NSD Faces
NAMPA SCHOOL DISTRICT
nsd Faces
Jeff Miller
Middle School Teacher/Coach
Mallory Essman
Career and College Counselor
Lucy Leatherman
HR Generalist/Benefits Specialist
Rebekah Burley
School Nurse
Laurie Nutting
Help Desk Supervisor
Natasha Jack
Budget Specialist
Jesus Pereyra
Educational Interpreter and Translator
Terran Stuckey
Education Services
Natalie Sandoval
McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Liaison
Heather Graham
CTE Project Manager
Jason Hillman
NOVA Principal
Coco
Roosevelt School Dog
Jennifer Randolph
PREP Director
Phillip Hoesing
Nampa High Director of Bands
Sarah Montoya
Daytime Custodian
Jared Hoeksema
School Resource Officer
Kurt Wallin
Production Supervisor
Kat Armstrong
Restorative Justice Specialist
Kristy Richmond
Mail Delivery
Elia Lopez
FCRC Coordinator
Justin Pickens
Instructional Specialist
Tina McMullen
Substitute Coordinator
Shawna Burge
Nutrition Services
Lonnie Dawson
Bus Driver
Mari Duran
Help Desk
Tammy Bale
District Office
Leo Esparza
Maintenance
Jeff Miller, West Middle School Teacher/Coach
Warmer days are ahead, and Jeff Miller can’t wait. Summer is his happy time when he can camp, fish, hike or boat.
Maybe that’s because Jeff grew up in the small town of Nikiski, Alaska, where he learned to treasure the fleeting warmer months and the freedom they provided for him to play sports and participate in all the other “outdoorsy” stuff he loves.
But he can definitely appreciate the non-summer months as well, when his classroom at West Middle School fills with students learning science, computers, and technology support.
“When you can relay your enthusiasm for a subject or an after-school event and kids pick up on it, that’s a good day,” he said. “That’s what teachers are teachers for.”
Jeff wears a lot of hats at West in addition to teaching, including that of athletic director and advisor to the Robotics program. And it’s those extra duties that keep him engaged and excited.
“I love interacting with the students outside of the classroom,” he said. “It’s a whole different group of kids after school – they’re doing what they want to be doing.”
Jeff has led robotics at West since the program started there seven years ago. He was teaching math at the time, and this presented an opportunity to add a fun, elective class.
That class evolved into multiple class periods and tournaments, including a chance this year to showcase a team of West Middle School eighth graders at both the National championships in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the World championships in Dallas, Texas.
This year’s team competed under the moniker Till the End, a reference to their competition experience. “Their robot didn’t have a lot of flash and wasn’t seen as a great threat until the end, when they trumped everybody!” he said.
Jeff said robotics incorporates a lot of math and engineering and leads to a real growth mindset in participants. It also is the basis of a lot of evolving manufacturing jobs that require coding, automation or mechanical or structural engineering, making it a great motivator for students.
Jeff admits he could have used some of that career motivation himself as a student at Nikiski High. “I didn’t have a lot of career aspirations,” he admits. “I just wanted to play sports.
He came to Boise State University with a group of 15 Nikiski classmates thanks to the Western Undergraduate Exchange Program that promised cheap tuition. After taking some core classes, he eventually transferred to Northwest Nazarene University, where he earned a degree in pastoral ministries. “I had never dreamt of being a pastor, but it felt like what I needed to do,” he said.
After several years as a youth minister, he realized he wanted to do something more and earned his master’s in teaching at George Fox University. Although his path to teaching was indirect, he feels like it got him right where he needs to be.
Now in his 10th year of teaching, his enthusiasm for the job is matched only by his enthusiasm for shoes. Yes, shoes. Shelves mounted on his classroom wall show off his collection of 30 pairs of basketball shoes, and he has another 12 or so pairs of golf shoes at home. Channeling Mr. Rogers, he wears an old pair of “beater” shoes to work each day, and then selects a pair from the wall to change into.
“It started in high school when I wore Air Jordans while playing basketball,” he said. Now it’s become his signature schtick.
Outside of school, Jeff can usually be found tinkering around his house fixing something, out on the golf course (or ski slope in winter) or taking his ski boat out on Lake Lowell. If he opts for an evening of reading, it’s likely to be a Clive Cussler adventure-suspense novel (think James Bond, but underwater).
He also enjoys spending time with his two kids, 13-year-old Eli and 15-year-old Samuel, and girlfriend Kelli Baker.
During basketball season, he’ll be sporting Carolina Blue and rooting for the University of North Carolina Tarheels, whom he has followed since hearing them win the national championship over the radio while sitting in a parking lot in Anchorage. “That win solidified them as my team!” he recalls.
He hopes one day he’ll be remembered as someone who went above and beyond, always doing more than what needed to be done. Someone like Shaun Roberts, a recently retired West teacher and coach who served as Jeff’s mentor.
“We have a lot of similarities in desires and work ethics,” he said. “He is a mentor to me and is always willing to help and to teach. He’s a great dude.”
Mallory Essman, Career and College Counselor
Mallory Essman believes that empowerment is an accomplishment that can’t be overstated. “If a student walks away from a conversation empowered to help themselves, I’ve done my job,” she said. “That word really embodies what I try to accomplish.”
Mallory is a career and college counselor at Skyview High School. She also coordinates career and college counseling at the district level. She loves helping students find their path and thinks getting to talk to them about their potential makes this the best job in the world.
“Everyone wants to hear about their potential,” she said. “And I get to help them find the right opportunity for their future.”
But counseling was not originally part of her own future plan. As a young child, she wanted to be a marine biologist. As a “nerdy” kid with chronic health problems, she spent an inordinate amount of time reading and loved hanging out in the library at Sunny Ridge Elementary. There the librarian would set aside anything she could find about dolphins, whales and other undersea creatures.”
But by the time she became the fifth person in her family to attend Skyview High School, her focus had shifted.
“My heart has always been in education,” she said, “so I decided to become a music teacher. I’m very musical by nature. In high school, I was in eight different choirs at a time, and I played the lead in ‘Once Upon a Mattress.’ But when I got to college, I found out I was a mediocre musician, so I switched majors.”
That switch not only informed her years at Boise State University, but also played a pivotal role in introducing her to her future husband. Jake worked as a photographer for the Arbiter student newspaper, where journalism major Mallory worked as a receptionist when not writing, editing or producing online news stories.
Although Jake was eight years older than Mallory, there was a spark. The couple have now been married for almost 10 years. “My favorite thing about Jake is that I am never scared to tell him my hard truths. If I have a bad day or mess up, he’ll always be kind to me. No matter the situation, I have someone on my team.”
Mallory’s first job at Skyview (where her mom also works as the registrar) was in the library, but education was still in her blood. So when the opportunity arose to do something totally different, she took it. “I wrote an inverted pyramid showing how I would approach college and career counseling here at Skyview, and I got letters of recommendation,” she said. “Will [Barber] took a risk on me and I have now finished my master’s in school counseling.”
These days, she thrives in a world filled with student energy. “Teenagers are so much fun. They will surprise you with their kindness, ambition and hilarity.”
She’s pretty fond of younger kids, too, and relishes her role as aunt to 16 nieces and nephews, including her youngest niece and namesake Diana Mallory.
“When my sister called to tell me her name, that was a very special moment for me,” she said. “To know my sister wants her kids to be like me … I’m so proud of that and am just trying to be a good role model.”
She’s also really proud of her award as Counselor of the Year, presented by the Idaho Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (IACRAO). It’s something she aspired to since first seeing the award presented during her first year as a college and career advisor.
“I thought, ‘Someday I’m going to get that award,’” she recalls. “A couple of years ago I did, and I cried!”
Mallory is a serious Dr. Mario player, a big Harry Potter trivia buff (don’t mess with this Gryffindor), and an avid reader. While she reads all genres, fiction is her favorite.
“If I could tell C.S. Lewis the impact he’s had on my life, I hope it would make him feel good,” she said.
One of Lewis’s most beloved books, “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” holds a special place in her heart. For years she identified with the character Lucy, who is also the youngest sibling in her family. But then her sister told her she reminded her of a more responsible character in that novel.
“My sister told me I’m now her role model. ‘You are Peter.’ I thought that was very sweet.”
Lucy Leatherman - HR Generalist/Benefits Specialist
Helping people is second nature to Lucy Leatherman. She truly enjoys answering people’s questions and making sure both applicants and employees are successful in ticking all the boxes to achieve certification or attain credits, pay or placement.
“I love interacting with teachers and administrators and being a resource for them,” she said. A native Spanish speaker, her job includes helping many employees who speak English as a second language.
“My parents still live in Mexico and they don’t speak English. I always hope when they come here, others will help them,” she said. “So when I am able to help other people, it reminds me of my parents and gives me joy.”
Lucy grew up in many cities all across Mexico. Since her father was in the military (eventually retiring as a general), the family moved a lot. She remembers never having a lot of things and always being able to quickly pack everything up into just a few boxes.
Despite the frequent moves, she loved her childhood living on base with her older brother and sister with all the amenities close by – including a supermarket, school and everything they needed to live comfortably. In time, she followed her siblings (and her uncles) to Benemerito de las Americas boarding school in Mexico City, where she built many happy memories and lasting friendships.
“It was like having a slumber party all the time,” she recalls. “My friends were all there. I lived there and went to school there. It was very structured but I loved it!”
After high school, she wanted to attend an LDS university. When she chose to attend BYU-Idaho, her best friend agreed to move to the states with her.
“She lives in Utah now and we still get together once or twice a year,” she said. “And every time we do, we just laugh! My husband says I am happiest when I can speak Spanish with my friends, put music on, eat carne asada and talk about high school!
After graduating from college with a degree in business management and marketing, she took an internship at Wells Fargo Financial in Twin Falls. She met her future husband, Joe, at the Wells Fargo Office in Nampa through her mentor (his boss). The rest, she says, is history.
The couple married on March 8, 2008, and now have two children. Their daughter, 12, attends South Middle School and their son, 6, is at New Horizons. A highlight of family life is living in the same home since they got married – no more moving constantly!
Lucy stays in shape doing CrossFit, which she first tried when her daughter was just 3 years old. She loves the challenge and the individual nature of the regimen – you can go as fast or slow as you want and don’t need to worry about keeping up with the person next to you.
She also loves salsa dancing and is looking forward to attending her sister’s wedding in Mexico soon so she can dance at the reception! When she was in college, she went out dancing several nights a week and still dances in the kitchen whenever she can.
But don’t expect to find her baking a lot in that same kitchen.
“I cook because I have to, but I don’t feel like I’m good,” she said. “Baking isn’t really a thing in Mexico. We have a lot of bakeries there.”
That’s not to say she doesn’t excel in other areas. She’s especially proud that she was able to pass the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) exam on her first try when applying to college, and that she also passed her SHRM-CP (Society for Human Resource Management) certification test the first time she took it. The exam is notoriously challenging and required lots of late-night study sessions.
“It was hard but it was great to know that I could do it even with two kids and a full-time job!” she says.
If she was granted a superpower, she would love to speak many languages so she could travel the world and have meaningful conversations with residents. Topping her list would be a trip to Rome – a city she was meant to visit in college before 9-11 canceled so many travel plans.
Even without exotic travel plans, Lucy says life has been good. “I never thought I would be the one from my family living here in the U.S., with a permanent job where I can use Spanish to help others.”
Rebekah Burley – School Nurse
Rebekah Burley can’t remember not wanting to be a nurse. It’s in her blood. Her grandmother, who lived to be 101, was a nurse. So was her mother, along with two older sisters.
After graduating from NNU with her degree in nursing, she spent 12-and-a-half years caring for adults in a hospital setting before coming to work at Reagan and Park Ridge – a move that should have come as no surprise to her husband.
“I told him when we got married that one day, I would become a school nurse and just stay in that job,” she said, noting that it allows her to care for kids while also being on the same schedule as her own children. That was five years ago. Four years ago she added the title of District Nursing Coordinator.
The job is a demanding one, requiring the broad knowledge of a general practitioner as well as the deductive reasoning of a skilled diagnostician.
