Principal’s Update — May 23, 2025

Posted May 23, 2025

Dear McKinley-Thatcher Community – 

As we wrap up the school year, I want to take a moment to reflect on the tremendous growth, hard work, and collaboration that defined our time together for the past 10 months. This has been a year full of learning, resilience, and meaningful progress, and I’m incredibly proud of what our students, staff, and families have accomplished together.

In particular, I want to celebrate that our students are demonstrating the highest levels of reading proficiency in my ten years as principal here. I am overjoyed to share that 79% percent of our students are reading at grade level in kindergarten through 5th grade, and that 53% of our students in these grades are reading ABOVE grade level! I am so proud of our students and our staff for this incredible achievement! 

Celebrations of Our Staff Members’ Years of Service in DPS 

A huge congratulations and THANK YOU goes out to our amazing staff members who are hitting a milestone in their years of service with DPS.  

  • Ron Joutras (PE teacher) – 35 Years! 
  • Emily Jones (4th grade teacher) – 20 years
  • Alex Torrez-Suazo (special education paraprofessional) – 15 years
  • Jenn Duff (special education teacher) – 10 years
  • Jenny Morgenthaler (art teacher) – 5 years

Staff Transitions for the 2025-2026 School Year

We are always sad to announce our staff transitions at the end of each school year. This year, the following staff members are leaving the McT community: 

  • Jen Bruner (school psychologist) is moving to Bear Valley International Middle School. 
  • Alex Clark (school counselor) is moving to San Diego.
  • Amanda Eisenson (special education teacher) is moving home to New York. 
  • Tera Heinzerling (math intervention teacher) is moving to a special education position at Asbury Elementary.
  • Lyndsey Hilbun (1st grade teacher) is moving to a position at Southmoor Elementary.
  • Emily Jones (4th grade teacher) is moving to a 3rd grade position at Slavens Elementary.
  • Sarah Kirkwood (1st grade teacher) is moving to a kindergarten position at Steele Elementary 
  • Ava Lypps (5th grade teacher) is moving to a 3rd grade position at College View Elementary.
  • Carlos Romero (kindergarten teacher) is moving to a 4th grade position at Swigert Elementary.

Though we are disappointed to lose these members of our community, we are thrilled with the new folks who are joining our team! We also have one staff member in a new role! Please extend a warm McT welcome to: 

  • Rebecca Schroeder – 1st grade Math/Science/Social Studies – Ms. Schroeder will be moving up with her current kindergarten students and will be on the 1st grade team next year. 

  • Shannon McKinney – School Psychologist – Ms. McKinney has been the school psychologist at Kunsmiller Creative Arts Academy (K-12) for the past six years, and has been in education for almost 20 years. She is very excited to join our community and share her love for art and animals with McT students, staff, and families. She has guinea pigs and a therapy dog in-training who will be joining Team McT, too!

  • Morgan Huibregtse – 5th grade Math/Science/Social Studies – Ms. Huibregtse has 9 years of teaching experience in DPS (teaching both 3rd and 5th grades). She is excited to join a tight knit community like McKinley Thatcher. 

  • Beth Fellows – 4th grade Math/Science/Social Studies – Beth Fellows is coming to McT from Ellis Elementary School and has been teaching for 8 years. This will be her 4th year teaching 4th grade! She is excited to be part of the amazing and inclusive community at McT!

  • Christie Beal – 1st grade Literacy – Ms. Beal is coming to McT after teaching for several years in Thailand and completing a teacher residency at Lincoln Elementary this spring. She just completed her Master’s in Elementary Education at MSU Denver. 

  • Grant Bearfield – Kindergarten – Mr. Bearfield is coming to McT from the International School of Denver and brings 12 years of experience teaching grades K–4. He is excited to join McT because of its strong community and collective dedication to supporting the growth of the whole child. 

We still have a few positions open, and we’ll announce those new staff members later this summer. 

New Math Curriculum 

DPS is implementing a new math curriculum, called Illustrative Mathematics, this coming school year! We have already begun preparing for this change by piloting a few units in 2nd and 3rd grade. This curriculum is well-aligned with our McT Core Principles, and supports experiential learning and individualized support for all students. It also emphasizes problem-based learning by encouraging students to engage in mathematical investigations and to make sense of concepts through real-world applications. Illustrative Mathematics prioritizes in-depth understanding of mathematical concepts rather than rote memorization, and uses diverse representations and scenarios in its materials to make mathematics more inclusive and relevant for all students. 

We are excited that we will be provided with extensive professional learning opportunities for teachers, including expert-led training and ongoing support to help implement the curriculum effectively and continue to develop our instructional practices in mathematics. To learn more, please click here. 

New Social and Emotional Learning Curriculum 

The McT team will also be implementing a new social and emotional skills curriculum in all grades (ECE – 5th) next year!  The curriculum is called Second Step, and is designed to help students grow and develop into well-rounded individuals by equipping them with the human skills they need to navigate their lives successfully. This curriculum will help all of our students to be confident, have positive connections with others, develop a growth mindset, and have the skills they need for learning and for life. This is one of the leading research-based social and emotional skills curricula for students at the elementary level. To learn more, please click here.

New Kindergarten Instructional Model 

Beginning in the 2025-2026 school year, our kindergarten classrooms will be returning to a traditional instructional model where students will have one teacher for all content areas (as opposed to the platooning model that we are currently using in kindergarten). We believe this change will support our kindergarten students in many ways. This model will be less of a transition from ECE or preschool, where most students have one teacher all year, and will also support stronger relationships and deeper connections between staff and students, which will help to eliminate academic gaps before they begin.

In 1st through 5th grade, we will continue to use the “platooning” instructional model (also called content specialization), where our teachers specialize in teaching either literacy or math, science, and social studies. 

Mark Your Calendars for the Upcoming Important Dates

  • Wednesday, June 4 – McT Main Office closes
  • Tuesday, August 5 – McT Main Office reopens
  • Tuesday, August 5 to Sunday, August 10 School Registration (online ONLY): complete registration paperwork, pay school fees, and receive important school year information.
  • Thursday, August 14, 4:00 PM – 5:30 PM Open House: join us to meet your teachers and see our classrooms, building, and playground.
  • Monday, August 18K-5th Grade: FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL & Welcome Celebration: our first day of school for kindergarten through 5th grade students is Monday, August 18. Join us on our playground at 7:15 AM for our Welcome Celebration! (There is no school for ECE on this day.)
  • Tuesday, August 19 ECE ONLY: First Day of School: our first day of school for ECE students is Tuesday, August 19. This is a half-day for ECE students with dismissal at 11:30 AM
  • Wednesday, August 20ECE ONLY: half-day with dismissal at 11:30 AM 

Thank you, McKinley-Thatcher families, for another great year! I hope you have a safe, healthy, and joyful summer.  We can’t wait to see you again in August!  

All the best,

Ms. Geerdes