Specialists

ART

Misty Ostrowski

Misty Ostrowski

Secondary Art and TOK

mostrowski@northstarcharter.org

Misty Ostrowski was born and raised in Alaska, where she began her path towards the arts. She attended both the University of Alaska Southeast and Northern Arizona University during her undergraduate years. She graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. After obtaining her undergraduate degree Misty retuned to the University of Alaska Southeast for her Master of Arts in Teaching, Secondary Education. Since then Misty has taught ceramics to adults and teenagers with developmental disabilities at a non-profit in Alaska, and a variety of studio art classes at a public high school in Arizona. Misty has been teaching primary at North Star Charter School since relocating to the Treasure Valley.

Heather Whitt

Heather Whitt

Secondary Art

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.

She took a break to raise two beautiful daughters and now that they are both attending North Star she is BACK! It’s a family affair with both daughters in first and fourth grade, Mr. Whitt teaching sixth grade and Mrs. Whitt back to MS and HS ART. 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.

COMPUTER/TECHNOLOGY

 

Cherilyn Clemente

Cherilyn Clemente

K-5 Computer Teacher

cclemente@northstarcharter.org

Cherilyn Clemente loved growing up in historic Virginia with her 5 siblings. This past summer she had the opportunity to show her husband and family her old stomping grounds as well as Washington, D.C. They had some awesome experiences touring our nation’s capital! Ask her about it!

So how did Mrs. Clemente get into teaching? In elementary school she was asked to help read with a new student who only spoke Spanish. At the time, Mrs. Clemente spoke only English! She took an after school Spanish class, fell in love with the language and with helping people, and eventually continued her education at Brigham Young University where she graduated with a BS in Elementary Education. She worked on her Spanish teaching minor while studying in Chile, student taught at a bilingual elementary school in Utah, and met her amazing husband, who is from Spain, while at college. Mrs. Clemente loves culture and people! Upon graduation they moved to the Boise area where her husband works with robotics as a Test Engineer Supervisor. Their married son and two daughters all live, work and attend school in UT and all are excited for the first grandbaby to arrive this fall!

The Clementes love to travel and experience the culture and beauty of other countries, as well as camp and hike in the beautiful mountains of Idaho. In quiet moments, Mrs. Clemente also enjoys reading, playing piano, and visiting with all those around her. She is motivated by each to reach just a little higher. She believes, “There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up.”

Mrs. Clemente loves to learn, and one of the best ways to learn is to teach! She has had a variety of pre-school and elementary bilingual teaching and translating experiences. She has also worked with children with special needs. Right before coming to North Star, Mrs. Clemente had taught Computers, Reading and Math groups for 6 years.

Mrs. Clemente is focusing her continuing education on instructional technology, PBL– project-based learning and STEM thinking. She focuses herself and her K-5 students on problem-solving, being creative and learning by doing. Her Computer & Computer Science class is very hands-on, and she strives to instill a love of learning and the thrill of “getting it” in all her students. She is so excited to begin her fourth year with this amazing North Star community! She is especially looking forward to learning more about and from her STAR students as they explore the digital world together.

Stan Ostrowski

Stan Ostrowski

Bus. & Tech/IB Comp Science

sostrowski@northstarcharter.org

Recently retired from the State of Alaska, Stan Ostrowski recently move to Idaho after living in Juneau, Alaska for the past 37 years. While in Alaska, he attended the University of Alaska where he earned a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree, with emphasis in computer and natural science. Stan has worked with computer technology since 1984, with employment as a computer and network specialist, research analyst, database administrator, and other technology related positions. Stan enjoys working with technology, and teaching technology to others.

Stan lives close to Marsing, ID, with his wife of 38 years, where they have an extensive vegetable and berry/grape garden, as well as a variety of fruit trees, chickens, and two cats. Stan holds a Master of Education in Secondary Education, a Master of Education in Education Technology Management, and is currently pursuing other educational activities of interest.