In the course of a day, she can be called on to care for catheters and tracheotomies, manage diabetes care and distribute medications. In addition to applying Band-Aids, soothing bumps, stings and bruises, and diagnosing colds, she also gently probes beyond students’ obvious complaints. With some insightful questions, she might learn that a tummy ache stems from poor food choices or lack of regular meals, or that lack of focus may be a symptom of a more serious concern.
“My biggest challenge is finding a balance between taking care of kids and meeting their needs, and keeping them at school,” she said. “I want them to be healthy, to be here and to be learning. It’s why we are here. Being here and advocating for these kids is important.”
Outside of work, Rebekah focuses on home and family, which consists of her husband of 19 years, a son and a daughter, and two beloved dogs – a golden doodle and a black lab/golden doodle mix. If you ask what she’s good at, she’ll tell you it’s being a mom – a role that gives her absolute satisfaction.
“If money was not an issue, I’d probably be a stay-at-home mom,” she said. “I want to make sure my kids have a good solid foundation in their faith and that they can be successful when they grow up and able to do life independently.”
Rebekah has a good foundation of her own to build on. She grew up as one of six kids in Toppenish, Washington, near Yakima. Her family owned an apple orchard until she was about 8 or 9, and she spent her younger years running, playing, getting dirty and swimming in the ditch (despite having an above-ground pool option).
After her family sold the orchard, her dad opened a janitorial franchise, providing what she remembers as a “good life.”
“He was an incredible entrepreneur and excelled at his job,” she recalls.
He also was a role model for her, always making sure to be there for her important moments. “He wasn’t afraid to drag us down the road on sleds behind the tractor, or do other fun things with us,” she recalls. “It wasn’t monetary things, it was just being present.”
Throughout her childhood, her family was active in the Nazarene church in nearby Zillah. Growing up, she actively participated in Nazarene camps and other activities. She even met her husband at a church-sponsored event while she was attending NNU.
As an extension of her faith, she has served two medical mission trips to Brazil, and in high school spent an entire summer on a mission trip to Africa.
“We did evangelism through drama and theater, and even dressed as clowns,” she said. “We visited schools, mostly, but also set up a big top tent in Uganda.”
That’s pretty significant given her quiet nature, both then and now. Given what she’s learned from this and other experiences, she wishes she could tell her younger self that it’s OK to just be who you are. “God has good plans for you, and it’s OK,” she said.
For her, that plan includes enjoying the outdoors – including camping, jet boating and fishing. She likes catching trout and steelhead salmon and has helped her husband reel in an almost 8-foot sturgeon in Hells Canyon. She also enjoys family movies, the ocean and cuddling up with a warm cup of coffee on a snowy day.
In the end, she hopes to be remembered for being there for others. “I want people to know I wasn’t out to make it big or be successful. I just wanted to be there for a person when they needed it.
Laurie Nutting – Help Desk Supervisor
Laurie Nutting admits to not failing well. It’s important to her to do a good job with whatever she is faced with. When the NSD Help Desk supervisor has a problem, she wants to find a solution, and when someone needs help, she’s passionate about making sure she doesn’t leave them hanging.
After almost 19 years troubleshooting tech issues for staff, parents and students, she admits she still doesn’t have all the answers. But the years have honed her “tech brain” in ways that allow her to successfully find solutions for most problems that come her way.
“You don’t need to have all the tech knowledge to work here,” she said. “But you do learn the right questions to ask and suddenly you’re so much better at the job and at helping people.”
Helping people – changing their experiences in positive ways – is the best part of her job and what keeps her going day after day. She also really enjoys the people she works with.
“We’re very collaborative here,” she said. “We’re a team and we find success by working together. When we solve a tough problem, there are lots of high fives.”
Getting excited about tech successes wasn’t always in the cards for Laurie. Growing up in Yuba City, California, and then moving to Kuna at age 14, she was a studious kid who was active in dance, sports, tennis and cross country.
“I was always focused on individual sports, not team sports,” she said. “I’ve always wanted to make it or break it on my own.”
She worked hard in school to get good grades and was, mostly, a responsible kid.
Having shared that she came from a strict and hardworking family, “The only bad thing I ever did was to sneak out of the house one time when I was in high school,” she said. “I only made it to the front yard before I felt bad and knew how much trouble I would be in.
She has fond memories of several then-Kuna staff members, who at some point also became Nampa School District employees. Karla Reynolds, her former English teacher, was one who really stood out for her.
Following high school graduation, she attended College of Idaho on a tennis scholarship and also joined the swim team. After changing majors a couple of times, she realized she hadn’t really found a life path that felt right. So, when the Nampa Rec Center was being built, she applied there, landing the only full-time job in the aquatics Department. She taught swim lessons, oversaw the lifeguards, and conducted water aerobics and adult swim team workouts. She also taught first aid and CPR to city employees.
Following the birth of her second son, she left to be a stay-at-home mom. To stay involved, she worked part-time as a swim instructor and dabbled in teaching gymnastics at the beginner levels.
She later added two girls, twins, to the family, for a total of four kids (now ages 27, 26 and 23). Following a divorce a few years later, she raised them mostly on her own – an accomplishment she’s understandably proud of.
“My goal was that I wanted my kids to be kind, hardworking, honest people,” she said. “And they are. I am so proud of the adults they have become. Easy to get along with. Accepting. Non-judgmental. And they are thoughtful. “Mean” is my least favorite attribute about how some people can behave!”
Her role model is her dad, with whom she was “crazy close” until his passing at the age of 84 from Parkinson’s disease. “His values for everything were amazing. That’s where I learned to work hard and figure things out. And I taught that to my kids.”
“He always had a lot of faith in my abilities,” she continued. “He had a gift for being able to judge someone's character and had zero tolerance for people’s shenanigans.”
She continues to set a good example for her family and her colleagues, mostly recently by becoming a Project Management Professional. She and colleague Jerry Fleming both passed the difficult exam on the first try.
“Project management made sense to me; it is my “thing” because I’m good at organizing and the process feels natural to me.”
Life is still evolving for Laurie. In December 2022, she married husband Leon, whom she had known for 8 years and been together with for the past 5½. The couple shares their home with two older dogs – a golden retriever named Gus and a mixed breed named Sunshine
Outside of work she is more of a homebody and enjoys the simple things – she and Leon er try to visit their favorite place, the Oregon coast, at least once a year. She also thinks Ireland would be a great vacation destination because it’s so green and gorgeous
If she had any superpower, it would be to fly. “I’ve had so many dreams of flying. It’s one perspective of the world you just can’t get. It’s not the same as an airplane.” The closest experience she can liken it to is the sensation of soaring down a mountain road on a motorcycle.
After a lifetime of learning who she is and where she wants to go, her advice to the rising generation is to be who you are and be confident in what that is.
Natasha Jack – Budget Specialist
Most people who know her know that Natasha Jack is good with numbers. Math was her favorite subject in school and she’s spent the past seven years instructing school staff about the use of specific funds, making sure money is spent appropriately, approving requisitions, and working with Payroll and Human Resources to help ensure that all employees are entered into the system properly so they can get paid every month.
She describes her job as “fast-paced,” a word that applies well beyond her professional life. It turns out that this highly capable number-cruncher is also a bit of a daredevil behind the wheel, having spent her high school years on the school drag racing team.
“I lived out at Firebird Raceway in high school,” she said. “But I never won my races. I was too slow.”
To be fair, she was racing her friend’s street vehicle instead of a souped-up speedster (her parents wouldn’t allow her to race her own car). She also recalls helping stage that same friend’s own races in her much faster truck. She would help get her lined up properly at the starting line, making sure she was as close as possible to the line, but never over it.
She also learned to work on both cars and small engines. “I could pull an engine apart and put it back together,” she said. “I was able to change tires, change the oil, replace the brakes …” As a teen, she was called on to address any home “engine” emergency and has happy memories of helping her dad fix engines and work on his truck.
But she never considered a career in auto mechanics. Instead, she dreamed of being an oceanographer. Well, at least until she realized she really didn’t do well on boats – and she lived in a land-locked state.
Instead, she pursued other interests, working as a development therapist in high school and college, taking accounting courses at Boise State and eventually applying for the budget position at Nampa School District.
Seven years ago, she married her husband Michael, whom she has known since she was about 12 years old. The couple have three children – 17-year-old daughter London and sons Mason, 15, and Damien, 9, who all attend NSD schools. Her busy household also includes one dog and five cats, most of them rescues.
Some days take a lot of patience, but patience is a virtue she has plenty of. She said you really have to if you’re going to spend several years working as a developmental therapist – the accomplishment she’s most proud of.
“It was amazing to watch the growth of the children and the adults,” she recalled. “Sometimes it could be a quick change, and other times it was a very slow process. At times they even had some setbacks and had to recover ground.”
The experience helped shape her own outlook on life, and she hopes that one day she’ll be remembered as someone who was willing to go the extra mile to help others to learn rather than to criticize.
But that patience doesn’t always extend to all parts of her life. She admits to starting and abandoning more than one hobby when she couldn’t immediately get it just right and gave up. She admires her husband’s leather-making skills. “He can work with minor imperfections to get the final product he wants. It’s amazing what he can do.
But while she’s not always as patient as she’d like to be, she is focused on building a greater sense of bravery. A recent example of this is illustrated by a recent trip to JUMP in Boise, where she conquered her fear of heights to climb to the top of the steep two-story slide, in spite of her shaking legs, and ride it down to the bottom.
“I try not to let my fears stop me from doing things, even though it’s hard sometimes,” she said. “I told myself, ‘You only live once, and you’ve just got to do it.’
When she’s not facing her fears, she enjoys escaping into a world of books, mostly fantasy and mysteries. As a child, she hated reading because of the dreaded book reports that were inevitably tied to it. But then she discovered the Harry Potter series. “Harry Potter introduced reading as fun and I fell in love with it.”
At the end of the day, she’s happy with how her life is playing out and believes that all things happen for a reason. “Even the things I regret the most have resulted in something I wouldn’t want to let go of. Every moment combines to get you to where you’re at.
Jesus Pereyra – Educational Interpreter and Translator
Technically, Jesus Pereyra works as a Spanish “interpreter and translator.” But in reality, he’s more of a communicator who facilitates connections.
“I am the connection between the parents who cannot communicate in English and their children’s teachers and administrators,” he says.
Jesus remembers how frustrating it can be for someone who is new to this country, its language and culture when they cannot adequately express themselves. Helping them embrace the new opportunities available to them, especially a great education for their kids, is hugely rewarding.
Jesus has been with the Nampa School District for close to three years and has worked as a translator and interpreter for about 14 years. He loves what he does and the satisfaction of working as part of a team to assist families.
Family has always been important to Jesus, who is married to wife Laura and has two children. His son Neo is 13 and daughter Lyna is 11. Both children attend NOVA, where they are happily thriving.
He also has warm memories of his childhood in Culiacan, Mexico, playing soccer in the streets until nightfall and spending time with his two brothers and his sister.
He was a good student, earning high marks on his report cards. He loved science, math and history, but not computers. His ADHD made learning difficult at first, until an older teacher in first grade recognized his symptoms and provided kind and purposeful one-on-one tutoring for him.
“She took a hyperactive kid and taught him to read in two months,” Jesus recalls. “She was a wonderful teacher.”
His high energy sometimes got him into trouble, like the time he fell as a 6-year-old and ended up with a metal spike through his head. “There was literally a hole in my skull that just missed my brain,” he says. “There was a lot of blood. The doctor told my mother that if it was just one centimeter over, I would have died.”
He feels blessed that there haven’t been any residual problems over the years, other than a tendency to feel pain in his head when it’s cold. He often wears a felt hat in winter to counter the effects.
He names his mother, who passed away four years ago, as the strongest influence in his life.
“She was single when she had me,” he says. “She later married but still had the full responsibility to teach us our core values and life lessons as my stepdad didn’t contribute much to that aspect of my life.”
He remembers his mother as strong and brave, someone who taught her children, in a society that treated women badly, how to be gentlemen.
“My mom always taught that men and women had the same capabilities. She taught us that we were different physically but equal in respect.”
She also taught him how to clean the house, but not how to love doing it. “I hate to clean the bathrooms,” he says, “and I don’t like to wash the dishes.”
