Posted May 24, 2018
Dear Asbury Community,
It is hard to believe that summer is almost here. It is always a bittersweet transition for educators. We are eager to enjoy some much needed R&R, but also miss the joy of working alongside your students. It has been an incredible year of learning for us at Asbury with a change in leadership, many new faces, both in the building and in the community, new curriculums to learn and the amazing projects and performances our students have shared with us. Thank you all for a successful and supportive year.
I would also like to take this opportunity to share some changes to come in the 2018 – 2019 school year with our staff.
Moving Onward & Upward:
Bridget Stephenson– Bridget has been with Asbury for several years and has shared her love of running, band and a passion for education with us all. Next year Bridget will be teaching 3rd grade at Force Elementary. We wish her the best in her new adventure.
Kari Anaya– Kari has been a pillar in our MI program for over 15 years. She has accepted a position in the district as an Occupational/Physical Therapist for next year. We are so happy for her!
Lisa Gelwick– Lisa has spent the past year as our 3rd grade math teacher and Senior Team Lead. We are thankful for her support and instructional expertise. She has accepted a 4th grade position in a Cherry Creek school- just a little closer to home!
Liz Sutherland– Liz started out as a student teacher with Kathryn Sullivan and then transitioned into the ESL position mid year. Liz is hoping to secure a position in special education within DPS for next year. We know she will be successful wherever she goes.
Denise Campbell– Due to district funding, we are losing our favorite (and only) part time custodial staff member, Denise. We will miss her dearly!
Changes Within:
Becky Tanner– Becky Tanner will move out of the 3rd grade math position and into a half-time resource teacher for our students who have English as a second language (ESL).
Holly Jackson– Holly will move out of the Kindergarten classroom and in to a half-time ESL and half-time Senior Team Lead (STL) position. The STL position supports teachers throughout the building with coaching and evaluation, professional development and data analysis.
Nicki Fagan– Nicki will be moving into our Kindergarten position for next year.
Andrew Kovar– Andrew will continue to support Asbury as a special education paraprofessional.
Coming to Asbury:
Nik Casey– Nik is excited to join the Asbury team! For the past four years, she coached and supported teachers and teacher leaders in schools throughout DPS. She moved to Colorado in 2009, teaching Humanities for five years. Before then, she taught for four years on the Texas-Mexico border and started a charter school with four other colleagues. She is passionate about equity and strongly believes that mountains will move in a collaborative, collective community. When she is not teaching, learning, and coaching, she loves to workout, travel, read, and learn/explore. Currently, she teaches fitness classes at Endorphin and loves spending her summers in Greece. So far, she has explored 40 Greek Isles and kayaked over 300 miles the past three summers. One of her favorite communities in Greece is on the island of Anafi where she spent several weeks living with a Greek family. She is hoping to explore all the Greek Isles by the time she retires!
Margo Mertaugh– Currently Margo is an Elementary Literacy Coordinator for Denver Public Schools. During her tenure for DPS, Margo created innovative professional development that significantly impacted teacher effectiveness and student growth in literacy. She is also an Adjunct Graduate Instructor at the University of Colorado, Denver campus. Before this role, Margo served as a Literacy Coach, Reading Recovery instructor, Literacy Interventionist, Denver Teacher Residency trainer/site coordinator, and has taught grades K-7th. The 2018-19 school year will be Margo’s 29th year as an educator. Margo holds two masters degrees in Early Childhood Education and Elementary Literacy. Her State of Colorado endorsements include Literacy Teacher and Early Childhood Education. In her spare time, Margo finds great satisfaction spending time outdoors, cooking, and traveling with her husband and black lab.
Ellen Moyer– Ellen is so excited to join the Asbury community! She grew up in Reading, PA and earned her bachelor’s degree from Colorado State University. After moving around a bit, she settled back in the Denver area and got her teaching license from University of Colorado Denver. She has been teaching for 7 years in the Denver area and has taught both 2nd and 3rd grade. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her kids, Margaret (14) and JJ (12), as well as reading, cooking, spending time in the mountains (hiking, camping, skiing), and going to concerts. She look forward to getting to know everyone at Asbury!
Sara Hogan- Sara is a Denver native. She is currently working on an undergrad degree in psychology at Regis University with hopes of being a child psychologist. She has worked in education off and on since graduating from high school. She loves working with kids and is looking forward to being in a classroom again. She loves baseball, trivia and music. She has a dog named Luna Lovegood; she’s a wild but lovable mutt! She is looking forward to getting to know everyone at Asbury and can’t wait to be a part of such a cool community!
It is going to be a wonderful 2018-2019 school year. We look forward to seeing you all in August. Have a safe summer!
Best,
Alicia FaJohn