New teachers welcomed to HSCSD

With the new school year comes new staff members. Here are some of the teachers joining Hot Springs County School District #1.

Amanda Bridges

Amanda Bridges is joining the Ralph Witters Elementary team this year as a third grade teacher.

From Denver, Bridges is a 2018 graduate of the University of Wyoming with a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Literacy. Having spent some time in Wyoming, she knew she wanted to stay because she fell in love with the state and the people. As for her choosing to teach in Thermopolis, she was influenced in that decision by hearing people say plenty of good about the town. On top of that, one of the teachers she student-taught with had done her own student teaching here.

The district is really supporting and encouraging, she said, and she's had not only teachers but parents tell her she can contact them if she needs anything. With only a few days into the school year, she's already seeing growth in the students and looks forward to seeing more. Bridges said she's also had a lot of opportunity to work with technology and how it relates to education, and looks forward to sharing online programs she's seen with her principal and colleagues.

Jenny Ketterling

Joining the team at Thermopolis Middle School (TMS) is Special Education teacher Jenny Ketterling.

Ketterling grew up in Worland, went to school in Powell and then in Phoenix, Ariz. She received her Bachelor's from University of Phoenix, and then two Masters in Special Education and Elementary Education from Grand Canyon University. She noted that she enjoys small towns more than the big city.

While working on her Bachelor's, Ketterling was a para-educator for five years. "The students were so positive and hardworking that I decided education was the way I needed to go," she stated. "I chose Special Education because of the students. When they have an 'Aha' moment, that makes my whole day."

Ketterling looks forward to her students increasing their knowledge, as well as meeting new people and being in a new district with different ideas about teaching students. She hopes to bring to her position a lot of fun, positivity and creativity.

"My students learn in different ways other than possibly the conventional way, so being able to be creative and understand what they need is key to increasing their success at TMS."

Andrea Shahan

Andrea Shahan is looking forward to her first year as a teacher, having just finished her degree from the University of Wyoming this past spring. She is teaching first grade at Ralph Witters Elementary.

Born and raised in Laramie, during her time moving toward her degree Shahan said she did a lot of travelling and got to work in different countries such as Haiti and Uganda. In her work, she noted, she saw a huge difference in countries that had access to free public education and those that don't. She saw the power of equal education for all, and education as a "great equalizer."

Shahan is looking forward to everything this first year, and she loves to watch kids succeed. There's no better feeling as a teacher or parent, she said, to see you have taught a child something he or she will use through life. Her two-year-old daughter, Avianna, she describes as "my whole world."

The first grade position is one that "chose me," Shahan said. Though she doesn't think there's a grade from kindergarten through 12th that could scare her, a position came open here and Thermopolis is the town and team she wants to be a part of. She's said the teachers are phenomenal and she's excited to see what the year will bring.

Ella Withers

Cheyenne native, Ella Withers, joins the math department at Hot Springs County High School as a first year teacher.

Withers is a graduate of the University of Wyoming, and it was there, at a job fair, that she found Thermopolis was looking for a math teacher. She did some research on the area and found that she loved the atmosphere here and made Thermopolis her first choice for where she wanted to be.

As a teen, she admits she was a big technology geek and her mother kind of pushed her in the direction of math.

"I like the upper levels," she said. "It gives you the opportunity to really think about how it all works rather than just doing it like they do in lower levels."

She plans on using a lot of technology in the classroom, too.

"I'm really big on communication," she said. "It helps students learn better. It's also great for sending information home for the parents, too."

Withers loves anything outdoors, hunting, fishing, kyaking and mountain biking and is really happy all of those things are right in her backyard.

In addition to teaching math, she will also be working with the cheer squad.

Lyle Wiley

New high school language arts teacher, Lyle Wiley, can really call himself a local, having lived here from the time he was about four-years old until fifth grade. On top of that, his family, the Kings, his grandmother, aunts and uncles all live in the area.

Wiley spent the last five years teaching in Torrington, including the high school, Southeast and Lingle-Ft. Laramie.

He received his post baccalaureate from the University of Wyoming and did his student teaching in Laramie.

Before deciding to teach, Wiley worked for Pepsi in Rawlins, a library in Ohio, the Coe Library in Laramie and acquired a degree in English with a minor in Latin.

"I have lots of memories here," he said. "I'm still friends with the kids I grew up with here. Thermopolis has been part of my life forever."

Wiley brings his wife, Amie with him, who is working in the high school library, and his daughter, Lucy, who is in the third grade.

"I'm so lucky to teach language arts," he said. "It has all the beautiful stuff. Powerful things happen when the kids get into discussions about books."

He's a big reading advocate, not just making them read the classics or the common core required books, but rather, he wants them to come away from his class wanting to read.

"I want them to be lifelong readers," he said. "I push books. I want them to want to read things that are interesting to them. They do a lot of work on their own in my class. I know what they need to learn. The key is then adjusting everything to how they learn as individuals."

In addition to language arts, Wiley will be working on a school newspaper, yearbook and co-coaching the speech and debate team.

Kevin Ruff

A new special education instructor at the high school, Kevin Ruff, comes to Thermopolis after spending the last two years at Riverside Middle School in Basin.

A graduate of Black Hills State, Ruff was raised in Colorado. Some may recognize him, though, as he taught here from 1997-1999.

"I've always loved it here," he said. "Now I can be here all the time rather than just on the weekends."

In his classroom, Ruff believes in teaching the students things that will build for their future.

"The world is changing quickly and we need to help them keep up," he said. "They have to keep up with what's going on in communities and we need to get them prepared for that."

Outside of the classroom, Ruff enjoys hunting and fishing, including ice fishing in the winter. He also likes to do a little gardening, too.

"I finally got my raspberry bush going after years of trying," he laughed.