Mark Nance

Mark Nance

Secondary Technology

mnance@northstarcharter.org

Mr. Nance is a second-generation teacher who just retired from Alaska. Mr. Nance spent 25 years teaching Math and Technology from Nome to Barrow to Sitka, (all over the state). After retirement from Alaska, Mr. Nance started teaching Internationally in China for 2 years (1.5 online due to Covid-19). Mr. Nance is married to Heidi Nance and has two adult children, Kristopher and Ethan Nance. He moved to the Idaho area to look for a place to build his retirement home. He loves to fish, camp and fly his drones.

COUNSELING

Danica Holladay

Danica Holladay

Elem. Counselor/IB Coordinator

dholladay@northstarcharter.org

Danica was born and raised in Spokane, WA. She grew up playing soccer and riding horses. She had a love for school and learning which guided her into the field of education. In 2012 she received a B.S. from Eastern Washington University in Applied Developmental Psychology. She then returned to Spokane and attended Gonzaga University where she received a Masters in School Counseling in 2014.

Since moving to Boise in 2015 life has been full of fun for Danica. In August 2015 she joined the North Star Team. In 2016 she met Trevor and in October 2018 they got engaged. In May 2019 she graduated with her second Masters in Educational Leadership. Then on July 6th, 2019, she married Trevor and became Danica Holladay! Most recently in June 2020 they bought 7 acres and look forward to making this slice of heaven into their forever home!

Entering her 6th year at North Star she will continue her role as the elementary school counselor, as well as the IB coordinator for the juniors and seniors! She loves the opportunity to work with such a range of students!

When she is not at North Star you will find her and Trevor doing almost anything in the outdoors. Some of their favorite things are fishing, hunting, camping, and being with their animals! She is SOOOO excited for this new year with the best school community there is!

Maria Chelko

Maria Chelko

High School Counselor / College & Career Advisor

LIBRARY

 

Carrie Benton

Carrie Benton

Librarian

cbenton@northstarcharter.org

Growing up, Carrie was fortunate enough to have lived all over the United States and overseas. After graduating from high school in Idaho, she attended Boise State University. With a degree in psychology and a new husband, she decided to make Boise/Eagle her new home.

Carrie was excited to take on the role as North Star’s librarian in 2004. She loved the close-knit community and high achievement focus found at the school. A move to Tokyo, Japan with her family in 2009 necessitated her departure.

She continued her work in the library at the American School in Japan while she lived in Tokyo. The experience was life-changing and rewarding. After returning to Eagle in 2015, she was grateful to assume the role of North Star librarian once again.

Carrie has a daughter in school at The University of Texas and a son at Boise State. When her son graduates, all members of her family will have graduated from Boise State University. Go Broncos!

MUSIC

 

Allison Cammack

Allison Cammack

Middle and High School Choir

acammack@northstarcharter.org

Allison has lived in various states and regions of the country, but she is proud to call the Treasure Valley her home. From a young age, she developed a love of performing and teaching, and after having wonderful experiences in middle and high school choirs, she knew that music education was the right path for her. Allison graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Music Education in April 2018 and is thrilled to have accepted her very first position right here at North Star! Outside of public schools, she has taught private piano and voice lessons.

In her free time, you can find Allison visiting museums or watching documentaries, spending time with her family, dreaming about the Oregon Coast (her favorite place on the planet), and drinking copious amounts of Sodalicious.

Ms. Cammack hopes that each student who participates in the choirs has an enjoyable and enriching musical experience. She feels fortunate to be surrounded by amazing faculty and administration.

A.J. Davidsen

A.J. Davidsen

MS and HS Band

aj.davidsen@northstarcharter.org

AJ Davidsen was born and raised in Calgary Alberta, Canada where the influence of great band directors led him to pursue a degree in music education.

