This is part one in a two part series profiling new teachers in the Sonoma Valley Unified School District.
Photos by Ryan Lely
Under colorful umbrellas on the district’s sunny lawn, last Friday, Dr. Ashley Halliday and other district representatives treated a throng of excited and enthusiastic new teachers to a warm orientation, a tasty lunch and the kind of friendliness many of the newcomers associate with this community. Here is a brief portrait of each of the new teachers at local elementary and middle schools.
Flowery Elementary School:
Katie Logan
“I’m just really excited about being here.”
Katie Logan, graduate of California State University at Chico, where she has lived all her life, has moved to Glen Ellen and is the new third-grade teacher at Flowery Elementary School. “I’ve always loved kids and when I was in second grade, I had a wonderful teacher and she was just my inspiration and role model and I just knew I wanted to be a teacher from then on.” She said she’s looking forward to living in Sonoma. “Sonoma’s just such a beautiful area. The people are really friendly so far.”
Stephani Arcuri
“I look forward to being a bilingual kindergarten teacher at Flowery and exploring the beautiful town of Sonoma.”
Stephani Arcuri, of Santa Rosa, is the new bilingual kindergarten teacher at Flowery. This is her first formal year of teaching, although she has served as a substitute teacher and completed her teacher training. She received her B.A. from UC Santa Barbara in 2007 and her credential at UC Davis in 2008. She’s working on her master’s degree now at UC Davis. She’s most excited about the kids because “I get to introduce them to education and a love of learning.”
Paula Marie Salazar
“I’ll probably know everybody’s name by the end of the first week of school.”
Paula Marie Salazar, of Santa Rosa, is the new counselor at Flowery Elementary School. She received her B.A. in American Multicultural Studies from Sonoma State University in 2005 and her M.A. in counseling from Sonoma State in 2008. She did her internship as a pre-service counselor at Bennett Valley School District and Herbert Slater Middle School in 2007-2008. She worked as the assistant director of the Lakeport Unified Afterschool Program while she was putting herself through school. She said she is excited to be joining the district. “It seems like a very welcoming community. The school’s small enough, which is really important.”
Dunbar Elementary School:
Kristin Threlfall-Brown
“I love the aesthetic beauty. Waking up and seeing the mountains.”
Kristin Threlfall-Brown, has moved to Sonoma from Columbus, Ohio to be the new fourth grade teacher at Dunbar Elementary. She received her B.A. in English with a focus area in Education from Ohio State University and received her Early Education Teaching licensure from Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio. She last taught at Cassingham Elementary in Columbus, Ohio.
Altimira Middle School:
Wendy Mohring
“The school’s great. I love the ‘ah ha’ moment when the kid gets it.”
Wendy Mohring, of Sonoma, is the new sixth- and seventh-grade language arts teacher at Altimira Middle School. A Sonoma native, she went to Flowery, Prestwood, Altimira and Sonoma Valley High School and graduated from Sonoma State with a B.A. in liberal studies with a K-8 multiple-subject teaching credential. She taught Altimira’s sixth-grade language arts and social studies class last year.
For her, the best thing about coming back to school is “getting to see some of my kids again. Just being with kids and hanging out with them and getting to know them.”
Mark Bolin
“My goal was to be an elementary teacher. But it didn’t work out. I just loved those middle school kids so much.”
Mark Bolin, of Santa Rosa, is the new resource specialist in language arts and math for Altimira Middle School. He just finished a year at a residential rehabilitation program for adolescent kids with drug and alcohol programs, where he taught math, physical education and critical thinking. “It was wild and fun,” he said, adding that for him, teaching is a second career. He has been a commercial fisherman, a carpenter and a painter and has worked in the environmental field doing watershed restoration. In 1998, he went back to school at Sonoma State. He received his B.A. in Environmental Studies and Planning in 2001, his Multiple Subject Teaching Credential in 2002 and his Special Education Teaching Credential in 2008.
For him, the happiest thing about starting the school year is the district itself. “It just has a good feel about it. I’ve been in a couple of other districts that just didn’t have this feel. So I’m lucky.”
Adele Harrison Middle School:
Kevin Webster
“Just being in Sonoma County is wonderful.”
Kevin Webster, of Sebastopol, is a special education specialist and new physical education teacher at Adele Harrison Middle School. Last year, he taught at Easter Seals in Norwalk, Conn. He served in the Peace Corps from 2004-2006 in Saint Lucia, and taught at Hanna Boys School from 2001 to 2004. He is currently a graduate student at Sonoma State University in kinesiology and adapted physical education. The best thing for him about returning to the school year is “the kids, definitely the kids.”
Maria Moreno
“I’m coming here because I’m excited about dual immersion.”
Maria Moreno, of Sonoma, is the new dual immersion teacher at Adele Harrison Middle School. She said teaching social studies in Spanish “will be really cool and challenging.” Moreno is a graduate of Ursuline High School in Santa Rosa and U.C. Santa Cruz. She said she has four kids in Sonoma schools, “so it’s time to participate and give 100 percent to Sonoma.” Before this, she taught at Elsie Allen High School in Santa Rosa. The best thing for Moreno about returning to school “is being close to my kids and also teaching what I love.”
Lisa Conner
“I love this beautiful town.”
Lisa Conner, of Sonoma, is the new art teacher at Adele Harrison. This is her first year teaching middle school. She taught art at Granada High School in Livermore, St. Joseph Notre Dame High School in Alameda, and was a long-term substitute teacher in art at Sonoma Valley High School in Sonoma. She’s been in Sonoma about four and a half years. She has a degree in drawing and painting from UCLA and for her, the happiest thing about returning to school is the same all year round: “ I love to teach art, and I love to teach kids.”
Gene Ventura
“I love all the ideas you come in contact with and sharing them with the students and then having them share their ideas with you.”
Gene Ventura, of Cotati, is the new seventh grade Spanish language arts and dual immersion social studies teacher at Adele Harrison. Originally from Los Angeles, she started traveling in 1995 and has taught Spanish and English in private schools and in the Czech Republic and Japan. She received her B.A in Psychology with a minor in Art from Occidental College in 1991 and received her teaching credential from Sonoma State University in 2005. Coming back to school is exciting for her because “It’s a continual learning for everybody.” She is pleased to be coming to this district to teach because “I know the school district has a really good reputation, and I’m really excited to be part of that.”
Note: Cheryl Coldiron, who came to Altimira Middle School as a late-hire last year is returning to teach art, but was not present for the welcoming reception.
Also absent was Beth Vallee, another late-hire last year, who will be returning to Prestwood Elementary School to teach part time.
New teachers for the district’s two public charter schools, Woodland Star and Sonoma Charter School, were not present at this orientation and will be profiled in a subsequent edition of this newspaper, as will four new teachers at Sonoma Valley High School and Creekside High School.
