By Lorrie HamThe Mound Westonka School District's first "Feature Teacher" of the new school year is Mary Jo Blanchard, a high school art and Honors English teacher. Blanchard has taught in the Westonka District for 15 years, following one year teaching in Stewartville, MN, and 10 years each in the Twin Cities Catholic Middle Schools and Minnetonka Elementary Schools. She teaches Honors English 10, ceramics, digital art and Art I, and in the past, taught seventh-grade art and study skills, and eighth-grade English and speech.Blanchard received a Bachelor of Science degree in English and Art …

Rachel Hanson is teaching special education at Orono Middle School through the end of December while another staff member is on a leave of absence. She is teaching math and skills classes to 6th and 7th graders. She is also coaching the 8th grade volleyball team. Hanson grew up in Norwood Young America. She said she realized she wanted to be a special education teacher while still in high school. In May 2011, Hanson received a Bachelor of Science degree in special education-learning disabilities (K-12) from St. Cloud State University. She completed an elementary practicum and three special …

Katie Dorn is a new guidance counselor at Orono High School. Her focus area is on college planning and admissions. With an almost 30-year background in marketing, this is a new career for Dorn. Navigating the college planning process is not new to Dorn. She has six daughters and one son. Her oldest child graduated from college, two of her kids are in college and two will go next year. “I wanted to do something I was passionate about, and I absolutely love this,” said Dorn. A native of Edina, Dorn graduated Cum Laude from Colorado College in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts in economics. She …

Katie Stanley is teaching seventh grade English at Orono Middle School this year. For the past three years, she taught eight grade English at her alma mater in Lakeville. “I taught in the same classroom that I had had English in,” said Stanley. “And my principal was my eighth grade teacher.” Stanley comes from a family of teachers. Her parents both taught school in Apple Valley for over 30 years, and her husband is a teacher in Farmington. She received a Bachelor of Science in secondary education and a Bachelor of Arts in writing from Drake University, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude in …

Patty Kroulik recently moved to Minnesota from Seattle to work as a transition teacher at Orono High School. She has more than a decade of experience working with the developmentally disabled. Kroulik says she helps her students identify what they see themselves doing in the future and aids them in determining what they need to do to reach their goal. “We do some academics, but we are focused more on making connections with the resources and providing whatever support or skills needed for them to be successful in that area,” said Kroulik. Kroulik received a Bachelor of Arts degree in …

Shannon Gleason is a half-time special education teacher at Orono High School. She teaches two skills classes and a special education math class in the mornings. A native of Dubuque, IA, both her mother and sister are teachers. “I did some in-home assisted living care for adults with disabilities and that’s what brought me to special ed,” said Gleason. Gleason received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Iowa in 2010.  She has teaching licenses in elementary education (K-6), K-8 English/language arts, K-8 reading and K-8 instructional strategist I: mild to moderate. This is her…

Kelly Vieau is a half-time seventh grade physical science teacher at Orono Middle School. She teaches an advisory class and two science classes in the afternoons. “I really enjoyed science, it was always fascinating to me,” Vieau said when asked what motivated her to become a science teacher. A native of Delano, Vieau graduated Summa Cum Laude from St. Cloud State University in 2010, where she received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education with a minor is science. Vieau is licensed to teach both elementary education and middle school science for grades 5-8. She student taught …

It was a big summer for Angela Stracke. After spending the past three years teaching English as a Second Language in Colombia, she moved back to the United States, got married and accepted a new job. Stracke leads the new K-2 Spanish/World Language Program at Schumann Elementary in Orono. The Spanish program is designed to meet the five goal areas established by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL), including communication, cultures, connections, comparisons and communities. A native of Chippewa Falls, WI, Stracke received her undergraduate degree in early …

Brittany Peterson is an Orono alumnus who received a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology from the University of Hawaii. She also received a Masters of Arts degree in special education from Walden University. “I was a therapist for kids with autism between my undergrad and my masters,” Peterson said. She also recently received an Autism Spectrum Disorders Certificate from the University of St. Thomas. Peterson is teaching special education at Orono Intermediate School this year. During the last school year, she worked with 20 students with a variety of disabilities in kindergarten, second …

Gretchen McQuillan is a native of Gibbon, Minnesota. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in elementary education, with a concentration in mathematics, from the College of St. Benedict in 2003. She received a Presidential Scholarship for four years. While at St. Benedict, she had the opportunity to study abroad in Greece and Rome. “We were supposed to fly home on September 11, 2001,” McQuillan said. “Clearly, we didn’t get off the ground that day.” McQuillan received a Master of Arts in Leadership in Teaching degree, and a reading license, from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland. While…

In April 2011, Annette Kilpela received a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education from Northern Michigan University with a minor in integrated science/language arts. She recently moved to Minnesota from Michigan. “My mom actually grew up here,” said Kilpela. “She grew up in Wayzata, and my grandparents live in Cokato.” Kilpela is teaching third grade at Orono Intermediate School this year. Kilpela was a student teacher in second grade at Lakeview Elementary in Michigan from January through April 2011. She was also a long-term substitute for a month at the end of the school year. …

Robin Parker began her teaching career in the Peace Corps and is fluent in Spanish. She has over 25 years of teaching experience in both Montana and Minnesota. A licensed K-6 elementary education teacher, Parker is teaching fourth grade at the Orono Intermediate School this year. Her teaching experiences in Minnesota include teaching an ESL extended day kindergarten class, as well as first and second grade classes. Parker was also an instructional coach. She worked at the Bloomington, Shakopee and Anoka-Hennepin School Districts. In Montana, Parker taught Kindergarten, K-1 (multi-age), second…

Bailey Chandler graduated from Missouri State University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in elementary education. She was on the Dean’s List in the College of Education for four years. Chandler recently relocated from Missouri. She taught in a fourth grade classroom last year, and she is teaching fourth grade at the Orono Intermediate School this year. Chandler was the 2011 recipient of the Outstanding Beginner Teacher award from the Missouri Association of Colleges for Teacher Education. She believes every child can learn and has something to teach others. She feels her job as a …