I graduated from Roosevelt High School here in Des Moines in 2014. I attended DMACC for one year before I transferred to the University of Iowa to pursue my degree in elementary education. I graduated from The University of Iowa in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education. I started my career at Des Moines Public Schools subbing for the remainder of the 2019-20 school year before joining the McKinley family in April of 2020.

I live in West Des Moines with my dog Sunny. I enjoy coaching softball, watching the Green Bay Packers, binge watching all my favorite shows and playing with my pup.

In 1998 I graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Art History from Northern Arizona University. I received a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education in 2004 also from Northern Arizona University. In 2022 I graduated with a Master’s Degree in Culturally Responsive Leadership and an English Language Learner endorsement. I have taught numerous grades, but my heart is in first grade and I have been a first grade teacher the longest. I love the curiosity, fun, and hard work that happens with students in this grade level.

I am originally from Arizona and moved to Des Moines with my husband Tim who is from Iowa. I have two children, Sophia and Charlie and a deaf dog named Scruffy. I love to read, watch movies, hike, travel ,bake and crochet.

I am very fortunate to be teaching orchestra at several elementary schools in Des Moines. I have been teaching since 1990 and in Des Moines Schools since 2000. I have had a diverse career of teaching band, choir and orchestra at levels ranging from fourth through twelfth grade.

In 2016, I obtained my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of Iowa along with a K-8 Reading Endorsement and minor in Social Work/Cultural Proficiency. In 2022, I received my master’s degree from Drake University in Culturally Responsive Leadership and Instruction through a partnership with DMPS. In 2023, I will receive my second master’s degree from Drake University in Educational Leadership. I enjoy being a lifelong learner and hope to continue my educational leadership journey in the future.

I live here in Des Moines with my husband, Ben, and our mini Goldendoodle, Mia. We enjoy traveling all over the world, eating and cooking delicious food, and spending time outdoors with friends. Outside of school, I enjoy making candles. thrifting, and decorating homes.

I graduated from Hoover High School, right here in DMPS. I received my BA in Elementary Education from the University of Northern Iowa and my master’s degree from Viterbo University. My first teaching job was at Lovejoy Elementary. This is my 20th year of teaching, all of which have been with DMPS. I have taught 4th and 5th grades and been an instructional coach. I serve McKinley as an instructional coach, working with students and teachers. I am happy to be a McKinley Eagle!

I love spending time with my family and friends. My husband and I have 4 children who keep us busy with all their activities. We love sports, especially basketball and baseball. We enjoy being outdoors and traveling.

I graduated from Dowling Catholic High School in 2014 and Loras College in 2018. I have been at McKinley since 2018.

I am newly married to my husband and we have 3 dogs! My interests include: walking my dogs, podcasts, volunteering, traveling, exercising, eating yummy food with my friends and family, reading, flowers, animals, feelings, and art!

I graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 2013 with a BA in Elementary Education and a math minor. I began my teaching career in DMPS at Garton Elementary in 2014 and taught there for 6 years. In 2021 I earned my Masters degree from Drake University. I was also hired as the Behavior Interventionist and Intern AP at McKinley in 2021!

I just recently moved to West Des Moines with my wife Emily and son Louie. We love to spend time with family, friends, and our dog Lucy. I enjoy playing golf, traveling, board games, and being outside.

I received my Masters of Social Work from the University of Iowa and my License to practice Social Work from the State in 2020. I began my career with DMPS as an intern for the Community Schools program at North High School in 2018. I then worked for the Metro Kids program in 2019 and 2020. I began working at McKinley as a Community Schools Coordinator in August of 2021.

I live with my husband, Noah and our two dogs, Walter and Mia. I enjoy spending time with family, cooking, and seeing live music.

I am honored to be the principal of McKinley Elementary since 2018. McKinley is a place where strong connections are made between home, school, and our community. I am committed to fostering an environment here at McKinley, where all children feel safe and have access to high quality instruction, so they can cultivate positive change for our school and community.