He does enjoy soccer, a game he grew up mastering to the point that he considered making it a professional career. He plays on a pickup team whenever he can and enjoys watching the World Cup, where he cheers for the Mexican and Croatian teams. His favorite player currently is Luka Modric, who wears jersey #10 on the Croatian team.
And he loves the Bible and volunteering at his church, teaching Bible classes and providing general assistance with worldwide aid.
Should he ever become fabulously rich, he believes it will be through hard work, and not some chance event like the lottery.
“When you earn it through hard work, you know how to do it and nobody can take that from you,” he says. “Even if everything crashed, like during the Great Depression, you would be able to recover.”
That’s important to him because he would love to be able to financially support programs like the federal McKinney-Vento program aiding homeless families. “That’s a concept that doesn’t exist in every country,” he says. “And it should. Programs like that can make a huge impact in the life of someone.”
In the end, Jesus hopes he’ll be remembered as a friend. “Many people admire an accomplished career, like so many famous soccer players. Pele was the greatest, but for me, being a friend and making a good positive impact in life is better.”
Terran Stuckey – Education Services
“Embrace the crazy.” That’s Terran Stuckey’s advice for a happy life. Terran supports the executive director of secondary education at the District Office and helps sort out questions about advanced opportunities and open enrollment, among other duties.
In this and other roles in education, she’s definitely experienced her own share of crazy over the years. Prior to moving to Idaho in 2020, she worked as an administrative assistant at a middle school in her hometown of Sherwood, Oregon.
“I love the chaos of middle and high school kids,” she said, flashing her trademark smile. “That’s my jam.”
She’s had plenty of practice with that as mom to three kids of her own, including 19-year-old Karter, 14-year-old Mason and 11-year-old Abi. She describes the trio as her “whole purpose in life.”
She’s had plenty of practice with that as mom to three kids of her own, including 19-year-old Karter, 14-year-old Mason and 11-year-old Abi. She describes the trio as her “whole purpose in life.”
“They always looked up to me in the big sister role – but I didn’t always lead them down the right path,” she said, laughing. The siblings are all really close and she travels home often to visit them, her parents, and her four nephews and one niece.
She remembers her growing-up years with fondness. Her dad was an auto mechanic who ran his own small business, and her mom worked a couple of jobs to make ends meet. “We weren’t rich by any means, but we had enough,” she recalled.
Her dad was also a football coach who passed his love of the game on to his daughter, along with some pretty legit auto mechanic skills.
“I probably know more about football than most boys,” Terran brags, “and I can change tires, oil or headlights all by myself. Some people think I was born with a power tool in my hand.”
Another family legacy is a special love for birthday celebrations, which were always “a big deal,” she said. “Not necessarily the parties or presents, just that it was your special day.”
It made such an impression on her that she grew up wanting to create special days for others, too. From the time she was 5 years old she asserted she wanted to be “the lady that makes the brides happy on their special day.” In short, she wanted to become a wedding planner before she even knew what that was. She’s planned eight weddings to date for friends and family and would love to do it professionally one day.
For now, she contents herself with organizing and decorating her home and office and finding new DIY projects to keep busy. Her latest home project involved digging a hole in her yard to install a beautiful firepit. She also enjoys refinishing old furniture and finding creative ways to convert her visions to reality. If she can’t find what she wants, she makes it.
And she LOVES being in the great outdoors – hiking, biking, floating the river, camping, hanging out by the pool, making snow angels and snowmen. You will also find her on the sidelines cheering on her kids’ multiple sports: soccer, football and track & field. All these activities take her to her happy place.
But life hasn’t always been an easy path for Terran. She lists her greatest accomplishment as the day she walked across the stage at her high school graduation with a 3.84 GPA as a single teenage mom. And then going on to earn her associate degree 18 months later from Mt. Hood Community College in … wait for it … event planning with a certificate in professional bridal consulting.
“Knowing that I did it for me and didn’t let the limitations of my circumstances stand in my way – no one can ever take that away from me,” she said.
She’s also pretty stoked about being a two-time cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer at age 26, just after her daughter was born, and had emergency surgery when Abi was just 6 weeks old. But her joy was short-lived – just under two years later, the cancer came back in her ovary. She beat it again and still undergoes extensive yearly testing.
“To stand and live life today knowing that I beat cancer twice is a big accomplishment,” she said. She’s grateful for this second chance, because there’s still a lot left that she wants to do – including some serious travel.
“Italy, Greece, New Zealand … I don’t have a reason for wanting to go other than, I just want to explore other countries. I find it fascinating. I would love to just spend a day in each country. It would be amazing!”
Hopefully, she’ll have an interpreter close at hand. She admits that learning languages is not her special talent. “In high school Spanish I was politely told by my Spanish 2 teacher that he felt I was at the end of my rope.”
But Terran knows that life is full of new opportunities, and she intends to grab as many of them as possible. She intends to laugh and love and take as many chances as are offered to her. In the end, she hopes to be remembered as someone who made a difference; someone who made people laugh and smile, and someone who loved more than anything in the world.
Natalie Sandoval — McKinney-Vento Homeless Education Liaison
As a social worker, Natalie Sandoval has helped a lot of people in need, from youth struggling with substance abuse to parents striving to get their kids out of their cars and into a secure home. She’s problem-solved alongside numerous families and dedicated herself to strength-based interventions aimed at improving protective factors for families.
Since January 2019, she has been the homeless education liaison for the Nampa School District, helping to connect families with the resources they need to survive and thrive. Many of the families she works with are living in shelters, cars, motels or other precarious situations. She helps them navigate transportation, documentation, immunization and enrollment challenges, while also striving to meet their basic needs, including food, hygiene and connection to larger community resources.
“My job allows me to walk alongside families, even though I often don’t have a solution to their larger problem, which is housing,” she said. “It’s hard not to be able to help. But I don’t give up, even when it’s uncomfortable.”
She credits her coworkers with providing the support she needs to keep going. “I couldn’t do it without them, because it’s hard,” she said. But it’s also rewarding.
“Getting to hear people’s stories, being able to exchange on the most human level … We’re there to be part of that moment and process, even in all the sadness and anger. It’s a sacred space.”
Prior to moving to Nampa, Natalie spent six months traveling solo through South America with little more than a backpack and a desire to experience life and human connection.
“When I have a backpack on my back, I’m responsible for me and having all it takes to make it,” she said. “It makes me feel really powerful.”
Along the way she traveled through Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Uruguay, ending her journey in Panama. She calls the experience life-changing, but when she got home to Missouri, she knew she was ready for a new challenge in her life.
“I had sold my home before I left, and I knew my next step was to move west,” she said. When she saw the job listing for Nampa, she knew her background in housing and homelessness would be a perfect fit.
It’s a far cry from her childhood dream of attending Juilliard and becoming a classical pianist – a dream she admits was always pretty unattainable, given that she has “no skill whatsoever.” As she got older, she thought she wanted to travel the world as a National Geographic photographer. This was a more achievable goal, and she still loves photography, especially with old film cameras.
“Aperture, film exposure … it’s such a lost art.”
She learned photography from her dad, who always had a dark room in their house when she was growing up. He is originally from Mexico, and her mom came from the boot heel of Missouri. Together, they raised Natalie and her two older siblings in tiny Beaufort, Missouri, way out in the country.
“I couldn’t ask for better parents,” she said, describing them as significantly powerful, social justice-minded people who instilled in her a love of travel and served as wonderful examples.
After graduating high school, Natalie planned to attend Drury University on a soccer scholarship. She lost half that award when she blew out her knee, so decided instead to attend East Central College on a volleyball scholarship. After two years, she transferred to the University of Nevada-Reno. She was still unsure of what she wanted to study and took some time off to consider what she wanted to do.
Eventually, Natalie attended Southeast Missouri State, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in social work and her master’s degree from University of Missouri, Columbia.
After her marriage ended in divorce, she logged her greatest accomplishment to date – getting on that plane with a one-way ticket to South America. “It was not being afraid to make a transition even when it was really scary and hard. I knew I needed to make a change, and I was honoring that feeling, even though I wasn’t sure what that looked like.”
Natalie is grateful to have eventually landed here in Nampa and is enjoying the Western way of life with her firefighter-paramedic boyfriend Steve and their dogs Paul, Current, and their cat Lee. She has started running again and hopes to get back to making that a regular habit and perhaps running another marathon or completing another half Ironman. She also sits on the board of Jesse Tree, an organization that helps prevent homelessness.
She likes listening to music, all things outdoors– including paddling on alpine lakes and skiing. She prefers paper maps to their Google counterparts and is really bad at unpacking a bag after a trip.
In the end, she hopes she’ll be remembered for her passion for living life fully and deeply. “I hope people know that I truly cared about people, the earth and animals. I try to never be something that I’m not or have an agenda. I hope that comes off with my friendships and the people I’m serving.
Heather Graham - CTE Project Manager
Heather Graham clearly has a soft spot for kids. Her childhood dream was to be a kindergarten teacher because in her opinion, “5- and 6-year-old kids are the best thing to happen to the world.” While she didn’t end up teaching, she does help students learn and grow on a daily basis.
Heather is the project manager for the district’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) program, doing bookkeeping, ordering supplies, managing travel arrangements, advising student leadership and overseeing social media, among other tasks. She even gets to drive the ambulance occasionally for the EMT program.
“It’s exciting!” she said. “I like that CTE is setting up kids with life skills. They can come out of the program with a CTE diploma that reflects real-life certifications and training. I think that’s pretty fantastic.”
Heather started working with CTE in fall 2019 just a day before the district was hit with a system-wide technical “glitch,” followed months later by a worldwide pandemic. She’s pretty proud of everything she’s accomplished through all of the accompanying challenges.
“I’ve learned to do everything four different times as we add ‘normal’ back to the process,” she said. “I’m pretty proud of the work we do here.”
Heather said she is constantly impressed by the accomplishments of the 16- to 18-year-olds in the program. But then, with five girls of her own, she has lots of experience with both kids and teens.
She and her husband Brodie have five daughters ranging in age from 7 to 19. Both parents graduated from Nampa schools – Heather from Skyview and Brodie from Nampa High. Daughter Hailee is a Skyview grad who now attends Boise State. Piper is at Lake Ridge, Avery is at South, and Reagan and Madison are at Skyview. Madison currently dances with the Blue Angels, just like her mother did, making Heather and Madison the first mother-daughter Blue Angels legacy team.
Heather met Brodie on a blind date set up by her mother and her aunt. They married shortly after and began a series of moves (16 in total) across the West while he “moved up the career ladder” to his current position of regional vice president for Pacific Coast Building Products.
Six years ago they moved to a 1972 farmhouse on five acres of land in South Nampa. They gutted and completely renovated the home, adding pastures and a barn to care for the horses that are so dear to her heart.
Heather grew up riding horses and recently joined the Idaho Girls Rodeo Association, where she competes in the senior division of barrel racing. The association is aimed at all ages and abilities and supports multi-generational participation. Barrel racing is a new sport for her, and she enjoys sharing the activity with her daughters. “I grew up riding horses, but mostly endurance riding,” she said. “I enjoy barrel racing – I don’t do really well, but it’s fun.”
The family currently has three horses: Heather’s 16-year-old quarter gelding named Poncho, Tubba Wubba, 27, and Archie, 16. They also share their home with Kit, a brown lab, Gus, a wirehaired griffon, and Mojo, a rescue dog.
Outside of competing and trail riding, Heather enjoys time at her family cabin in Cascade, retail therapy at Target with her girls, and baking cookies, banana bread and Christmas goodies. She’s also been fortunate to tag along to places like Hawaii and Alaska through her husband’s job, and to the Tri-Cities, Arizona and Vegas for her girls’ softball games.
While she enjoys traveling, her end goal is to spend more time with her girls as they grow up and start families of their own. “If life took us to exotic places, that would be great and I’d enjoy it. But wherever my family is, that’s really where I would like to be.”
While Heather admits she’s a homebody and pretty laid back, life will always dish up confrontation and she wishes it was easier to deal with. “I’ve never been good at standing up for myself” she said. “I wish I was better at confrontation in a way where I could advocate for myself.”
She said she would love an opportunity to chat with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, to ask them how they were courageous enough to do the things they did. “They had such self-assurance and they just did what they thought was right.”