AJ graduated in April 2013 in the top 10% of the graduating class of BYU-Idaho. His main instruments are the piano and French horn. In February of 2013, AJ was given the “Outstanding Piano Soloist” award at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. AJ completed a Master’s degree in Piano Performance at Boise State University in December 2017.

 

In November 2020, AJ was recognized by KTVB as an innovative educator. He received a grant which enabled him to acquire the necessary equipment to create high quality multi-track recordings of his ensembles, working around the limitations of running a band program during a pandemic.

AJ met his wife Ashley at BYU-Idaho where she earned a degree in piano performance. Ashley completed her Master’s Degree at Boise State in 2015. Ashley and AJ are the proud parents of two children, Cleah age 9 and Cecil who will be 4 in January.

Apart from his family and music, AJ’s passions include Mountain Biking, Road Biking and any other form of cycling.

 

 

Abbie Schwin

Elementary Choir & Music

aschwin@northstarcharter.org

Abbie Schwin grew up in Kuna, ID. She graduated from Nampa Christian High School and went on to double major in K-12 Music Education and Applied Voice at Northwest Nazarene University. She graduated college in the Fall of 2022, and will be launching her teacher career her at North Star!  

 In July, Mrs. Schwin married the love of her life, Ryan. They live in Nampa and enjoy the outdoors together.  In their free time, they go hiking, camping, swimming, skiing, and love to spend time with their friends and family. Mrs. Schwin also loves to play guitar, singing and listening to music. Her favorite genre to sing is jazz and she occasionally has gigs throughout the Treasure Valley area. Mrs. Schwin is very excited to share her love for music with her students at North Star! 

PHYSICAL EDUCATION/FITNESS

 

Patrick Brown

Patrick Brown

PE - 7th & 8th

 

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 at an early age. He also loved fishing and playing in the woods with his brothers and neighborhood friends. Growing up South 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 in 1998.

During the two years after college, Patrick taught and coached wrestling in his hometown before heading to Sydney, Australia to play rugby for the UNSW Rugby team. Patrick loved his experience playing rugby with the Australians and traveling. Upon returning to the States, Patrick moved to sunny Los Angeles to make movies at Sony Pictures with four of his friends from college. After working 2 years at Sony, Patrick married his wife Kristen and decided to move back to Marshfield, MA to pursue his passion for teaching, coaching wrestling and raising a family. After coaching and teaching for 7 years in Massachusetts, Patrick and his family of four (two sons) moved to the Treasure Valley.

Since 2009, Patrick and Kristen have made the Treasure Valley their home. Patrick has been a teacher here in Idaho for the past 9 years. In 2010, Patrick and Kristen’s love for fitness turned into their business when they opened CrossFit E3 in Eagle, Idaho. Their family also expanded, they had a third son and a daughter. Patrick has served in the Idaho Air National Guard as TACP since 2012.

With over 18 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. 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

 

Casey Hawkins

Casey Hawkins

Elementary PE

chawkins@northstarcharter.org

Mrs. Hawkins grew up in a rural town, Mariposa, CA, just outside of Yosemite National Park. She has always been actively involved in sports and anything that has to do with the outdoors. Her love of children and passion for teaching have been with her since she was a young girl.

After graduating on the Dean’s List with a Bachelor’s degree from Sacramento State and earning a teaching credential from Chapman University, Casey moved to Grandview, ID, in October of 1995. Midyear, after three months of subbing, she was offered a fulltime second grade position at Mountain Home AFB. She spent the summers of 1996 and 1997 teaching Spanish speaking migrant ed. preschoolers. In 1997, she moved to Eagle, ID and taught in the Meridian School District for the next eight years. She has also spent twenty-four summers tutoring students in math. Every position she has filled with passion and excitement.

When her boys arrived into this awesome world, it was apparent that she needed to be at home more; however, as much as she loved being home, she also needed to keep her feet in the classroom. While getting her Master’s degree in Administration, she also shared a fifth grade teaching contract for three years with Mrs. Mariah Rodeghiero, one of North Star’s amazing fourth grade teachers. This was an incredible opportunity that she thought she would enjoy until retirement…until she stepped foot into her first charter school.

