9-12 Faculty

mchelko@northstarcharter.org

I’m very excited to be your child’s high school counselor. I’ve been a public-school counselor for many years. I enjoy connecting with high school students, guiding them toward their potential as well as their academic and post-secondary goals. Building relationships, creating safe spaces, and encouraging advocacy and personal growth are important to me. I strongly believe in a healthy school-home partnership and desire to collaborate with parents and guardians to support students holistically when it comes to academics, college/career goals, and personal/social concerns. 

Outside of school, I enjoy hanging out with my husband and our two big dogs.

jange@northstarcharter.org

Mrs. Ange loves all things History. She wanted to become a teacher at the young age of seven. Her mom was a teacher and middle school Principal. Her dad was a Music teacher and was always playing his saxophone and piano around the house. Mrs. Ange knew she wanted to teach students; she just did not know what age or subject. Mrs. Ange attended college at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. It was here that she met an amazing and animated professor named Professor Barnes. Professor Barnes had a true love of maps and battles. It was through him that she discovered her own love of maps and battles. It was there in Professor Barnes class that she knew she wanted to teach history, just like him. She received her BA in History in 2000 and got her Teaching Credential in 2001.

After college, her fiancé, Joe, got a job offer at a Produce company in Salinas, Ca. Mrs. Ange accepted a dream job at Carmel High School, a job that she held for nearly 20 years. She taught Government, Economics, US History, World History, Geography and AP World History. Mrs. Ange’s most memorable highlights from her career at Carmel High School are when she received Mentor of the Year, Teacher of the Year and KSBW Monterey Bay Crystal Apple Award recipient. Mrs. Ange and Joe have been married since 2003 and have had three beautiful daughters. Her daughters all attend North Star and love the Husky life!

Mrs. Ange and her husband visited Yellowstone in the summer of 2019. It was that vacation that changed them forever! The beauty of Idaho sparked something in Mrs. Ange and her family. It is simply breathtaking and aligns with the Ange family’s desires to be outdoors. Joe loves fishing and Mrs. Ange and the girls love to camp. Life is amazing in Idaho and the only missing piece for Mrs. Ange was her job. She longed to find a teaching position where she could continue her love of teaching and history. Mrs. Ange feels that teaching World History and Mythology this year at North Star has completed the missing piece to her Idaho journey. She is excited to teach and is ready for…you guessed it, more maps!

pbrown@northstarcharter.org

Born in Rockland, Massachusetts Patrick J. Brown grew up with two older brothers and one younger sister. Having older brothers involved in sports and a Father who coached, Patrick grew up very active and involved in organized sports. He also loved fishing and playing in the woods with his brothers and neighborhood friends. Growing up on South Shore of Boston, Patrick became an extremely passionate Sports fan for his home team Patriots, Red Sox, Celtics and Bruins. With strong family values instilled by his Father and Mother, Patrick is extremely loving and loyal to his family and close friends.

After graduating high school he traveled to Northfield, Vermont to attend our Nation’s oldest private military college, Norwich University. Patrick was recruited to wrestle for the Cadets. Patrick wrestled and played rugby all 4 years at Norwich. He earned All-New England for both rugby and wrestling. Patrick received his degree of Bachelor of Science in Physical Education.

Patrick is a father of 4 children. Being a father is his greatest honor. He has served in the Idaho Air National Guard with the 124th ASOS since 2012.

With over 20 years of experience working with students as a coach and teacher, Patrick has realized there is no better job than teaching and coaching. Motivating students to believe they can accomplish anything they set their mind to, has been Patrick’s mantra to his students. Throughout the years, Patrick has developed life long friendships with his students and athletes. With his passion for physical activity, kinesiology, fitness and sports he has been blessed with the opportunity to share his love to his students on a daily basis.

This will be Patrick’s eighth year teaching and first year coaching Cross Country at North Star Charter School.

vcampbell@northstarcharter.org

Mrs. Campbell teaches Exploratory Spanish, Spanish 1, and Spanish 2 at North Star, as well as facilitates Yearbook this year. Having lived abroad in Mexico, she developed a love for the language, the people, the culture and the food! She loves helping others along in their language learning journey. Mrs. Campbell loves spending time with her husband and family, trying new skills (right now it’s learning how to snowboard), being outdoors, watching movies, and volunteering in the community.

jhickey@northstarcharter.org

Josh Hickey grew up in rural Pennsylvania where he developed a love for the natural world through exploration of the rivers, mountains, and woods surrounding his childhood home. His love for the natural world inspired him to pursue a degree in Fisheries Biology so he could develop a better understanding of the creatures and natural environments that fascinated him as a child. His love for the natural world also drove him to seek out opportunities to be and play outside as often as he could. Consequently, at the age of 16, he began ski instructing at a local ski area near his childhood home. Through his experiences ski instructing, he became fascinated by the way people learn and began to develop a passion for teaching. As time went on, he realized that his love for the natural world and his passion for teaching drove him to share his understanding of natural environments, and creatures that inhabit them, with anyone that would listen. This realization led him to pursue a career in education so that he could be better equipped to pass on his knowledge of the natural world with the future (i.e., kids!). Josh believes that by helping future generations better understand how the world works at a biological level can help to preserve it for generations to come.

