Ronan School District welcomes new teachers
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Jami Lynch is the new registered nurse for the Ronan School District. Originally from Helena, she moved outside of Ronan 20 years ago. Before accepting her position for the school district, she was employed with the Lake County Health Department where she served as the Public Health Nurse for 17 years.
Lynch attended Carroll College and earned her Bachelors degree in Nursing.
She is married to Chris Lynch and has four children. Lauryn graduated from Ronan High School in 2006 and is attending Western Montana University. She is pursuing a secondary education degree and also recently signed as Assistant Coach for the Women’s Basketball Program at Western. Taylor graduated from Ronan High School in 2011 and is attending the Aveda Institute in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Ashleigh is currently a junior at Ronan High School and Landon is in the 4th grade at K. William Harvey Elementary.
In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family.
“I love the outdoors and take in every opportunity to spend time at Flathead Lake with them in the summer months. I am also a sports enthusiast. I especially enjoy supporting our high school athletic programs and attending Univeristy of Montana Griz football games in the fall.”
“I am very excited at the opportunity to work with the students and staff throughout the school district. With a strong background in Public Health I feel that we need to look at the school system as a community and work towards improving the health of all. Healthy children learn better and as a school nurse I will strive to ensure the health and educational success of all children,” she said.
K. William Harvey Elementary
Jolyne O’Brien is the new humanities first through fifth grade teacher and the RTI teacher for second through fifth grade as the Dean of Students and Reading Specialist. O’Brien is originally from Spokane, Wash, but has taught in both Las Vegas, NV and Kalispell before moving to Ronan.
O’Brien earned her degree at Eastern Washington University. She married in July and her husband is in law school at the University of Montana.
She enjoys traveling, sports, hiking, camping, baking, office supplies and plans to train for a triathlon.
“My teaching philosophy is ALL students can learn,” O’Brien said. “My goal is to give students an opportunity to succeed through inquiry-based learning, guide each child in learning how to make their own decisions, and watch them apply academic knowledge to their world.”
“My favorite part of teaching is watching students faces light up when they have learned something new,” O’Brien added.
Alina Graves is the new grant-funded pre-school teacher at K. William Harvey School. Born and raised in Ronan, Graves has lived in the area her entire life except for four years lived in Kalispell. Her teaching experience includes working as a second grade teacher at East Evergreen Elementary in Kalispell for two years and then as a para-professional at K. William Harvey last year. Graves graduated from Ronan High School, and then headed to Salish Kootenai College, where she earned her teaching degree.
She is married to Warren Graves, and has two children; son, Pathe, who is 14, and daughter Lily who is seven.
In her free time she enjoys writing, reading, hiking, knitting, walking her dogs and learning.
“As a teacher, your ultimate goal is to create in your students a desire to be lifelong learners,” Graves said. “Therefore your job is to show them what that looks like every day by being excited and enthusiastic about learning. To be a successful educator, you must be a part of the community in which you teach and appreciate and respect the diversity within that community.”
According to Graves, she loves getting to know the children and their families.
“I feel honored to have the opportunity to play a role in their lives,” Graves said.
Ronan Middle School
Don Jenkins is the new grant-funded counselor for kindergarten through twelfth grade through Ronan Middle School. Born and raised in Idaho, but never wants to leave Montana. He earned his B.A. in psychology and masters in counseling at Idaho State University.
For the past two years, Jenkins served as the K-12 counselor in Lincoln, Montana.
Jenkins has been married for nine years, and has three teenagers. In his spare time he enjoys reading, movies, grilling, and computer games.
“I use positive psychology in my counseling which includes looking at strengths and focusing on solutions rather than problems,” Jenkins said.
“I love helping young folks to have a positive experience in school and a positive outlook on their futures. My goal is to help them navigate successfully through struggles and difficulties that many young people have in life,” he added.
Jim Blow is the new graphics arts teacher for grades five through eight at Ronan Middle School.
“I'll be developing and teaching two new middle school class offerings that will focus on photographic art and a multimedia class.” Blow said.
Blow has lived in the Ronan area since he retired from the U.S. Navy in 1994. Since that time he has owned his own photography studio and worked as a newspaper journalist and photojournalist, most recently as the editor and co-owner of the Valley Journal. In July 2010, Blow was the editor of the West Yellowstone News, until accepting the teaching position in Ronan.
This will be Blow’s first teaching position in public schools. He previously taught an electronic/computer system maintenance course for three years during his Navy career, where he was a certified Master Training Specialist. He has also taught several photography workshops geared toward high school journalism students and toward adults.
Throughout his education, Blow attended four colleges, with emphasis in general education and computer system areas.
His wife Deni, is a para-educator at K. William Harvey Elementary. Blow has one son, Eric. He and his wife, Val, have three young boys and reside in Herndon, Virginia.
In his free time, Blow enjoys shooting photography, riding his horses, visiting grandchildren, and playing golf. He is also a member of the Ronan Volunteer Fire Department, and has served on the Ronan School Board in the past.
Blow’s teaching philosophy is that people have an unlimited capacity to learn and can do anything they wish if they’re willing to put in the effort.
Seeing people discover hidden abilities or improve their skills is an especially rewarding moment for me.
“Photography is a universal form of art that literally everyone I've met has practiced at some level and is a skill that I believe everyone can develop and grow, if they apply themselves,” Blow said. “Photography is not just a lifelong hobby; it's also an important form of communication. Photography is a particularly effective method of communication that I believe is becoming increasingly prominent in relating ideas and telling stories in today's complex media offerings and work environments.”
Bill Becker is the new math teacher at Ronan Middle School. No additional information was available at press time.
Ronan High School
Reese McAlpin is the new welding, agriculture science, and greenhouse instructor at Ronan High School where he will also work with Future Farmers of America and Vocational-Agriculture. This is his first teaching position.
McAlpin grew up in Arlee where he went to Arlee Elementary and then moved to Kalispell when he was in seventh grade to attend Flathead High School. His father grew up in Polson and has family around the valley. He received his degree from Montana State University.
In his free-time, McAlpin enjoys hunting, fishing, shooting and being outdoors in general.
“Working with students is always fun, I also love to get dirty and play with hot things in the metals lab,” he said.
Gabriel Johnson is the new math and science teacher at Ronan High School. No additional information was available at press time.