Courage and conviction. Not bad goals to guide you through life.
Jason Hillman - NOVA Principal
Jason Hillman has his eye toward the future. In fact, he can’t wait to see what’s coming next.
“I’m fascinated with the idea that people are living on the edge of what might be,” he said. “In my own life, I’ve already gone from a manual typewriter to a phone more powerful than any computer when I graduated from high school. I’m just so dang curious about what the future holds.”
That includes the future of education, and more specifically, the future of online learning.
Jason is co-creator and founding principal at Nampa Online Learning Academy, or NOVA. In that role, he helps teachers design curricula as well as develop and improve teaching strategies and supports, among other duties.
While the school was born of necessity during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide an at-home option for just under 1,000 students, it has continued to be a school of choice for about 300 students in grades K-12.
“For those who choose online learning, it’s a fantastic option,” said Jason. “It’s exciting to have some flexibility in your life and not be tied to a bell schedule all the time as a kid.”
That flexibility means that students and teachers have logged into classes from far and wide, including from Hawaii, Mexico, Florida, Alaska, Ukraine, Washington D.C. and even the rim of the Grand Canyon.
Jason has been with the Nampa School District since 1996, when he graduated from Boise State and was hired to teach at Nampa High School. He has also worked as a vice-principal/dean at Skyview High School and South Middle School, and as principal of the district preschool program and Greenhurst Elementary School.
In 2014, he stepped into the role of Director of Special Education. In May 2020, he was asked to help develop and head a brand-new online school.
But education wasn’t always his dream. He once aspired to be a professional football player but didn’t have the height. So he aimed instead for a business career. Until he got a taste of what it was like to teach and make a positive difference in the world. He changed his major from business to economics for secondary education and hasn’t looked back.
Jason grew up in the small eastern Idaho town of Driggs as the eldest of three siblings. “Growing up in Driggs was cool. It was small enough and far enough away from things that I got to experience everything,” he recalled. “I played four sports every year in high school. And I was able to snowmobile in winter and ride motorcycles in summer. I enjoyed active classes but also took two years of home economics in high school, learning crafts, cooking and sewing.”
After high school, he served a church mission to Fukuoka, Japan, where he met a lot of new people, including another young missionary named Kiyomi.
After their missions, Kiyomi came to the U.S. to visit Jason and 30+ other people on her list of contacts. She stayed a couple of days at his parents’ house in Driggs while he was on summer break from college, and it was love at second site. He dipped into his meager back-to-school clothing budget to buy an engagement ring and popped the question. They were engaged for 10 months and have now been married for 29 years.
The couple has three daughters and a son, ranging in age from 19-27. One is a music teacher, one plays guitar in multiple bands, one works at Starlight Mountain Theatre and one is the lead singer in a band. Even his wife Kiyomi sings. But while singing is a talent Jason aspires to, he freely admits he falls short.
Luckily, he has other talents that keep him active and engaged. He has kept up his Japanese language skills, which not only helps when communicating with his in-laws but also provides insight into the challenges many students (and parents) face when learning English as a second language.
He enjoys a variety of outdoor sports – in 2007 he was named rookie of the Year by the Idaho Amateur Trapshooting Association – and loves all things woodworking. He cheers for the Boise State Broncos and the Idaho Vandals (he earned degrees from both schools), volunteers at church and enjoys an occasional legal thriller.
He likes crisp autumn days when he can use both his heater and air conditioner on the same day, and he loves his family, whom he calls his greatest accomplishment.
“I like where I am today,” he said. “And I wouldn’t want to change anything. Changing my past might change who I am today.” And maybe that all-important future.
And that wouldn’t do at all.
Coco - Roosevelt School Dog
They say that all dogs go to heaven. If so, Coco is already living that dream at Roosevelt Elementary School, where she fills the essential role of “School Dog.”
Coco is a deep brown Chesapoo (Chesapeake-poodle mix) whose job is to greet, support and comfort kids and staff, all while offering unconditional love and acceptance. It’s definitely a dog’s life.
Coco’s handler, Principal Shawn Tegethoff, hatched the idea of a school dog four years ago in the midst of a community mental health crisis.
“I wanted the kids to know that we love them and we value them as human beings,” she said. “They need to know they are relevant and if there is anything they are going through, we will help them. We’re in it together. I wanted them to not be afraid to talk to us.”
She first considered a true “therapy” dog for the school, but soon realized that what she was looking for was more unique. She knew the dog would still need a lot of specialized training, so she turned to both the breeder (who also taught PE at the school at the time) and the Nampa Police Department, which has a lot of experience training dogs to stay focused in public settings.
But no amount of training could substitute for the natural empathy both Coco and her co-school dog Moses (a Cavalier King Charles spaniel-poodle mix, a Cavapoo) exhibit around the children.
“It’s important for a child to learn to self-regulate so they are happy,” Shawn said, noting that connecting with the dogs give kids an emotional landing place when life hits hard. And at some point, life will hit hard for everyone.
“They need a way to regulate and get back to a state of contentment.”
Even the kids recognize this. Shawn recounted a conversation with a young boy who had gotten into some trouble. “He looked at me and said this conversation would have gone better if I’d brought the dog. I thanked him for the feedback and said next time I would. And I have every time. For crucial conversations, I always bring the dog.”
Coco’s residency has led to some unexpected successes as well. Because she was named by the students after the animated movie “Coco,” many of Roosevelt’s Hispanic students relate to the name. Some have family members who share that name, others like talking about the food and celebrations they have in common with the family in the movie.
“They never talked to me about their heritage and culture before,” Shawn said. “I didn’t know it was a missing component.
In addition, she has noticed that parents find her more approachable, and the kids see her more as a person rather than just a disciplinarian.
“And I have had parents thank me for having dogs at school, not just for emotional support but for the safety of the environment. Dogs will bark if someone looks aggressive. We like that.”
But the best part about having Coco at school is that the kids know that she loves them – no matter what. “If they are late for school, struggling with reading, or don’t love math – she still loves you and sees you as the best person in the world, no matter what!”
A Conversation with Coco (with interpretation by Shawn Tegethoff)
What does a “Day in the Life” look like for you? When I get to school, we start by playing ball so that I can get some of my energy out. I greet staff as they arrive, then move to the back hall to greet the kids. Sometimes they’ll play with me, kicking the ball down the hallway. I’ll go out to check the bus area, and if there is anyone who is new, I’ll let Shawn know by bopping her on the knee. It takes me about two weeks to learn the scent of all the kids here, so I always know if someone new is around. I wait in the office during announcements, then greet kids who come late, letting them know I’m glad they’re here, even if they are late.
I like going to classrooms to give prizes to kids who’ve earned them or hanging out in the office so I can calm down children who come to the office upset or crying. I’ll let them pet me or play ball with me. Shawn recorded data for a long time that showed that doing this helped calm kids almost 100 percent of the time when they chose to participate. I like being part of that.
When it’s time for everyone to go home, I see them off to the bus. I think I help them feel like school is an extension of home. I think it’s an extension of my home.
What motivates you to go to school every day? I love playing with the children and I can’t wait to see them every day. When we had to close during COVID, I got really depressed and spent three weeks just lying on my bed. Shawn brought me back to school even though it was closed and shot some video of me running around and shared it with the kids. But it was really confusing for me with no kids here. I sniffed at every doorway but couldn’t find anyone here. I still feel the same way when Shawn is sick and we can’t come to school, or during summer vacations. School is the best!
What is your favorite part of the day? Lunchtime, because the kids are all outside and I have lots of people to play with. They throw the ball and I chase it. They also give me treats for doing tricks. And I love seeing Kristy Richmond every day. She delivers our inter-district mail and always throws me a treat.
What don’t you like to do? I don’t like meetings in a room full of adults, and I especially don’t like when adults stop talking and read. It makes me very nervous to be that quiet. I also don’t like the guy who sets off the alarms in the summer. When I see him drive into the parking lot to test them, I get scared and climb into Shawn’s lap.
Are you a good listener? Is that important? Kids talk to me and I am a good listener. I promise to never repeat what they say, but if they need help, I will poke Shawn with my nose. I know that if they are sad or make any sudden movements or scream, they need help. I’m really interested in the kids who have seizures or are autistic and try to be more careful around them. And if kids are afraid or anxious, I’ll get down on all fours and look at them so Shawn knows.
What kind of fan mail do you receive? I get a lot of fan mail filled with questions. I try to write back to as many as I can. It’s stacks of mail. I have had some regular pen pals – kids who keep writing. We have unique conversations about our weekends and what we do outside of school.
What have you learned from the kids? What have they learned from you? I have learned how to respond to a variety of different needs that kids have. I think kids have learned they can relax here at school. It’s a fun environment for them and they can feel at home here on campus. And I’ve helped some of them get over their fear of dogs.
If you had a superpower, what would it be? To beam all of the apple cores in the school to me. Apple cores are my favorite treat, and I know they aren’t all coming to me because I’m not allowed in the cafeteria. Apple day is really hard. I’ll “leave them” when I’m told to, but I don’t like it!
What’s something surprising about you that most people don’t know? I like a particular commercial that has dogs in it. It has a squeaky toy at the beginning. Even when I put my face right on the TV screen or look behind the TV, I can’t ever find the dog or the toy. I also like watching the National Dog Show that airs every year after the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Why is a therapy dog better than a therapy cat? Dogs are faster at chasing the ball. We’re also better at interacting with kids. People will stop and talk about things at a deeper level when I’m around. They open up faster and go deeper than before Moses and I were here. And we’re both hypoallergenic, which is important. Cats aren’t.
Jennifer Randolph - PREP Director
Once you’re one of Jennifer Randolph’s “kids,” you are in her heart forever. Jennifer has directed Nampa PREP (Prepared Readiness for Employment Program) for eight years and taught the district’s special education students with severe or profound disabilities for six years prior to that.
PREP is aimed at helping special education young adults transition from high school graduation to adulthood. NSD graduates who are accepted into the program learn real-world life skills, such as how to prepare a resume, write a cover letter, fill out a job application, punch a timecard, learn basic job duties, and be responsible, contributing citizens.
On any given school day, students can be found working a number of jobs both within and outside of the district, including cleaning for the Nampa Rec Center and Chatterbox, delivering mail and helping with food prep and catering at the NNU student union, detailing cars, baking and marketing dog treats, sewing quilts and filling district print jobs. Students are paid with in-kind donations or a paycheck routed through the State Department of Vocational Rehabilitation.
“They are happy to come to school every day and do absolutely anything!” said Jennifer. “Their exuberance and excitement showcase their abilities, not their disabilities!”
Those who know Jennifer are not the least bit surprised by her decision to go into teaching, even if it did take her a while to find her way to the classroom. As a child at play, she was always the teacher, never the student. As a teenager, she babysat, volunteered as a ski instructor for the blind, and worked at an orphanage in Mexico as part of a mission trip. As an adult, she spent 12 years caring for both of her ailing parents in her home before their death a year ago.
“I’m a caregiver by nature,” she said, as are her siblings. Her brother works in genetics at Oregon Health Sciences University and her sister is an RN who owns a spa.
After high school, Jennifer enrolled at Boise State University with plans to study nursing. Instead, she earned degrees in social work and gerontology (the study of aging). She later worked as a licensed social worker for the State of Idaho. It was during a state employee furlough that she found her true calling.
“My son was in kindergarten then and I started volunteering in the classroom. I loved it and the next thing I knew, I was asked to fill an emergency opening for a teacher in the severe and profound special education classroom at East Valley,” she recalled. “I worked that job while I earned my certification, and then earned a master’s degree in education from NNU.” She continued through the doctoral program, but never published her dissertation.
Her husband, Zac, also is a special education teacher, working at Nampa High School. Together, they have a 20-year-old son, Bryant, who serves in the Navy and is engaged to be married next year. Jennifer also has a 30-year-old birth daughter who lives in Baker, Oregon. (Read an inspiring blog post about her experience here.)
Bryant is named for legendary Alabama football coach Bear Bryant. In fact, he’s registered in the Paul W. Bryant museum in Tuscaloosa as a namesake (No. 72).
“On our first date, my husband told me if we ever had a son, he would need to be named Bear or Bryant,” she said. “At the time, I didn’t know what that meant.”