I graduated from Upper Iowa University with my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 2004 and from the University of Northern Iowa with a master’s degree in educational urban leadership/principalship in 2013. I began my career with the Des Moines Public Schools in 2005 and have served in different roles during my career: substitute, classroom teacher, interventionist, instructional coach, and Dean of Students. I have been fortunate to serve students, families, and staff at six different elementary schools across our district. These experiences have shaped me as an educator and challenge me to grow and evolve to best serve our school community.

My husband and I have two daughters. Our oldest daughter is an intensive care nurse at the University of Iowa Hospital in Iowa City and our youngest daughter is in high school. When I am not at work I enjoy reading, traveling, and spending time with my family and friends.

I graduated from the University of Northern Iowa in 2006. After college, I was a 911 Dispatcher for 10 years before leaving to study Spanish Education and TESOL at Colorado State University. I have taught ESL classes for the last 5 years, primarily to international students. I started my career with DMPS as a substitute teacher, serving as a long-term sub with McKinley during the 2021-22 school year. I loved it so much I decided to come back full time in the library!

I live in Des Moines with my husband, daughter and our many pets. I enjoy reading, playing games, traveling, fishing and going on bike rides and hikes with my family!

I graduated from the University of Northern Iowa with a Master in School Counseling. I started my career as a School Counselor in 2014 with Des Moines Public Schools.

I love being outside in nature especially near water.

I am a graduate of Carlisle High School, Morningside University in Sioux City, Iowa and I am currently pursuing a masters degree in administration through Drake University.

I enjoy traveling, teaching students at school and dance as well as spending time with my husband and dog.

I graduated high school in Sioux City, Iowa then attended University of Iowa (Go Hawks!) for my undergrad and graduated winter of 2013. I was a substitute teacher in Iowa City for a semester before moving to Des Moines in 2014. I was hired at McKinley Elementary and have been teaching here ever since! I received my masters at Drake University in 2019. I love being a McKinley Eagle!

I live in Des Moines and love it. I love to travel, hike, swim, read and go to concerts in my free time. I enjoy spending time with my nieces and nephews, boyfriends, and friends. I like exploring new events going on in Des Moines and trying new food.

I graduated from Southeast Polk High School in 1995. I received my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Grand View College in 1999. I graduated from the Buena Vista University with a master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction along with an English as a Second Language endorsement in 2016. I started my career at Des Moines Public Schools in 1999 as a Special Education Teacher at McKinley Elementary. After 15 years as a Special Education Teacher I moved to teaching 5th grade in 2014 and since then have taught 3rd grade, 4th grade, and am currently teaching 5th grade.

I live in Altoona with my husband, Mike, and our two kids, Madelyn and Samuel. I enjoy reading, creating things with my Cricut, swimming, and spending time with my family.

I am a proud product of Des Moines Public Schools. I attended Woodlawn, Meredith and Hoover. I then earned my Bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University. Harding Middle School was my first home, as a teacher, for ten years. Then I taught Husky Pups for twelve years at Samuelson Elementary School. In 2017 I earned my Master’s Degree from Drake University. Starting in August of 2022, I was excited to continue my teaching adventures at McKinley Elementary.

My husband, Clint, and I have three “children”, Luke and Lilyana with two legs each and Pongo, with four. When I grow up, I would love to be a photographer for National Geographic or a novelist. Until then, I absolutely love working to make a difference in my students’ lives. In addition to teaching, writing, and photography, I love to travel, play outside, watch movies, listen to music, color, clean, and spend time with my family.

I graduated from Lincoln High School -Go Rails- Southside Pride. I also attended Grandview college.

I live in Des Moines with my husband and my two youngest children. I also have three adult children. I have 11 grandchildren. I love going to concerts and listening to music. My favorite thing to do is spend time with my family.

I have a master’s degree in education and this will be my 15th year teaching.

I am a mother of 3 grown children. In my free time, I like to read, visit my children, and go on motorcycle rides.

I graduated from the University of Iowa in 1994. I briefly taught art in Minnesota then left the profession for many years. After having kids and coaching and teaching them in a variety of activities, I got the itch to return to teaching and went back to get my Master’s Degree in Special Education from Drake University. This will be my 9th year teaching at McKinley.

