My new colleagues

I spent last week getting to know my new school, my new colleagues, and my new community.  The returning teachers didn't have to return until today, so us new folks got a chance to make one another's acquaintance.  We ate dinner together almost every night, and played rummy at least twice (500 Rummy, not Liverpool, but I'm learning).  It's a good group of folks.

Ariél Austin will be teaching 6th grade in the classroom next to mine.  She's a recent graduate of a college in Pennsylvania.  She's a very competitive card player, and a very kind person.  She's actively Protestant.

Jessica Marks is from Wisconsin, and will be teaching Special Education at the junior high and high school levels.  She baked the cake for Alex's birthday last night--from scratch--and it was excellent!  Jessica is also a practicing Catholic; like me, she hopes to be useful to the Catholic community here through catechesis of some sort.  She brought Fr. Barron's Catholicism series with her, and we hope to introduce that to the community here.  More about church later.

Jim Suhrer, from Coos Bay, OR, just finished his master's in education and will be teaching second grade.  His fiancée is back home, but her parents, as it happens, are also up in our school district in the village of Koyuk.  Jim is very outgoing and friendly.

Michael Potter is technically a new teacher--teaching fifth grade--but he and his wife Pam have been in St. Michael for a few years at least--it's Pam's position I'm filling as she's moving on to be the director of Early Childhood Education for the district.

Also a big part of last week's community was Alex Ting, the school counselor (who splits her time between us and Stebbins), an outspoken but hospitable returning staff member.  It was her birthday we celebrated last night with Jessica's cake.

Carolyn Heflin is the principal, a very cheerful and friendly Cajun who's been up in Alaska for a number of years now.  Tim Burns is the assistant principal, who formerly taught shop in Ohio.  Shop is a very important subject up here, as it provides necessary skills for community life.

(from l to r) Jessica, Alex, Ariél, and Jim playing rummy in Jessical and Ariél's apartment.

I have to get to a meeting now, but I'll try to write tomorrow about the church here in St. Michael.

AMDG

Tim