Kathy Morrison - Director of Elementary Learning Support

Job Description: Kathy provides support to our elementary principals and staff in curriculum development, professional staff development and school improvement planning. She is also in charge of Title I, the Learning Assistance Programs, English Language Learners Program, and nomination and selection of students for Gifted Education.

Location: Central Office Building

Typical Day: Kathy arrives at 8:00 am and begins her day by checking her email and calendar. She meets with principals, teachers and administrators on a daily basis. Recently, she has been working with teachers and principals in support of the new math curriculum implementation. Most days she goes home after 5:00 pm.

Best part of the job: “I love being around elementary students and staff. This is where I began my career as a music teacher before I became a principal and administrator.”

Something people may not know: Kathy served as the district’s first and only associate principal from 1998-2000 during the years that elementary school enrollment was over 600 students. She was the Principal of Island Park Elementary School for eight years and Associate Superintendent for two years.

Years worked in the district: 18 years. “I particularly enjoy living and working in the same community, watching students grow up and developing many wonderful relationships.”

Outside interests: Kathy loves music and is an accomplished pianist. She and her husband Frank have raised four very successful children who all spent their K-12 years in the Mercer Island School District. Kathy particularly enjoys reading, traveling, going on long walks and time with family and friends.

Bunnie Lehan – Bus Driver

Job Description: Bunnie transports elementary, middle and high school students from their homes along East Mercer Way to school. “I actually enjoy driving East Mercer Way, especially in the fall and spring. I even like it when something goes wrong and I have a new challenge like backing the bus around a fallen tree.”

Location: Maintenance, Operations and Transportation Building

Typical Day: Bunnie arrives at 6:30 am and gets ready for her morning run driving high school, middle and elementary school students. She drives kindergarten students at mid-day and elementary students in the afternoon. Bunnie drives 175-200 students every day. She usually goes home at 4:30 pm.

Best part of the job: “I love interacting with kids. They are a lot of fun and their lives are so happy and carefree. I try to be there when they need someone to talk to. Sometimes I feel like a mother hen! This year I have a few Japanese students who are learning to speak English. They were so scared when they first got on the bus. I put them in the second seat and I have even learned a few words of Japanese. I am now driving the children of my first 'children' on Mercer Island. I have had the privilege of watching them grow up and hope that I have given them something positive to take away from their childhood.”

Something people may not know: Bunnie has seven grandchildren and is a great-grandmother to two girls ages one and three.
Years worked in the district: 27 years and “I wouldn’t do anything else!”

Outside interests: Bunnie enjoys knitting, crocheting, 'dabbling' in crafts and reading both fiction and non-fiction. She also loves being outside.

Danae Burger – 7th Grade Language Arts and Social Studies Teacher

Job Description: Danae teaches language arts and social studies to 80 7th grade students at Islander Middle School. Her students learn Washington State history and read novels such as “The Outsiders,” “Ghost Canoe,” and “Farewell to Manzanar.” Since 7th grade is the first year students are tested on the WASL writing exam, they practice persuasive writing and write multiple expository essays. Students are engaged in project-based learning with projects such as “Rock Around Washington” and the year-end Culture Project.

Location: Islander Middle School

Typical Day: Danae arrives at 7:00 am and begins her day by standing in line at the copy machine with all of the other “regulars” who have last-minute projects to complete. Her first class begins with “the sleepy kids” for first period. This year, though, they’re not sleepy! She can often be found during prep period grading papers on her yoga mat. Danae finishes her day with the afternoon block.

Best part of the job: Working with middle school students. “Many of them have been together since kindergarten, so they know each other really well. They are very funny – I have one student who sings my instructions back to me! On a good day, I walk out of here thinking 'I can’t believe I get paid for this.' On bad days, when I teach sloppily, I am hard on myself. But we are so well supported at IMS. I am recognized for my strengths and encouraged to be a leader in areas I excel in. In my third year of teaching, I am finally learning how to teach smarter.”

Something people may not know: “I am learning to cook. Someday I would like to learn the art of flower arranging.”

Years worked in the district: Three years. Danae came to Mercer Island after her first year of teaching in the Northshore school district.

Outside interests: Danae enjoys travel, snow skiing and reading, even though she is a slow reader. She says, “I understand why it’s difficult for some kids to get through 21 books a year!” She visits Minnesota, her home state, whenever she can. Danae and her husband Jeremy live in an apartment in downtown Mercer Island. “We love it,” she says. “Everything we need is right here.”

Alex Lin-Meyer – 4th grade teacher, Lakeridge Elementary

Job Description: Alex teaches math, science, social studies, reading and writing to 24 4th graders every day. He works on inspiring kids to have confidence in their ability to learn and get along with others. “Fourth graders are still at an age when you can help them change their perceptions about themselves. It’s very cool to be a part of that.”

Typical Day: Alex arrives at 8 am (after a 7:45 am Starbucks stop). He stays until 5 pm, sometimes 7 pm. “It takes a lot of planning to make teaching seem effortless.” Alex and his students do a lot of fun things like growing plants for science lessons, participating in student-run class meetings, reading amazing books, and showcasing their math talents. They also go on field trips to enhance learning in the classroom.