The couple also have a dog named Ali (short for Alabama), and previously owned a dog named Bama. An entire room in their house is decorated in crimson and collectible Alabama paraphernalia.
“We had to get married on a Monday so it wouldn’t interfere with Alabama football,” she said, with a laugh.
While many know she’s an Alabama fan, few people know she’s a licensed phlebotomist (she took the training with her son as part of his senior project). She’s also an ordained minister.
“I felt a calling to be able to officiate nontraditional weddings,” she said. Those include both themed weddings and ceremonies in unorthodox locations.
This makes a lot of sense when you pair it with her response to the question, “What superpower do you wish you had?”
“I would love to be able to shoot an arrow of love! I like to match-make. I think the world would be a better place if there was more love.
Indeed.
Phillip Hoesing - Nampa High Director of Bands
Phillip Hoesing with senior percussionists Joel Perdue and Sofia Haro. NOTE: You can watch the Nampa High Marching Band, as well as the Skyview and Columbia Marching Bands, compete in the Mel Shelton Marching Band Competition at Boise State University on October 22, 2022. Find a complete schedule here. https://www.idahod3marchingfestival.com/schedule.html
Phillip Hoesing marches to the beat of a different drummer. Several different drummers, in fact.
The Nampa High music teacher directs the school’s acclaimed marching band, which includes 101 musicians and members of the color guard. In addition, he teaches and directs the Symphonic Band, Wind Ensemble, Concert Band, three Jazz Bands and a music theory program. Oh, and he also teaches Drivers Ed. In all, the school’s band program serves about 180 students each school year.
Phil has been a staple of the NHS music program for 14 years and he can’t imagine doing anything else. At least, not anymore. He once had dreams of being a pilot and even accepted a full-ride scholarship to Minnesota State as an aviation major. But it took only one semester for him to realize his heart was really in music.
So, he transferred to Luther College in Decorah, Iowa. The liberal arts school is renowned for its strong music education program and outstanding music ensembles.
After graduating, he taught high school for a couple of years in Iowa. But after spending all of his money visiting family in the West during his breaks, he decided to move closer to his parents in Idaho. He just completed his Master of Music in music education from Central Washington University.
While Phil loves living in Nampa, he’s proud of his midwestern heritage. He grew up in the small town of Harlan, Iowa, as the youngest of five kids. He attended Harlan Community High School, where he was “super-inspired” by all of his band and music teachers. The school was known for its outstanding music programs and was a two-time state champion for jazz band while he attended.
“My experience in music and with my teachers, from elementary through college, really inspired me to teach,” he said.
That memory serves as a guide for his own teaching experience, where he counts his relationships with students and colleagues as the most rewarding aspect of his job.
“It’s about building relationships and watching kids improve and have fun over 4-plus years. It’s seeing them achieve at high levels and work to get better along the way. Watching their improvement and growth is satisfying,” he said.
Nampa School District has not only offered a great teaching experience, it’s also where he met his wife, Jaimee.
She was teaching sixth-grade reading at West Middle School and as a fellow Iowa transplant, offered to show him around. They met at Flying M, started dating and were engaged nine months later. Twelve years later they are the parents of two beautiful daughters – Julie, a kindergartner at Centennial Elementary, and 2-year-old Alice. Phil counts having them greet him when he gets home as the best part of his day.
He's also pretty inspired by Jaimee, whom he calls “incredibly compassionate and beautiful,” and by his parents.
“I’m intrigued by what it would have been like to live during the era when my parents came of age,” he said. “The ’60s were pretty major. So much change, and turmoil, obviously. There was Kennedy, MLK, the Vietnam War …”
Outside of spending time with his family, Phil loves the outdoors. He likes to hunt and fish, alpine ski and golf. Another perk of living in Idaho? “I’ve golfed and skied in the same weekend!”
If he had the opportunity, he wouldn’t mind doing some serious traveling. Thanks to his time performing in instrumental ensembles at Luther College, he’s already ticked off a number of popular travel destinations.
In addition to playing all across the upper and lower Midwest, he toured internationally three times, including a monthlong residency in Vienna, two weeks in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, and two-and-a-half weeks in Japan and China. In 2008, he traveled as a faculty advisor for the Iowa Ambassadors of Music on a tour of London, Paris, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria, Venice and Germany.
Despite all that travel, he says he can’t speak another language outside of high school French and a smattering of college Spanish. “I know just enough to make me confused in all the languages,” he said.
Although he counts his life as pretty blessed, he would like to tell his teenaged self to let go of perfection and be content with doing his best where he’s at. He’s grateful he eventually got there and is happy with his life and choices.
“I hope I’ll be remembered as a caring teacher, father and husband. Someone who works hard but has a sense of humor.”
Someone who understands the rhythm of life and takes time to stop and listen to the music. That sounds about right.
Sarah Montoya - Daytime Custodian
Nampa High custodian Sarah Montoya gets a little choked up when she recalls running into a former student one day while stopping for a bite to eat.
“It was a couple of years ago, and my mom had just gotten out of the hospital,” she recalls. “We stopped at Panda Express, and the girl checking us out wouldn’t let us pay. She said it was because of all that I have done and am doing at Nampa High.”
What she has done and is doing includes cleaning the 700 building, picking up trash, and keeping the gym floor in tip-top condition – among many other tasks.
“My job is to make the students proud of their school” she says. “Nampa High is my old school, and these are my people and my kids.”
She admits to being a bit of a mother hen when it comes to the students. She loves to spoil them a little and show that she cares. She keeps a bag of candy in her office and occasionally throws pieces out to the kids.
“Someday I’d like people to remember that I really loved my job and I cared,” she said. “And maybe also that I’m a little bit crazy.
Sarah grew up in Nampa, attending Parkview and Lakeview elementary schools, the brand-new West Junior High and finally, Nampa High. Her mother still owns the home she purchased in 1967 when the family moved here from Michigan.
Sarah remembers working for a couple of years at the State School and Hospital, starting when she was 13. It was there that she realized that maybe she wasn’t cut out for her childhood dream of becoming a nurse. She just had too much empathy and felt others’ pain too intensely. “My biggest weakness is that I care too much,” she said.
So she decided to focus on traditional Idaho summer jobs like picking fruit in the apple orchards, detasseling corn, and working at a carnival in Nampa, where she met her future (now ex) husband.
Sarah has four grown children – three girls and a boy – who light up her life, as well as 15 grandchildren and one great-grandson who is 19 months old.
A favorite memory is traveling across the United States in 1987 in a pickup and camper with four young kids. The family spent seven months in Biloxi, Mississippi, while her husband worked on the highway, and enjoyed seeing exciting big cities like Washington, D.C., which small-town Sarah said was “fun, except for all the people.”
The family also took some time to work the Oklahoma State Fair. Sarah cooked meals out of her small camper to feed 50-100 carnies each day, while her kids roamed the fair and the rides. Her oldest, just 10 at the time, ran the merry-go-round.
Sarah raised her kids mostly in Powell, Wyoming, where she worked as the first female head custodian for the 60,000-square-foot high school gymnasium. People didn’t think a woman could do that job, but she proved them wrong. She also found that getting to know the athletes and their parents was a bright spot in her life.
“Before that, I was shy and quiet. It brought me out of my shell.”
After moving back to Nampa, she took a job with ABM, which provides custodial service for the Nampa School District. She is still considered an expert when it comes to gym floors and is the go-to custodian when any district gym floors need help.
“I even got a call when I was traveling to Montana,” she recalled. “I was asked to stop in Blackfoot to help them fix a problem with the gym floor.”
Because so many community members attend high school games, she believes the condition of the gym floor is a direct reflection on the school as a whole. “I want people to be proud of their schools,” she said. “If the gym floor doesn’t look good, the rest doesn’t look good.”
When she’s not caring for the school or the gym, you’ll find Sarah crocheting blankets for her kids and grandkids, baking cookies for her many friends (she makes 250-300 dozen cookies each holiday season to give away), or riding on the back of her brother’s bike during a motorcycle rodeo competition.
While she doesn’t ride herself (“I have no balance”) she does enjoy the sport and even has a tattoo featuring the name of the family motorcycle group – the Stony Creek Knuckleheads. Stony Creek is the street she grew up on in Michigan and Knuckleheads is what her dad always called his kids. Her brother designed the crest when she was a teenager.
If she had a do-over in life, she’d tell herself to stay in school and graduate instead of waiting until age 55 to earn her GED. She also wishes she had traveled more to places like Alaska, Hawaii and Europe.
And if she had $10,000 to spend on something fun? “I’d pay for kids’ lunches, buy more chocolate to hand out at work and go to a store to buy a kid something that they really, really wanted.”
Remember when she decided she cared a little too much to be a nurse? Yeah, she’s still got that heart.
Jared Hoeksema - School Resource Officer
Corporal Jared Hoeksema has an important role at East Valley Middle School – giving kids someone to look up to. At 6’5”, he does that both literally and figuratively.
“Being a school resource officer is about directing kids to the right path and building relationships that last forever,” he said. “It’s some of the coolest work you’ll ever do.”
Jared has been a police officer for 11-and-a-half years, about half of those in Nampa. In his previous life, he operated heavy machinery as a supervisor for an excavation company. While he loved that work and continues to take side jobs here and there, he credits divine intervention and a downturn in the economy for his career change at the age of 29.
“I’ve always been attracted to helping other people,” he said. “I don’t ever want people to be victimized. I’m really a peacemaker and good at resolving conflict.”
As a police officer, he manages NPD’s LEAD (Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion) program for drug addiction in addition to his SRO responsibilities. LEAD’s focus on shaping a better path for offenders helped prepare him for the SRO job, which he launched last year at Nampa High School. It’s a post he calls both really challenging and really rewarding.
“It takes a community to help raise a child. And when kids fall short, it feels terrible,” he said. “Many police officers become jaded and don’t recognize it. This job opens your eyes to what we’re here to do. The badge is a public symbol of trust. It’s a lot of weight to carry.”
He said his own challenges as a kid uniquely qualified him to be an SRO. The child of divorced parents, he sometimes struggled to find his place. An “average” student who was often in trouble for not paying attention, he longed to get out of Fernley, Nevada, and a situation he calls “not great.”
“I’m in the perfect place now because of the situations I was in as a kid,” he says. “I can empathize. The things we endure in the past often put us on the right path.”
Outside the job, he’s a happily married father of two. He and his wife, Teri, have been married for 17 years. Together they parent daughter Gracie, 14, and son Graydin, 12, from a home they built themselves on 2.5 acres in Middleton. Jared was able to utilize his heavy machinery skills to excavate and pour the concrete.
And while he admits his kids aren’t perfect, he thinks they’re pretty close – mostly due to his wife’s influence.
“She’s the center of our home and existence,” he said. “I contribute the success of our family to her.”
For the Hoeksemas, family life involves watching the kids play volleyball, softball and baseball; Teri’s home-based personal trainer business; and caring for three dogs, a donkey and two horses.
For those who know Jared best, the horses are not a surprise. Despite that fact that as a kid a horse broke his femur and seriously injured his artery, almost killing him, he admits to a special bond with the animals. “I still love horses – I find them calming. They have almost a therapeutic effect.”
In fact, he dreams of having been born in an earlier time, eking out a living as a cowboy on a small-town ranch. “Life was simpler then,” he said, “with different morals and standards. There was a clearer set of rules – if you did this, the consequence was that.”
But he admits his life has been good even in this modern era. “I’m a very happy man and have been blessed with all that I have.”
If he hadn’t gone down the law enforcement path, Jared says he’d like to have become a pilot (a career path that speaks to his love of operating heavy equipment). Despite a healthy respect for heights, he would love to be an eagle, soaring over the beautiful land God created. And while his height would preclude a career as a fighter pilot, he is fascinated with the idea of flying a helicopter.
Asked what movie best illustrates his life, his answer might surprise some.
“Dracula Untold. It’s more of a love story than a horror story. It’s about a king who had to take on the power of a vampire to save his people. We take on the monsters of the world so others don’t have to and we have to deal with things others don’t want to see.
Well, maybe it’s not such a surprising answer after all.