My wife, Jenny, and I live in Ankeny with our three kids. Olivia will be a junior at Iowa State. Gabe will be a senior at Grand View Christian and Vangee with be in 8th grade at Ankeny. When we are not working, we like to play games, go for walks with our dogs and go to concerts.

I graduated from Wartburg College with a BA in education and later graduated with my Masters degree from Drake University. I began teaching for Des Moines Public Schools in 2005. I have taught 3rd, 1st and 2nd grade. Most of my career has been here at McKinley!

Outside of school I love to spend time with my family and friends. I enjoy reading, spending time outside, and binge watching a good show.

I graduated from the University of Norther Iowa and this will be my 18th year teaching. I have taught in Tokyo, Japan, Lewis Central in Council Bluffs and I have been with Des Moines Public Schools since 2005.

I live in the south side of Des Moines with my partner, Donnel. In our free time, we enjoy fishing, art and photography.

I graduated with my bachelors in Human Development from THE Ohio State University and worked as a social worker for 2 and a half years before deciding to get my Masters in Education. I completed my Masters in Teaching, Elementary Education from Western Governor’s University in 2021. I completed my student teaching in a 3rd grade classroom in Waukee Community School District. I then served as a long term substitute in 3rd grade. This will be my first year in my own classroom and I am super excited to begin my teaching career as a McKinley Eagle!

I live in West Des Moines with my husband Zach, and our dog Odie. I enjoy reading, baking and watching new movies. Every weekend in the Fall and Winter, you will find me watching football and cheering on the Ohio State Buckeyes and Cincinnati Bengals!

Graduated from Iowa State University.

I enjoy spending time with my family, outdoor activities, cooking, sporting events, reading and learning new things.

This is my 6th year working as a Speech-Language Pathologist in Des Moines. I currently work with children 3-years old through 8th grade at schools on the southside of Des Moines. Prior to moving to Des Moines, I was a school-based SLP in the Chicago area for 10 years. I am a graduate of Marquette University(B.S. – speech pathology and audiology ’05) and Southern Illinois University(M.S. speech-language pathology ’07).

When away from school, I spend my time with my husband and our 3 young daughters, who keep us pretty busy! We enjoy riding our bikes on the DM trails, attending concerts and sporting events, traveling, and spending time with our families and friends.

I attended Mercy College of Health Sciences for my registered nurse degree and Chamberlain College for my Bachelors of Science in a nursing. I’ve worked at DMPS since 2014 and plan to continue doing so many years to come.

I am a mom to 3 children, one is a college student at UNI and the other two are twins. I love pets! I have 3 kitties and an awesome dog named Hunny. I’ve been a nurse since 2005 working with children is my passion. I love working with students and their families and forming life long bonds.

B.S. Elementary Education/Early Childhood Education – Northwest Missouri State University

Masters Of Science in Special Education – Iowa State University

Administrative Endorsement – Viterbo University

I have three grown children and three granddaughters with a grandson joining the family in the winter. I enjoy spending time with my family and especially creating memories and enjoying adventures with my grandchildren. I love music, hanging out with friends and watching Hallmark movies. I have a cat whose name is Godiva – she is a diva and is chocolate in color, so the name fits her “purrfectly”. I am looking forward to being back at McKinley and getting to know the families and students who make this a great place to learn and grow.

I graduated from Denison High School in 2013. I received my bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education with reading and math endorsements in 2017 from Iowa State. In 2021, I graduated from Drake with a Master of Education and an ESL endorsement. I started my teaching career at Morris Elementary School in Kindergarten for five years. In Fall of 2022, I started a new adventure here at McKinley as a Kindergarten teacher.

I enjoy doing things outside, shopping, binge watching tv series, and spending time with family and friends. Traveling to new places is a favorite pastime of mine when I get the chance to getaway.

I graduated from Iowa State University in 2004. Go Cyclones! I started my teaching right here at McKinley in 2005 as a kindergarten teacher. In 2015, I received my Masters degree in differentiated instruction from Graceland University.

I live in Bondurant with my husband, Erron, and our two kids, Charlotte and Harris. Charlotte is in 5th grade and Harris is in 2nd grade. I enjoy biking, hiking, shopping, exercising, and reading. My family loves to go bowling, play games, and go to Adventureland in the summertime.