Best part of the job: “Making a difference in the lives of my students. I never dread coming to work on Mondays!

Something people may not know: This is Alex’s 4th year of teaching. So far he has taught 6th, 1st, 2nd and 4th grade. Before becoming a teacher, Alex worked as an aerospace engineer and a web developer. “I am blessed to be at Lakeridge. It is such a positive atmosphere – everyone is focused on kids and all of the teachers help each other. It’s a wonderful place to be.”

Outside interests: Alex and his wife Monica live in Ballard with their 2 cats. Alex says, “I couldn’t be doing this job without the support of my wife. She’s really a major reason I’m here.” One of Alex’s favorite activities is scuba diving, especially with sharks. “They remind me that I really am a small fish in a very big pond!”

Peggy Chapman – Administrative Assistant to the Principal

Job Description: Peggy keeps track of her principal’s (Fred Rundle) calendar, arranges meetings, prepares agendas, helps in the Health Room, interfaces with parents and deals with children every day. “Sometimes I just listen to them. They have a lot on their minds and need to tell someone right away. I am often the first person they see so they tell me.”

Note: While conducting this interview over a period of 15 minutes, at least 3 children had something to say to Peggy!

Typical Day: Peggy arrives at 7:40 am (“I am supposed to be here at 7:30 am, but I am not a morning person so I make it up at the end of the day.”) Before the children arrive at 9 am, Peggy checks her substitute teacher list, does the weekly bulletin on Mondays and issues keys to the subs. Then, she does attendance, and checks in on kids who don’t show up to make sure they are safe. In between she does everything in her job description.

Best part of the job: Everything. “I love my job! Every day goes by so fast I forget I am working.”

Something people may not know: “I am not as organized at home as I am at work.” And – Peggy makes it her job to know every child in the school.

Years worked in the district: 35 years. Peggy started as a volunteer at Mercer Crest Elementary and has worked for 6 different principals.

Outside interests: Peggy is an avid reader, especially mysteries. “I plan to be a sleazy detective in my next life!” She also enjoys golf. “I have played for 20 years and still haven’t gotten any better, but I like it anyway.”

Judy Burnstin – Career & Technology Education Teacher (CTE)

Job Description: Judy teaches beginning and Advanced Video, Photoshop and Web/Multimedia at Mercer Island High School

Location: Room 301 at Mercer Island High School

Typical Day: Judy starts her day at 7:30 am and spends an hour or so in her office preparing for classes. On non-block days, she teaches all of her classes, beginning with Web Multimedia, Advanced Video and Photoshop before lunch, then 2 beginning video classes in the afternoon.

Best part of the job: “I love working with kids, and since my classes are electives, the students usually want to be here. I set the parameters for the assignments and leave the content up to the students. They are very creative and come up with new and different ideas all of the time. For example, one Photoshop assignment is to design a book cover and have a plot summary. Every single one is different! These are currently on display at the high school library.

Something people may not know: Joel McHale of “Almost Live” and “Community”, and Ethan Sandler, an actor in “Crossing Jordan” were students in Judy’s classes.

Years worked in the district: 21 years

Outside interests: Judy enjoys movies (one of her favorites is “The Sting” with Paul Newman and Robert Redford) and always goes to the Northwest Film Festival. She also enjoys travel and politics. Last summer she traveled with her family on a cruise through Alaska’s Inside Passage. Judy spends a lot time with her own continuing education to stay current in the rapidly changing field of digital media education. “We used to call CTE “Voc Tech”. It has changed a lot over the years. It is still ‘hands-on’, but is very focused on up-dating course content so that student skills match industry standards. In doing so, there is also a more concerted effort to emphasize and incorporate core areas such as writing, math and science into our curriculum.” Courses are career focused by including a lot of skills that can be used by all students.

Melissa Ralph: 7th grade Math teacher

Job Description: Melissa teaches 7th grade Pre-Algebra to 135 students, five periods a day. Her students are learning the foundations of Algebra and Geometry in classes of 21 – 29 students.

Location: Islander Middle School

Typical Day: Melissa usually arrives at 7:30 am to plan her day before the students arrive. She teaches 1st and 2nd period, has 3rd off, then teaches 4th, 5th and 6th periods. She often spends time planning lessons on the ‘Smart Board.” Melissa really appreciates having this powerful tool for learning. “It is an interactive screen connected to my computer and a document camera. We have a lot of fun sharing our thinking and discovering new ways to solve problems. I can save all of the students’ work on my computer.”

Best part of the job: “Building relationships with middle school students. This is a difficult time in their lives – they have a lot going on besides school. I find myself being both a teacher and a mentor to them. It is so much fun to see them get excited about math.”

Years worked in the district: 17 years

Something people may not know: Melissa has taught 2nd, 3rd , 4th grade and Special Ed at Island Park. She also taught PE at Lakeridge. Last year she was named MISD’s Teacher of the Year.

Outside interests: Melissa and her husband Mike live on Mercer Island and enjoy spending time with their children, Austin, age 13, a student at IMS (this week, he has changed his name to Houston!) and Lauren, a 4th grader at Lakeridge. Melissa trains for Triathlons and loves to read in the summer. She tries to read all of the Newberry Award winners and enjoys Jodi Picoult novels and The Twilight Series.