Meet Our Teachers at Mountain Range High School

By Adali V. and Aubery B.

At Mountain Range High School, our teachers are the heart of our educational

community. They bring passion, experience, and dedication to their

classrooms, shaping the future of students everyday. Recently, we had the

opportunity to interview several fantastic teachers to gain insight into their journeys, philosophies, and experiences. Here’s what they had to share.

Hannah Kaiser, 9th & 11th Grade English Teacher

Mrs. Kaiser, MRHS’ enthusiastic English teacher, has been teaching for 2 years. “I wanted to do something that could make a positive impact on the world and work with people, and education

was the perfect opportunity to do that.” she shares. Her passion for engaging young minds is

evident in her interactive lessons that spark curiosity.

“My teaching philosophy is rounded in the goal of bringing joy and enthusiasm to learning,” she explains, “I think education is best when students are excited about what we’re doing, so I try my best to bring enthusiasm and excitement to what I do.”

In her lessons, Mrs. Kaiser frequently uses discussions. “A typical day in my classroom involves starting off the day with a community question of the day, go over our goals, hop into a warmup, typically reading, writing, or speaking oriented,” she says. “And then we move into a whole class lesson talking about either the material we’re reading, what writing that we’re working on, then students move into either group discourse, individual or collaborative work.”

Her biggest challenge? “Balancing everything that is required of teachers while also knowing

that we ask a lot from students,” she admits. “And so finding ways to challenge students while

also finding balance within knowing you all have a lot on your plate.”

For the upcoming school year, Mrs. Kaiser aims to “continue to refine my craft,” she states. “And work in a bit more real world application.”

Kellee Gray, 9th Grade Heath & P.E. Teacher

Next, MRHS’ passionate Health and P.E. teacher, who has been teaching for 27 years, explained how she’s always wanted to be a teacher. “I’ve always wanted to be someone who

helps others and teaches them.”

Her lessons are lively and connect physical health to students’ everyday lifestyles. Her teaching philosophy emphasizes students developing skills that could help them be successful in life. “In Health and P.E., it’s mainly about thinking about what skills, decision making, communication, or advocating for themselves would help students lead a healthy life.”

Mrs. Gray approaches lesson planning by preparing and looking at what the lesson is to try to

make the lessons something that students can engage in and apply to their own lives. “A typical day in my classroom includes warm up questions, direct teaching, and hands-on learning either individually or in groups,” she describes.

She believes that the most important quality in a teacher is commitment, so that students can

rely on their teachers and make sure students know they can help if needed. Mrs. Gray has

faced the challenge of how education has changed, with most of it now being technology, but

has overcome this by “trying to find that balance between using technology to help and then

also trying to have kids not be on screens 24/7.”

One memorable success story for her was when students back at the middle school she taught at did a health fair. “Kids researched their own topic that they wanted to around health and then they looked for outside resources. They then had those resources come in and kids were able to move around and go to the different resources and learn more about it.”

Clayton Nimz, 9th Grade Science Teacher

Mr. Nimz, our science teacher, has been teaching for 6 years. He was drawn to teaching after

wanting to be an athletic director since high school. “I went back to school and got my masters, started teaching middle school, then started teaching high school.”

In his classroom, Mr. Nimz encourages student participation. “When students walk in, I start off

with a meme or a comic, we talk through what we’re gonna do that day, the agenda, our learning intentions, our success criteria, then we jump into whatever that might be for a warmup, and then we go through class content material.”

Mr. Nimz has faced challenges such as teaching middle school. “One time I had a kid light a

match and throw it in my drawer. I overcame that by moving to high school,” he shares. Other

challenges he mentioned were the change in the phone policy, covid lockdowns, and student

distractions.

The most rewarding aspect of his job is “whenever those kids have that lightbulb moment, that feels really good.” For the upcoming school year, Mr. Nimz plans to finish his administrative licensing program.

Jonathan Behr, 9th & 12th Grade English Teacher

Lastly, Mr Behr, who has only been teaching English for 2 years, admitted that he felt like he

"needed a set schedule in my life and being told where to be and at what time by the school

would be nice.” He also mentioned doing yearbook last year at his previous school.

His role is vital in creating a supportive school environment. “I’m still experimenting with a lot of it,” he admits. “I think it’s really important to tap into what students are interested in, but that’s also something that takes a really long time to prepare.”

Mr. Behr likes to start his class by reading or writing something. “I try to do as much discussion

as possible, while also leaving as much work time where I can work with students one on one.” He believes that student participation is “the ability to tap into what students are interested in.”

In his opinion, the most important quality in a teacher is flexibility. “Just being able to roll with the punches is very important.”

One of his challenges has been having to have his first year of teaching during COVID, “and

that was super challenging just jumping into the profession while everything's kind of wacky.” He mentioned overcoming that was a challenge in itself. “I think students are also overcoming

having to do school online.”

The teachers at Mountain Range School do much more than impart knowledge; they inspire,

support, and connect with their students. From engaging lessons in science and history to

fostering creativity and prioritizing mental well being, our educators shape the future of their

students while making a lasting impact on their lives.

As the upcoming school year approaches, these dedicated professionals continue to refine their practices, and prove their commitment to education. These teachers create spaces where students can grow, discover, and thrive. Their commitment and passion show that education is about unlocking potential and fostering growth in every student.