Kurt Wallin - Production Supervisor
Tattoos are personal. They can recognize interests, honor loved ones, or simply reflect your favorite things. Kurt Wallin’s tattoo is a recipe for his signature Monster Cookies, made with peanut butter, oats, chocolate chips, M&Ms and no flour.
“My passion is baking,” says the trained pastry chef, with a bright smile. Cream puffs, croissants, wedding cakes … “If I could afford to do it, I’d bake anything for anyone who asked.”
Kurt is a 21-year veteran in NSD kitchens. He started down that path with a job in Marriott’s food services while he was a liberal arts student at Northwest Nazarene College (now NNU). From there, he went to work for a high-end pastry shop in Boise, where he earned his sous chef certification and received training as a pastry chef. Eventually, he found his way to Nampa School District’s Nutrition Services.
His first NSD assignment was West Middle School, followed by stints at Park Ridge, Columbia and Treasure Valley Leadership Academy. He currently is a supervisor at Sherman, overseeing all aspects of food production in the kitchen as well as educating kids on good nutrition and parents on reimbursable meals, food guidelines and federal rules.
But while paperwork and management duties keep him on his toes, his relationship with students keeps the job rewarding. He originally hoped to become a teacher, but that didn’t pan out.
“This is the next best thing. I love interacting with students.”
Kurt finds nothing more rewarding than an elementary kid who stops to thank him and tell him the food was “really good” or a high schooler who takes a moment to chat. He also treasures watching students grow up and having the opportunity to feed their now school-aged children.
“Sometimes I’ll see someone and they’ll say ‘I know you! You fed me. Now you feed my daughter.’ It’s a circle. They remember conversations we had and what I taught them about nutrition.”
Serving others, especially through an education lens, runs in his family. His wife of 29 years, Andrea (whom he calls his “stability”), is a second-grade teacher at Park Ridge. Rounding out their family is 28-year-old son Scott, a banker at First Interstate in Meridian, Milo, a 2-year-old pound puppy, and Cooper, Scott’s 10-year-old dog.
Kurt’s passion for education extends to Sundays, when he teaches an adult Sunday School class for his Nazarene church. He’s been teaching the class long enough that members have watched each other’s children grow to adulthood and are like family to him. The church itself is woven tightly into his being – “I was practically born on the first pew of the Nazarene Church,” he says.
As a kid, when he wasn’t at church he could be found playing football, running track or singing in the school choir. He also has fond memories of German class, where his teacher immersed them from day one in a “German-only” classroom environment. “It was all conversational German,” he recalls. “I can still read it well and understand some of it. I can’t really speak it.”
He did get to use some of those German classes on a trip to Germany, Hungary, Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic in 1991, just after the fall of the Berlin Wall. His favorite memories are tied to the area’s many historic buildings and fairy tale villages. He’d love to return one day to visit old landmarks and the storied music houses of Bach and Beethoven.
Those who know him best know he does his best to get along with everybody. “I’m a happy, joyous person and try to be at peace with the world,” he says.
But it wasn’t always that way. When he was 16, he suffered from what he called teen angst and was angry a lot. “I even broke a couple of things. My dad sat me down and said the anger would get me in trouble one of these days.
He knew he needed to change or he’d end up destroying something he couldn’t replace.
“Be at peace with yourself,” he says, “and it will make your life easier.”
Kat Armstrong - Restorative Justice Specialist
To Kat Armstrong, everyone has the potential to succeed. Everyone.
“I feel like not everybody gets dealt a great hand in life,” she said. “But the more you can educate kids on breaking cycles, the more successful they’ll be.”
Breaking cycles is what Kat’s all about. She’s worked with the district’s at-risk population for 21 years. Eight of those years have been spent at Union School, where she works with kids in grades 6-12 as a restorative justice specialist and internship coordinator, a position similar to a dean at traditional schools.
Prior to coming to Nampa School District, she worked at Mercy Hospital’s drug and alcohol treatment program for adolescents. Mary Ensley, who at the time oversaw the district’s counseling program, encouraged her to get certified and come work for NSD.
“I tell the kids here that it’s the people you meet in life who build bridges for you,” she said. “It’s mentors (like Mary) who go to bat for them.”
Kat freely admits that working with at-risk kids is her passion. “My dad didn’t graduate from high school. But he always preached that you should be able to stand on your own two feet. You’ve got to want something better for your future, changing each generation to make it better.”
That’s something she’s taken to heart in raising her own three kids with her husband, a law enforcement officer for the Canyon County Sheriff’s Office. Mike has worked for CCSO as an undercover narcotics officer, explosive ordnance disposal officer, and captain of the SWAT team.
Together they have raised Kyndrah, 26, Hailey, 24, and Coby, 20 (nick-named TxoTxo, “son,” in a nod to Mike’s Basque heritage). She also is anxiously awaiting her first grandchild, a little girl due in January.
“I feel like I did a pretty good job with my kids, and my grandkids can do even better,” she said.
Kat headed to the University of New York after graduating from Caldwell High, eventually graduating from the University of Utah. But she is an Idaho girl at heart who has spent a lifetime building memories with her family. Her favorites include camping and hiking trips, including time on Freddy’s Stack Rock Trail. Kat said Freddy and her mother got together after her dad passed away, and he created many happy memories for her and her family.
Those memories include an annual Easter hike to Table Rock, which the grandparents turned into a scavenger hunt for Kat’s children. She has fond memories of her kids reading clues leading them to their Easter gifts while hiking up the trail.
“It was always so hot, but it’s one of our fondest memories,” Kat recalls.
Other special life moments include traveling to Peru and Costa Rica. She hopes to add Spain to the list someday, where she can hike the 100-mile El Camino de Santiago (the Camino Trail). She also treasures family snapshots in time – silly things her husband does to make her laugh, kind moments between her children. Family being family.
In fact, if she had a do-over in life, she would reconsider her move to New York – “because I could have spent those years with my dad,” who died at age 50. Still, she recognizes that he would have encouraged her to go and experience life.
Her advice to others is to be true to yourself. She wishes she had been less of a people pleaser in high school while she tried to figure out her place in the world (“I gave my mom a run for her money”). She realizes that trying to please everyone else in order to get them to like her kept her from her full potential.
All in all, Kat believes that life is good. When she is gone, she hopes that her relationships with kids others might label as trouble will be honored. “I hope they don’t kick anybody out,” she said. “I want them there at my funeral. I want those kids who thought highly of me. I really want to know that I made a difference, not only in my kids’ lives, but in other people’s lives as well. I want to help them be the best they can be.”
Kristy Richmond - Mail Delivery
It’s a long way from a small dairy farm in tiny Bloomer, Wisconsin, to Nampa – about 1,500 miles and a lifetime of experience including a four-year stint in the Navy and a decade as a truck driver. But Kristy Richmond wouldn’t trade her journey for anything. Still, after years of living the city life, she’d love nothing more than to get back to her roots.
“As a kid, I got up at 5:30 and fed the calves, then rushed inside to shower and catch the bus to school. We raised animals every year for the fair – cows, rabbits, chickens, lambs. I had a wonderful childhood. Most kids don’t get what I had.”
That’s not to say she isn’t living her best life here in Idaho, working for the Nampa School District for just over a year delivering inter-district mail. Every day she makes stops at each school and department, delivering and picking up items ranging from letters to bags of supplies.
It’s a big change from her last job with the City of Nampa’s Wastewater Management Division, where she worked cleaning sewer lines. She was more than ready to leave after 20 years, although it is where she met her husband, Jeff, whom she married nine years ago. “I was picky – I didn’t want to settle down. But I’m very glad that I did.”
Jeff is the chef in the family, spoiling her with authentic Mexican food and great homemade salsa. The couple work off the calories by hiking at Jump Creek or Celebration Park, and sometimes in Baker city, where Jeff’s mom still lives.
They also spend a lot of time working in their yard, digging up sod and replacing it with decorative rock. She loves spending time out back, feeding birds, squirrels and the ducks that congregate along the canal banks and always look hungry.
“Our lives are lowkey,” she said. “No drama.”
Kristy is a huge dog fan. She met her first dog, a little black-and-white mix, in someone else’s yard. “I stopped and he just came running and jumped on me,” she recalled. “I asked, ‘Can I have him?’ and the guy said I could for $50. So I told him I’d be right back. He was such a cool little dog.”
She’s had a number of dogs since then, including Charly, a seven-month-old chihuahua she and Jeff have had since she was six weeks old. The couple also have a cat named Clyde.
Kristy loves spending time with Charly and likes to tease her a little by serenading her in her best fake-opera voice. “She hates it,” said Kristy, “but she comes running. I do that all the time.”
In fact, Kristy loves being with Charly. She has a long list of places she’d like to visit, but she doesn’t want to go without her dog. She has considered buying a small RV so they can travel (with the dog) to places like the Grand Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Glacier National Park and the California Redwoods.
She’d also love to visit a tropical island where she could try out some snorkeling. But, you know, the dog.
With travel on hold, Kristy likes to fill her free time watching a good murder mystery series or a televised game or two. She follows the Green Bay Packers for football and Milwaukee Brewers during baseball season.
Although she doesn’t play sports anymore, she grew up playing kickball with friends, high school softball and, just for fun, mud volleyball at Northwest College in Powell, Wyoming (Go Trappers!). While there, she earned an associate degree in equestrian science.
All in all, she counts life as being pretty good. And she hopes that in the end, she’ll be remembered for being fun and loving, someone who would do anything to help you out. That could be her small-town roots. Or maybe it’s a bit of Idaho rubbing off.
Elia Lopez - FCRC Coordinator
Elia Lopez might be new to the coordinator title at the Family and Community Resource Center, but she’s a familiar face at Snake River Elementary. She has been the school secretary for seven years and is beyond excited to work with “her families” in a more meaningful way.
“Now I’ll have more time to help them with the resources they need, and to be able to sit down and talk to them and let them know I am here for them and their kids,” she said.
Elia grew up in a migrant family, often acting as an interpreter for her dad or other family members. This experience has helped her as she communicates with the many Spanish-speaking families at the school and in the community and helps her relate to what many children are experiencing at home.
In her new role, Elia will help match kids, families and community members with the resources they need to be successful. This includes everything from clothing and food to referrals for housing and employment.
She said the biggest needs right now are for food and seasonally appropriate clothing. “Many of the kids come back to school in shorts,” she said, noting that as the weather cools, they’ll need long pants, new shoes and warm coats and hats.
Her job at the FCRC is a far cry from where she thought she’d be when she grew up. As a kid, she wanted to be a cosmetologist, because it looked “really cool.” But her mother encouraged her to find a career where she could earn more money. “My mom has always pushed me to do better,” she said. “No, not pushed … encouraged. She wanted me to make something of myself.”
Nine years ago, she was working at The Children’s Store when she was asked to take a job in the State Department’s migrant program, recruiting out-of-school youth. From there, she moved to the district’s migrant program, where then-Principal Ben Kincheloe asked her to come work the front desk at Snake River.
She has loved every minute of her journey, which fulfills her need to make sure kids are protected and kept safe.
When not mothering hundreds of children at Snake River, Elia focuses on her husband and two kids at home. Her daughter, 9, is a Snake River Mustang, and her son recently graduated from Snake River and moved to a charter middle school.
Elia lists being a mother as her greatest accomplishment, and one that has come with a unique set of challenges. Her son has had some serious health issues, which have tested her abilities. “I’ve had to ‘Mom Up’ and learn how to take care of him,” she said. “There have been some scary times.”
But she said being a mom also makes for happy times, like trips to amusement parks (she has season passes to Lagoon – by far her family’s favorite park), paddle boarding, trips to McCall and cheering on the Dodgers (when she’s not cheering on her son’s Little League team).
Looking ahead, she’d love to take her kids to Mexico, where they could meet extended family, or to Texas to show them where their grandparents are from. It’s been an item on her bucket list for a number of years.
She admits that family life can also sometimes have a downside. She hates doing laundry (“folding clothes is sooo tedious”) and is always watching for her husband to settle down to watch a game on TV so she can ask him to fold while he watches.
If her life sounds a bit like a Hallmark movie, it’s probably because that’s her favorite TV genre. She loves feel-good stories and sharing those with her kids. “I’m not into scary movies or the Marvel Universe.”