When Josh is not in school, he likes to spend as much time outdoors as possible. This could be mountain biking and camping with his wife, fly fishing a remote river, hiking a mountain peak to photograph the landscape, or tending to his garden with his yellow lab and chickens.

Josh currently teachers Biology and Environmental Science at North Star.  He will be moving to our Dean of Students at the High School next year.  Josh has a great vision for building the culture of our new site and has a strong and positive connection with our students.  We are excited to see what he can do with this new opportunity.  Josh will continue to work with students in the classroom as he will also be teaching Biology to our 9th graders and an Outdoor Living class as an elective and highly requested option from our students. 

khutchens@northstarcharter.org

Kevin Hutchens made the decision early in high school to pursue education after helping run football camps for elementary students in the summer. His passion for business came from his high school electives and working around the family accounting business much of his young life. When he is not in school, he enjoys playing golf, cooking, and spending time up north helping on his friend’s cattle ranch. He is thrilled to be a part of the North Star Charter family and to continue to help students prepare for their future!

slawson@northstarcharter.org

Hi, my name is Svenja Lawson, and I am so excited to continue to teach at NorthStar this year and even more excited to teach in the new high school building! I grew up in a city outside of Dallas, TX and graduated from Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies (Elementary Education). I later attended Cal State Fullerton where I received my Masters in Secondary Education with a math emphasis. After 11 years of education, I am excited to continue living out my passion of teaching math to secondary students.

I knew I wanted to teach math ever since I began my education classes in college. I hated how so many of my fellow classmates despised math and considered it a subject that you were either good at or not. My biggest goal in math education is to show all students how accessible math is to everyone as well as how applicable math is to their daily lives. As far as I am concerned, everyone is a “math person”.

When not in school, I love to be outdoors and spend time with friends and family. In the summer months, I enjoy paddle boarding, hiking, or camping. Then in the winter, I am in the process of learning how to ski. I also have a personal goal of hiking in every national park so most of my travel revolves around hitting new parks. I also love being an aunt more than anything to my adorable niece and 4 nephews.

tholladay@northstarcharter.org

Trevor Holladay grew up in the great outdoors of Northwest Montana. He likes to spend his down time hunting, fishing, hiking, or playing pickleball, cornhole or basketball. He is originally from Kalispell, Montana where he went to school K-12th grade. Following his passion for being physically active, he moved to Bozeman, Montana and went to Montana State University and received his Bachelor of Science Degree in Health Enhancement.

After graduating, Trevor moved to the Treasure Valley and got his Masters in Educational Leadership at BSU and married his wife Danica shortly after. They now have a one year old named Jack who is following in his dad’s shoes loving the outdoors and being active.

Trevor has taught 8 years at North Star and every year he looks forward to meeting new students and families.

srau@northstarcharter.org

Shirley Rau is a lifetime learner—a reader, writer and researcher. An Idaho native, Shirley’s earned her undergraduate degree from Idaho State University. She earned her graduate degree from Middlebury College in Vermont, completing a summer residency at Lincoln College in Oxford.

Shirley has had more than 30 years of experience teaching in university, private school and public-school settings. She has taught Advanced Placement, college preparatory English at the secondary level. At the university level, she taught undergraduate English composition and writing methods, and supervised intern teachers. Shirley has held a number of educational leadership positions. She was education director and interim head of an independent school. She was Executive Director of the Idaho Charter School Network and had the privilege of serving under Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna as School Choice Coordinator.

She has long been an advocate of children’s right to a quality education. She has spoken to parent groups, teachers, administrators, business leaders and policy makers on a range of issues. She has published a number of articles about education and co-authored A Classroom of Teenaged Readers: Nurturing Reading Processes in Senior High English (Addison, Wesley, Longman) a research-based book that focuses on the development of critical reading in the high school classroom.

Other highlights of Shirley’s career included coaching a two-time national champion cheerleading squad, speaking in front of the US Senate Education Committee as a finalist for National Teacher of the Year, and participating in the Japan-America Grassroots Summit.

Shirley lives in Boise with her husband, their Bernese Mountain dog and cat. In August. They share a passion for soccer, canoeing, gardening, the Oregon coast and international travel. Their most memorable family vacation was a birding expedition to Honduras. And nearly every month they drive to Reno to visit their new granddaughter Lili (and her parents).

Shirley says of teaching at North Star: “I feel as if my personal and professional life have come full circle. I love working with the engaged student learners, the committed parents and the outstanding teaching team at North Star. It offers me an opportunity, not only to share my knowledge, but to continue to learn and grow personally and professionally.”

areseigh@northstarcharter.org

Analee Reseigh was born in Logan, Utah and grew up in several towns in Utah and Idaho. From a young age, she knew she had an aptitude and passion for mathematics. Her passion was fueled by a couple of exceptional math teachers, and she decided during high school to become an educator herself.

