education instructor
Family: husband, Dustin; sons, Jasper and Aram
Before Grant: special education instructor, transition coordinator at Parkrose High School
Favorite “Young Adult” Novel: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Why did you want to be a special education instructor? “I grew up with an aunt with special needs. Before I even went to college I did an AmeriCorps program where I worked at a camp for students with special needs. I just enjoyed working with that population and it just led me to be a special education teacher, since that’s kinda the realm where you work with those students.”Micheletti grew up in a small town in Alaska that was so tiny and remote they had no phones, cars, TV, or even running water. However, her family moved to “the lower 48” when she was still young. While at college in Arcata, California, she met her husband, Dustin. The two of them went on a road trip through the U.S. 10 years ago, visiting different cities in an attempt to figure out where they wanted to live, and eventually settled on Portland.She enjoys traveling, exercising, camping and making jewelry. This hobby was adopted in high school and has stayed with her through her life. Camping was something she started to do after her kids were born in place of the backpacking she used to do with her husband. Most recently, Micheletti has started gardening, reaping her rewards in the form of homegrown produce.
Sang Lee
Age: 38
Hometown: Los Angeles before moving to Chicago
Education: Northwestern University, University of Michigan, Portland State University
Position: special education teacher
Family: wife, Grace; sons, Ryan and Owen; daughter, Lauren
Before Grant: social worker in Chicago, Christian pastor in L.A., social worker in Portland
What’s on the iPod? The Beatles, Bob Dylan and Bob Marley
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I love serving people who are underserved. I loved the special ed students ‘cause I feel like they have amazing potential. But a lot of that potential is sometimes unrealized and I love being part of that process of making their hopes and their dreams come true.”Sang Lee converted to Christianity as a high-school student in the Chicago suburbs. His mom and dad, an atheist and an agnostic, were supportive, but wary that his faith might hinder his grades.Lee was born in Seoul, South Korea and moved to L.A. at age 2. His parents, both artists, were searching for more opportunities than their life in Seoul could provide. After college, Lee worked at a school in a troubled neighborhood, but wasn’t satisfied.Since moving to Portland with his wife and kids, Lee earned a masters at Portland State University. While being a teacher at Grant will be a new experience for him, Lee is eager to begin his teaching career.
MaLynda Wolfer
Age: 34
Hometown: Salem
Education: Portland State University, University of Oregon
Position: geometry and algebra support
Family: husband, Mario Randall
Before Grant: student teacher at Marshall High School, math teacher at St. Mary’s Academy and Gresham High School.
Useless objects around the house: “I will say family pictures clutter my walls.”
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I think that it’s just always been in my heart. Teaching is reciprocal for me. I learn as much about myself from the students that I teach as they learn about math from me. It’s about helping everybody achieve their potential.”Growing up as the eldest of five children in a low-income area of Salem was a two-fold experience for Wolfer. There were the immediate issues of whether there was going to be food on the table each night, but she also looks at it as an obstacle that made her a stronger person. She’s the first person in her family to attend college, despite dropping out of high school her junior year and not coming back until halfway through her senior year. After studying tirelessly, Wolfer was accepted into Portland State University.Despite all of her hard work to get into college, Wolfer had no clear path once she got there. She transferred to University of Oregon after her freshman year, encouraged by her then boyfriend and now husband, Mario Randall. She started out as a journalism major but later switched to math. She says she is always standing, moving around – eager to help. Her energy is infectious. “It’s an addicting profession,” she grins.
Lynn Yarne
Age: 30
Hometown: Portland
Education: Rhode Island School of Design, School of the Art Institute of Chicago
Family: parents, Jeff and Kathy; brother, Brian
Position: Art 1 and printmaking teacher
Before Grant: Artist in Portland
What’s on the TV? The Wire and Adventure Time
Why did you want to be a teacher? “I actually never thought that I’d be a teacher. It was kind of just in the last five years I realized that the work I was doing in education and then my artwork kinda were similar types of work. I think I really enjoy working with other people and learning from other people, and classrooms allow me to do that in a way that is really exciting.”Yarne has always enjoyed making art. She spent a semester in Beijing learning how to become a printmaker. After college, Yarne returned home to Portland, where she struggled to make it as an artist. She tried to sell her art.She worked various jobs around the city before attending graduate school at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2012. Drawing, painting, printmaking and sculpting are all types of art that Yarne enjoys.She also likes to make videos, sing and do art with groups of people. This summer, she spent time with high school students from all over Chicago doing digital art projects. They held an art show with video, installation art and graphic design. The internship program was based around the concept of beauty and how it connects with marketing.Yarne loves to call Portland home and is excited to come back. “I’m really excited about the students at Grant, about a lot of the things that are happening there. I think it’s a really cool school,” she says.