But don’t go thinking you know everything about her. Most of her friends don’t know she grew up in Caldwell showing 4H animals at the fair – cows and sheep mostly. She said the experience taught her character skills, how to be responsible, and a lot about efficiency. She kept the ribbons she earned and has them tucked safely away.
She still loves farm animals, although she doesn’t have room to own any. She would love more time to ride horses, something she did as a kid because it’s relaxing and good for the soul. She also finds it to be a lot of fun.
Family and fun. That about sums it up for Elia.
Elia López, Coordinadora FCRC
Elia López puede ser nueva en el puesto de coordinadora del Centro de Recursos para la Familia y la Comunidad, pero es un rostro familiar en la Escuela Primaria Snake River. Ella ha sido la secretaria de la escuela durante siete años y está más que emocionada de trabajar con "sus familias" de una manera más significativa.
“Ahora tendré más tiempo para ayudarlos con los recursos que necesitan y para poder sentarme y hablar con ellos y hacerles saber que estoy aquí para ellos y sus hijos”, dijo.
Elia creció en una familia migrante, a menudo actuando como intérprete para su padre u otros miembros de la familia. Esta experiencia la ha ayudado a comunicarse con las muchas familias de habla hispana en la escuela y en la comunidad y la ayuda a relacionarse con lo que muchos niños están experimentando en casa.
En su nuevo rol, Elia ayudará a unir a niños, familias y miembros de la comunidad con los recursos que necesitan para tener éxito. Esto incluye todo, desde ropa y comida hasta referencias para vivienda y empleo.
Ella dijo que las mayores necesidades en este momento son alimentos y ropa apropiada para la temporada. “Muchos de los niños regresan a la escuela en pantalones cortos”, dijo, señalando que a medida que el clima se enfríe, necesitarán pantalones largos, zapatos nuevos y abrigos y gorros abrigados.
Su trabajo en FCRC está muy lejos de donde pensó que estaría cuando creciera. Cuando era niña, quería ser cosmetóloga, porque se veía "realmente genial". Pero su madre la animó a encontrar una carrera en la que pudiera ganar más dinero. “Mi mamá siempre me ha empujado a hacerlo mejor”, dijo. “No, no empujado… animado. Quería que hiciera algo de mí mismo”.
Hace nueve años, trabajaba en The Children's Store cuando le pidieron que aceptara un trabajo en el programa de inmigrantes del Departamento de Estado, reclutando a jóvenes que no iban a la escuela. De allí, pasó al programa de inmigrantes del distrito, donde el entonces director Ben Kincheloe le pidió que fuera a trabajar en la recepción de Snake River.
Le ha encantado cada minuto de su viaje, lo que satisface su necesidad de asegurarse de que los niños estén protegidos y seguros.
Cuando no está cuidando a cientos de niños en Snake River, Elia se enfoca en su esposo y sus dos hijos en casa. Su hija, de 9 años, es un Mustang de Snake River, y su hijo se graduó recientemente de Snake River y se mudó a una escuela secundaria chárter.
Elia enumera ser madre como su mayor logro, y uno que ha venido con un conjunto único de desafíos. Su hijo ha tenido algunos problemas de salud graves, que han puesto a prueba sus habilidades. “Tuve que 'hacerme mamá' y aprender a cuidarlo”, dijo. “Ha habido algunos momentos de miedo”.
Pero dijo que ser madre también genera momentos felices, como viajes a parques de diversiones (tiene pases de temporada para Lagoon, el parque favorito de su familia), surf de remo, viajes a McCall y animar a los Dodgers (cuando no está animando a los Dodgers). el equipo de Pequeñas Ligas de su hijo.
En el futuro, le encantaría llevar a sus hijos a México, para que puedan conocer a la familia extendida, o a Texas para mostrarles de dónde son sus abuelos. Ha sido un elemento en su lista de deseos durante varios años.
Ella admite que la vida familiar a veces también puede tener un inconveniente. Odia lavar la ropa ("doblar la ropa es tan tedioso") y siempre está pendiente de que su esposo se siente a ver un partido en la televisión para poder pedirle que doble la ropa mientras él ve la televisión.
Si su vida suena un poco como una película de Hallmark, probablemente sea porque ese es su género televisivo favorito. Le encantan las historias para sentirse bien y compartirlas con sus hijos. “No me gustan las películas de terror ni el Universo Marvel”.
No crean que lo saben todo sobre ella. La mayoría de sus amigos no saben que creció en Caldwell mostrando animales 4H en la feria, principalmente vacas y ovejas. Dijo que la experiencia le enseñó habilidades de carácter, cómo ser responsable y mucho sobre la eficiencia. Se quedó con las cintas que ganó y las tiene guardadas en un lugar seguro.
Todavía ama a los animales de granja, aunque no tiene espacio para tener ninguno. Le encantaría tener más tiempo para montar a caballo, algo que hacía cuando era niña porque es relajante y bueno para el alma. Ella también encuentra que es muy divertido.
Familia y diversión. Eso lo resume todo para Elia.
Justin Pickens - Instructional Specialist
Some people know at an early age what they want to be when they grow up. Not Justin Pickens.
“I didn’t plan to teach until my senior year of college,” he said. “I was in youth ministry.” But working as a children’s pastor led to getting credentialed and teaching preschool while working at his church. That got him thinking.
“I realized I could make an impact on kids wherever I was.”
Justin is now entering his 18th year in the field of education, and his fifth year working for the Nampa School District as an instructional specialist.
Justin works as part of the district’s Curriculum and Instruction team, supporting training and new teacher and instructional coach support while helping teachers make sense of initiatives around instruction. His content area centers on math – secondary math in particular.
“I help students and teachers access and understand curriculum, particularly with technology. And I partner with Boise State for professional development,” he said. “Aside from the common professional development that all math teachers receive, I also like to find groups of teachers who want to grow in certain ways.”
Justin began his career in Garden Grove, California, but moved to the Treasure Valley because his wife is from this area. The couple have two daughters, ages 6 and 4, and appreciate the mountains and other outdoor opportunities the area offers their family.
The outdoors has a special appeal for Justin, who says his dream job is to be a photographer for National Geographic so he could visit new places around the world. It’s a bit of a stretch because he doesn’t really understand the technical elements of the job (what is “aspect” anyway?), but he’s confident he would be a quick learner.
Although he’s fascinated with math – he refers to himself as a math geek – he could also picture himself as a U.S. history teacher, or maybe one day a tour guide. He loves learning more about the colonial American era, with its wide-open spaces, more cordial social norms and sense of community and purpose.
And at the risk of sounding too stereotypical, he’d truly love to sit down with Alexander Hamilton and pick his brain for a while. “I’d love to learn more about his crazy life and how he became who he was.”
But then, Justin is full of surprises. Most people would rightly guess that as a kid he was the teacher’s pet – you know, the kid who got good grades, earned the Presidential Award (signed by Bill Clinton) and always had his hair combed and shirt tucked in. But did you know that he likes to get down and dirty learning to ride his mountain bike? Or that since learning to roast his own coffee beans he’s become a bit of a coffee snob? He has a special coffee roaster the size of a toaster oven and buys his beans online from a supplier in Orange County. “It’s hard to drink coffee any other way now,” he said.
He believes that life is good (“I’m totally amazed that I have two girls who are growing – we don’t know how we are doing it as parents.”) But if he could score a redo on something, he’d strive to be more honest with his teenage self and those around him. He recalls how hard it was pretending it was all OK after his parents’ divorce to make it easier on his three younger brothers.
Despite those rocky years, he lists his dad as the biggest influence in his life. “When things got hard, he pushed through them.” He was also inspired by his youth pastor, who knew how to relate to high school kids and loved them, “no matter who you were or what you did.”
Want to learn more about Justin? Give him a call and sit down over a cup of freshly roasted coffee. You might be surprised where your conversation leads you.
Tina McMullen - Substitute Coordinator
Anyone who knows her knows that Tina McMullen has a heart of gold as big as the state of Texas.
Just ask one of the many exchange students she has housed over the years. This includes two boys from Italy, one from Sweden and another from Germany. This summer she housed two Canyon County Spuds baseball players from California, and she’ll be providing a home away from home for a girl from Denmark this school year.
Or talk to her the coworkers who benefit from the tea and cookies available in her office for anyone who wants to stop by and chat for a moment.
Or one of the 13 grandchildren she goes out of her way to spoil regularly in the backyard paradise she’s filled with kid-friendly attractions such as a playhouse, fort, sandbox, swing set, climbing structures and more – a setting she says falls somewhere between “Disneyland” and “Beverly Hillbillies.”
Or spend some time visiting with the student she has mentored for four years through The Mentoring Network – a task she took on when she thought she was done hosting exchange students. “I thought it was time to turn to students here in Nampa,” she said.
And Tina’s nurturing doesn’t stop with people. She’s also an avid gardener and, since the advent of COVID, a chicken enthusiast. She has 24 chickens to date (she calls them her pets) and continues to add to her brood. “I’m chasing the rainbow,” she said, referring to her goal to collect as many chicken breeds as needed to achieve as many colors of chicken eggs as possible.
Her favorite chicken is a bantam cochin named Jewel. “She is adorable and she’s spicy. She talks back all the time!”
When not taking care of family and friends, Tina takes care of the district’s substitute teachers. She’s been the substitute coordinator for 13 years and took over the job when her mother left the position. As such, she is responsible for the hiring, training and placement of short- and long-term substitutes.
She loves interacting with the variety of people who enlist in this challenging venture but said the last three years have been a challenge.
“COVID changed the nature of the job,” she said. “It used to be that you had lots of notice. Long-term absences were largely FMLA or maternity leave, where you could get one sub to cover it. But with COVID, that didn’t happen. People asked where the subs went. They’re still here, but the nature of the leave or absences changed. Most subs only want to cover about three days a week.”
Prior to working for the Nampa School District, Tina was a contractor with the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, working in the payment center. But the PERSI retirement benefit and the chance to spend Christmas and Spring Break holidays with her grandchildren won her over to a change.
It also helped that her husband, Randy, also works for the district in the Maintenance Department. The couple have four grown children – two boys and twin daughters – whom she labels her “greatest achievements.”
While she loves her job, don’t expect to find Tina enrolling as a substitute when she eventually retires. She’s looking forward to some serious global travel opportunities. So far, she has visited Mexico (where she was an exchange student in high school), Canada, England, Scotland, Germany, Italy, Sweden and Norway, but there are many more places she’d love to experience.
Her favorite trip so far was to Sweden, where she was visiting the family of one of her exchange students. “The family had a yacht, and they took us to the fjords where we island hopped for a full day. How do you put a price tag on that?”
Travel and cultural exchange play a big role in who she is and what she believes, which is why she has been so willing to open her door to exchange students over the years.
“One big reason I do this is because I want my grandchildren to grow up experiencing other cultures and ways of life. It definitely has made a difference.”
She freely admits hers is not the life course she planned for (she really wanted to be a physical therapist), but it’s one she loves. “You’re never going where you think you are going, so be flexible. It’s a good thing we can’t see into the future, because if you could, maybe you wouldn’t understand where you’re at. It’s better to experience it in its right time.”
Great advice, Tina.
Shawna Burge - Nutrition Services
Shawna Burge loves her job. In fact, she’s been loving it since 2000, when she started working in the kitchen at West Middle School. She’s since moved on to become first a kitchen supervisor and now a department trainer working out of the Nutrition Services Office. And while it’s a rewarding position, she still prefers cooking over paperwork.
“I loved cooking in the kitchen. I loved serving students and making them happy,” she said. She also loved the countless cards, pictures, cookies and other gifts she’s received over the years from students who appreciate what she does. Luckily, she’ll still get to visit lunchrooms and work hands-on with staff.
Shawna was originally attracted to the job because it allowed her to be on the same schedule as her kids. A single mom, she has two sons who are now grown. Her oldest, age 28, has two boys of his own and the younger, age 24, is father to a boy and a girl. Two of her grandchildren now attend Nampa schools – one at Snake River and another at Centennial.
While she doesn’t get to cook for them on school days, she does spend as much time with them as possible outside the job. She enjoys taking family vacations to the beach, visiting the zoo or just taking them to the park. “I do a lot with them and we have a lot of fun,” she said.