After just one great year at Southern Utah University in Cedar City, Mrs. Reseigh followed her new husband to the University of Idaho in Moscow where she earned a B.S. in Mathematics with teacher certification in math and physics and a M.S. in Mathematics. While pursuing her master’s degree, Mrs. Reseigh was awarded a teaching assistantship which gave her the opportunity to hone her teaching skills. The next year, she and her husband moved to Pocatello, Idaho where she was awarded a fellowship to pursue a Doctor of Arts in Mathematics.

The early birth and health problems of her second child ended that pursuit and she and her husband moved to Boise in 1999. After taking a few years off, Mrs. Reseigh started tutoring high school and college students and teaching as an adjunct faculty member at Boise State University. While raising her four children, she taught a wide range of classes at BSU, including Survey of Calculus, Math in Modern Society, College Algebra, and Geometry and Probability for Elementary School Teachers.

Mrs. Reseigh started at North Star Charter in 2015 where she has taught IB Mathematics, Data Science, Survey of Calculus, and Integrated 2 and 3. She was also North Star’s district testing coordinator from 2018-2023 and helped students start a math club chapter of Mu Alpha Theta from 2017-2020. Mrs. Reseigh believes all students can become competent mathematical thinkers. She has helped hundreds of students realize their potential and loves watching students learn their true capabilities.

After teaching one year in a larger district, Mrs. Reseigh is excited to be back at a small school and looks forward to using her experience and enthusiasm for mathematics to empower and excite students at North Star.

When she is not teaching or preparing, Mrs. Reseigh enjoys hiking and camping with her husband, four children, and new grandson, Beckham. She also loves running, cross-country skiing, gardening, card games with friends, and math history.

kvandiepen@northstarcharter.org

Kristen van Diepen grew up in Idaho and attended Boise High where she was the school’s mascot. She went on to Boise State and graduated with her bachelor’s in communication in 2005. Kristen is endorsed in several subjects: communication, psychology, theatre, journalism as well as English as a new language. Kristen received her master’s in education from the College of Idaho in 2012.

Kristen met her future husband, Nic right before she graduated college and they moved to his home country of New Zealand shortly after. Kristen and Nic were married in the beautiful country where they stayed for almost two years, until they moved back to Idaho.

Kristen lives with her husband in Garden City with their two rescue dogs. One bully breed mix named Val and a three-legged terrier named Chula they brought home with them from a Mexico vacation.

hwhitt@northstarcharter.org

Heather Whitt grew up in Boise, attending McMillan elementary school, with her mom as librarian. She then moved onto Lowell Scott MS, then onto graduate from Centennial HS. Heather grew up playing recreational and competitive soccer in the Treasure Valley. She played all four years on Centennial’s varsity team and earned a spot on the Idaho state team. This along with her academic achievements earned her a scholarship to College of Idaho for four years. There she met the love of her life, the famously epic, Ty Whitt! She finished schooling with a BA in Secondary English Teaching and then later acquired her Art credential.

After finishing college Heather was able to buy an “around the world” plane ticket allowing her to visit over ten countries over the course of a year. She taught summer school for the Boise School District along with Special Education and coached girls JV soccer at Capital HS. She then started the art program for the middle and high school at North Star Charter. For three years she was able to teach students from 6th-12th including introduction classes, multicultural art and commercial art in the high school.  After taking a break to raise two feisty daughters she has been back at North Star for five years!  She has taught 6-12 Visual Arts and for the last two years has taught IB Visual Arts as well.

In her spare time she loves to garden, camp with her family and friends, and create one of a kind mosaic art pieces for her and Mr. Whitt’s art business, R.A.D Mosaic. 

jwilliams@northstarcharter.org

Jonni Williams grew up in San Bernardino and Temecula, CA. After graduating from The Linfield School in Temecula, she joined the United States Navy, where she met her husband. They married in 1995, and in 1997 moved to her husband’s home state of Idaho.

In 2007, Jonni graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Idaho with her Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. She taught elementary school for ten years at Dalton Elementary, in Coeur d’Alene, ID. From the beginning of her teaching career, she had always dreamed of teaching at the middle school level. Her dreams became reality in her 11th year of teaching as she transitioned into teaching 7th grade ELA. After one year of teaching middle school, Jonni and her family relocated to the Boise area due to her husband’s career move with the Idaho Army National Guard. She has now taught ELA and Family and Consumer Sciences at the middle school level for the last five years. This will be her third-year teaching 8th grade ELA at North Star Charter School.

Jonni loves to spend time with her family, enjoys traveling, has a passion for reading, is a frequent concert-goer, loves all things outdoors, likes to work on renovations, and her favorite season is football.