Renee Barrett
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 83214
Student Support Services
English Learner
English Learner
The English Learner (EL) program supports multilingual learners in acquiring the English they need in order to succeed in the classroom and beyond, in accordance with the State of Minnesota Guidelines and English Language Proficiency Standards. Incoming students are tested for English proficiency when entering District 196 schools, as well as periodically throughout the school year to determine progress and eligibility for continued instruction.
In EL settings, English learners are part of an English language learning experience where students engage in content study and English learning simultaneously. Students are grouped by proficiency level at the elementary through high school level and may or may not share the same native language.
Rachel Kieltyka
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 84323
Family Support Staff
Schools are an ideal place for students to receive the social, emotional, and behavioral support that are needed to adaptively cope with challenges and engage with learning.
Our mental health and wellness support team works in collaboration with families, teachers, school administrators, and other professionals to create safe, healthy, and supportive learning environments that strengthen connections between home, school, and the community. Through our work, we support diverse learners, promote positive behavior and mental health, improve academic achievement, and work to maintain a safe and positive school culture. In essence, we support students’ ability to learn and teachers’ ability to teach.
Please reach out to connect with us. You can also find mental health and wellness resources by visiting our website.
Jessica Anderson
Psychologist
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82613
Kristina Wolfe
Social Worker
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82621
Nimo Gedi
Somali Family Advocate
Gifted and Talented
Gifted and talented children are those students with outstanding abilities and capable of higher performance when compared to others of similar age, experience and environment. They have significantly different educational needs from their peers and require educational differentiation as a regular part of their school day to ensure they reach their full potential. District 196 uses multiple criteria to help identify gifted and talented children.
Madeleine Hunt
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82620
Reading Recovery
Reading Recovery
Reading Recovery is a program that helps first-grade students learn to read at the average level of their classmates within twenty weeks.
Students are selected on the basis of assessments given by classroom teachers the summer preceding first grade. These students receive daily 30-minute individual tutoring from a teacher specially trained in Reading Recovery techniques.
Sara Ligtenberg
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82755
Special Education
Joy McGowan
Resource Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 84243
Amy Austin
Resource Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 83811
Colleen Rozema
Small Group Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82681
Kathy Clennon
Small Group Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82629
Lee Richardson
Speech Language
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82626
Kelly Golas
Speech Language
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82646
Betsy Galles
Large Group Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 84487
Emily Dietrich
Large Group Teacher
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82632
Kallie Petricka
Occupational Therapy
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82625
Gayle Mueller
DAPE
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 83210
Jessica Anderson
School Psychologist
Voicemail: (651) 683-6969
Ext. 82613