Like most “people” people, she can’t imagine not being in a position where she gets to work with and serve others. She says if she had to do something other than nutrition services, she’d opt for a career in the medical field, where she’d still be helping those in need.
But she’s not just focused on work and family. She takes time to identify and do fun things for herself. In fact, she’s got a bucket list she’s working on. So far she’s checked off some pretty big adventures, including jumping out of an airplane and zip lining at both Horseshoe Bend and Tamarack. She also hopes to check off parasailing someday soon.
While she loves to travel, she admits she has a passport with no stamps in it. She dreams of visiting exotic destinations like Ireland, Japan or Paris. Until then, she travels domestically at least once a year.
A recent mother-son trip down the Oregon and California coastline involved stops in Newport, a boat trip to Alcatraz and a tour of the Winchester Mystery House.
If she had unlimited funds, she’d love to take herself on a foreign vacation where she could see all the sites and try all the food. “I like going to new places and doing different things,” she said.
Outside of traveling, you’ll most likely find Shawna at a Boise State football game (dressed in plenty of Bronco gear, of course), on the mini-golf course, or curled up on the sofa with a grandchild or two, watching a movie with plenty of popcorn and peanut M&Ms close at hand. She also enjoys a good mystery or scrapbooking her family and travel memories.
“Scrapbooking is my quiet time,” she said. “Sometimes I look through my scrapbooks and think about what I’ve done, where I’ve been and where I’d like to go.”
While Shawna believes she’s had a good life, she does have some advice for her 16-year-old self: “I would tell myself to go to college and get a degree,” she said. “Do all you can do. Don’t be afraid. Always try to do the best that you can and be willing to learn new things.”
Lonnie Dawson - Bus Driver
Those who know him best wouldn’t be at all surprised to learn that after 35 years at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Lonnie Dawson retired to Nampa and started a new career as a school bus driver.
That’s because they understand that he’s a man on a mission to enrich the lives of children, one kid at a time.
Lonnie is proud of his work at the naval shipyard – where he rose from shipwright to plannerman to project material manager, even earning the Employee of the Year award in 2001. While in the Bremerton area he worked around aircraft carriers, destroyers and nuclear subs, including the USS Nimitz.
He’s also proud of his four years with the U.S. Coast Guard after graduating from Selah (Washington) High School. While in uniform, he served in California; Alaska; Norfolk, Virginia; and Mobile, Alabama, and especially enjoyed doing search and rescue work.
But he’s just as proud to be a role model for kids who may be in need of strong, stable adults in their lives.
“I’m 65, but I feel good and I need to be doing something,” he said. He considered finding a job mowing a golf course but chose instead to respond to the huge need for school bus drivers. “This is a service job. These kids need to know that someone will be there for them beyond school.”
Being there for them includes providing things to stimulate their minds (free books, worksheets and trivia questions), making sure they’re connected with needed services (food and clothing), finding ways to help them sit still and manage behaviors (rewards and seating charts), and providing positive encouragement and advice (like “always do the little things” and “take one step at a time”).
“My job is exciting!” he said. “I learn something new every day.”
Lonnie is just as passionate about taking care of his own family, which includes two children of his own and five grandchildren. His son and daughter-in-law live in Kirtland, Washington, with his three granddaughters. Lonnie and his wife of 36 years, Valerie, moved to Nampa to be closer to his daughter, son-in-law and two grandsons.
He loves helping his grandkids with science experiments, sports and growing into better people. He enjoyed helping his own children earn ribbons at science fairs, and even launched a science fair when he was on their middle school’s PTA board.
“The first year, only five students entered,” he said. “The second year, there were ten. Then the whole school got on board.”
That was a great moment for Lonnie, who has always appreciated people who not only get things done but do so in a humble way. Folks like a former shipyard commander who rose to the rank of admiral, but still took time to give Lonnie a big hug when he passed by on the sidewalk. That made him want to learn how to be a mentor to others and make a difference.
After years of giving his time as a school volunteer, coach and science dad, he served as a member of the Bremerton school board, where his favorite activity was handing out diplomas to graduating seniors. He said he was just as thrilled this past year when a brand-new kindergartner thanked him for driving the bus so they could go to school.
“I get to see the full circle, from graduates to kindergartners.”
When not behind the wheel, Lonnie enjoys playing golf and fishing. But don’t expect to see him doing much of that. Not while he has grandchildren (and school children) to raise.
Mari Duran - Help Desk
It’s unusual to see Mari Duran without a smile on her face. She enjoys people, laughs easily and looks for the good in life experiences. “I try to enjoy life,” she said, “because life is too short. You never know if this could be your last day, so enjoy every moment.”
Mari has worked for the district for eight years but has been a part of the local workforce for much longer. “I began working at an early age, and have worked hard for everything I have,” she said. “I like the accomplishment I feel when I learn new things and help others. I work hard for my family and I work hard to support my NSD family.”
Her current job as a bilingual help desk analyst allows her to assist staff, students and parents across the district by troubleshooting their tech issues. As both an employee and parent herself, she has a lot of empathy for their challenges and strives for patience and positive customer service.
“It matters to me that they have a good experience when they speak to me and that they look fondly on the tech department and the district,” she said.
During a typical day, Mari wears a lot of hats – both at her job and at home, where she is a wife and a mother. She counts her family as her most valuable asset. “Without that, you have absolutely nothing.”
She and her husband, Chilo, are parents to three daughters – ages 15, 10 and 5. All three attend Nampa School District schools. Chilo is employed and self-employed. He runs his own farm and is also a volunteer firefighter.
“Chilo is a very hard worker. Thanks to him I am who I am. He always goes the extra mile. He went through a very hard life when he was young and he has taught me to never give up.”
Rounding out the household are two dogs – a schnauzer and a shih tzu – and a brood of chickens.
For Mari, it just doesn’t get any better than that. Except when she gets the urge to do a little remodeling, like her recent kitchen makeover that transformed a tired room with maple cabinets into a modern bright retreat where she can dabble in her love of baking. A soundtrack of oldies music featuring the songs of the Beatles, Raspberries, Bee Gees, Beach Boys and Bob Marley makes it perfect.
And she’s not just a fan of classic music. She also likes her movies well-seasoned. Black-and-white favorites like “Dos tipos de cuidado” (1953) featuring the actor Pedro Infante keep her connected to her culture while also sticking to themes and dialogue that are family friendly.
Unlike many people in this “Marvel Studios” world, Mari doesn’t secretly wish for superpowers, because she already has one – she can read a person’s emotional state. “Sometimes I walk through the grocery store and I can tell there is something wrong with a person – I can see the sorrow in their eyes. I say a prayer that everything is OK. I feel a lot of that.”
Mari was born in Mexico but raised in the Nampa/Caldwell area since she was 9 years old. She loves her life in Nampa and says that if she ever decided to move away, it would have to be to somewhere similar – with a quiet, slower pace of life and not a lot of people
A Skyview High School graduate, Mari has fond memories of her high school experience, especially her favorite teacher, Ms. Patricia Stephens (now Hines). And Ms. Hines remembers her.
“Mari was a student who stood out as very humble and sweet but driven to go beyond in her schoolwork more than most students her age. She was so sweet and sincere and easy to bond with. … Her work ethic shone bright in high school, and she was a young lady who I knew was going to be an upstanding citizen of our community. I am proud to have taught this beautiful person who still is so classy and hard working today.”
Sounds like not much has changed.
Tammy Bale - District Office
Given a choice, Tammy Bale would rather be at the beach. Pretty much any beach will do.
“It’s a happy place for me because I love the ocean,” she said. “The sound of it, watching the waves. I love the power of it hitting your legs, the smell of it …”
Given that the nearest ocean is approximately 500 miles away, ducking out for a stroll through the surf is not always possible. Luckily, she also enjoys working as a secretary at the District Office, where she greets and directs visitors, answers phone calls and does whatever she can to assist patrons alongside her colleague, Gracie Buenrostro.
“I enjoy the people we get to interact with,” she said. “Even if they come in upset about something, it feels really good to work with them, calm them down and take some time to help them.” She also enjoys the flexible environment and the kindness of her coworkers. “I really love my job.”
Tammy has been a fixture at the District Office for two years, after spending about a year as a substitute in various buildings across the NSD. Previously, she worked as a parts counter person at Lincoln Hyundai Dealership in Yakima, Washington, before moving to Nampa a few years ago to be closer to her son and his family.
Family means the world to Tammy. She has been happily married to her husband, Randy, for 42 years, and the couple have three children – Nathan, Andy and Timm – and seven grandchildren, two boys and five girls.
“Randy is my best friend,” she says, recalling how they met when she was a senior in high school at a church roller skating activity. That was in 1979. In January 1980 he proposed, and the couple married that August.
Four of Tammy’s grandchildren (all girls) live here in Nampa. She sees the others as often as possible. “I’m really good at being a grandma,” she said. “I love going to volleyball, tennis, school programs, church programs, and spending weekends with them. I value the time I get to be with them.”
Sometimes outings with the grandchildren play right into her lesser-known passion for dinosaur and alien movies. And yes, if you’re wondering, she would recommend the new “Jurassic World” film – “It wasn’t the best, but it was entertaining!”
Most people also don’t know that she is a fan of big band music, along with the iconic 1940s hairstyles, dances and clothing.
While she doesn’t have a lot of regrets, she would change a few things if she could do it all over again. She’d like to travel more – her goal is to one day make a trip to Israel, but she wouldn’t say no to any of the amazing destinations the United States has to offer. Places like the Grand Canyon or Mt. Rushmore. She also wishes she had applied herself more as a young woman.
Her advice to her 16-year-old self would be to study harder in school. “I did decent in school, but I could have earned scholarships if I had applied myself and not been afraid to do more. Put yourself out there.”
In the end she wants to be known for living a true and honest life. “I want to be remembered as someone who loved others and was a good example of what I believed in.” So far, so good.
Leo Esparza - Maintenance
If you don’t already know Leo Esparza, he’s not hard to pick out in a crowd. He’s the one flashing an infectious smile and enjoying life and all it has to offer. And nothing makes Leo happier than being with his family. That’s a lot of joy, because he considers both his home and work companions to be family.
Leo works in the NSD Maintenance Department doing a little bit of everything – landscape, engine repair, work orders. It’s a job he’s held for more than 24 years and he can’t imagine a better life.
“My goal was to raise up my kids and NSD offered the best opportunity to do that,” he said. “Everyone here has taught me a tremendous amount and everyone is treated well. They have given me a lot of opportunities to learn and grow. It’s what people do for their family, and they are my family.”
In addition to his NSD colleagues, Leo’s family includes his wife of 30 years, his son, his daughter and a large extended family (he grew up as No. 11 out of 12 children). Both of his children are College of Idaho graduates and his daughter is now earning her master’s degree at NNU and hopes to become a lawyer.
Like his kids, Leo attended Nampa High School, where he graduated in 1992. A perfect day for him would include watching a football game at Bulldog Stadium or attending another community event on the iconic campus he still enjoys visiting whenever he can.
But don’t mistake him for a homebody. Leo loves to travel and has an extensive bucket list he is working to check off. He’s already visited Italy (where he hopes to return to see all the things he missed the first time), France, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Jamaica, the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas. He also enjoys an annual trip to Cancun, Mexico, with his wife, where he appreciates the resort life and the warmth of the beach.
He'd also like to travel through time – it’s the one superpower he wishes he had. A history buff, he would love to experience different eras and bygone cultures.
Like the rest of us, he does have his worries, particularly the current economy and rising cost of living that is affecting so many. “It’s hard right now. What if I wake up and don’t have a job?”
But true to his nature, if given $10,000 to spend any way he wanted, he wouldn’t spend a cent on himself. “I would give it away to help care for children or to an animal shelter,” he said. This response is likely based on his relationship with his own three dogs – a golden retriever, a Labrador and an English bulldog.
“They are all so friendly, and their love is unconditional,” he said. “They always appreciate you. They have changed my life and I’ve learned so much from them.”
“NSD Faces” is a new series to introduce you to employees of the school district. If you would like to nominate an employee for an NSD Faces profile, email their name, title and contact information to [email protected]