Upon viewing what charter schools could offer students, immediately she knew it was part of her next phase of life. She was impressed and excited about working with a group of teachers that were all grounded in the same beliefs. She has spent the past fifteenteen years successfully teaching with some of her greatest friends at a charter school; her students’ enthusiasm towards learning and their ISAT scores prove that the method North Star has to offer is exceptional.

Casey has been married for twenty years to her best friend, Dan Hawkins, Asst. Fire Chief at Mt. Home AFB. They have three adorable lil’ men (ages 19, 17 1/2 and 16), so life is incredibly busy attending sporting events and enjoying quality family time. Together they enjoy biking, snow skiing, waterskiing, camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, swimming, jet-skiing, and spending time with family and friends.

Casey looks forward to her first year teaching K-5 PE and her 26th year as a teacher. She can’t wait to meet and develop working relationships with her upcoming K-5 students and their families.

Trevor Holladay

Trevor Holladay

Physical Education

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 city league sports such as volleyball 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 and married his wife Danica shortly after.

Last year was Trevor’s fifth year at North Star and he looks forward to meeting new students and families throughout the year.

Tyler  Hoaglun

Tyler Hoaglun

Athletic Director

thoaglun@northstarcharter.org

Tyler is finishing up his educational specialist degree in Building Leadership and Admin. He has coached high school football, basketball, and baseball. Before working in education Tyler was a personal trainer and worked with the YMCA Livestrong program where he would help lead exercise programs for cancer survivors.

SCIENCE

Lisa White

Lisa White

Elementary Science Grade 1-3

lwhite@northstarcharter.org

Mrs. White grew up right here in Eagle and attended Eagle High School. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Human Development from Brigham Young University and most recently completed a Master of Arts degree from Boise State University in Education with an emphasis in Literacy. She also holds a K-12 Reading Specialist certification. Although always a lover of school and education generally, Mrs. White’s passion for teaching slowly built as she raised children of her own and became involved in the many different school communities that her family belonged to.

Mrs. White has been married to her husband Ryan for 20 years and they have four children: Brayden, Landon, Charlotte, and Julia. She and her family have moved throughout the Pacific Northwest and also had the opportunity to spend two years living abroad in Brussels, Belgium. In 2016, Mrs. White and her family returned to the Eagle area and have been proud members of the North Star community ever since.

Outside of the classroom, she enjoys traveling, being in the mountains, working in her garden, and watching her children play sports. Mrs. White is thrilled to welcome all of North Star’s little scientists into her classroom for a year filled with probing and exploration!

Patrice Rex

Patrice Rex

Elementary Science Grade 4-5

prex@northstarcharter.org

Patrice Rex was born and raised primarily in Utah, with a few summer excursions to Virginia where she worked as a full-time nanny. She spent her teenage years playing lots of basketball, volleyball, softball and running track, and particularly loved basketball and high jump. She has always been curious about the way things work and natural processes, especially human physiology and life sciences. Mrs. Rex believes her love of science can be traced back to the times that she spent accompanying her grandfather on his Forest Service rounds throughout Utah and Idaho. She attended Brigham Young University on an academic scholarship and graduated with honors in 1998 with a degree in Zoology and a minor in Biochemistry. Mrs. Rex has taught and tutored science and math in Utah, Nevada and Idaho.

After her first child was born, she was a stay at home mom and part-time tutor for 10 years. She returned to teaching in 2009. She holds Secondary Teaching Endorsements in Biological Science and Natural Science. She also has an Elementary Teaching Certificate. Mrs. Rex is extremely excited to be teaching science at the elementary level and getting kids excited about science at a young age. She loves to do lots of “hands-on” lab work and watch students make discoveries.

Mrs. Rex loves to spend time with her husband of 26 years and her two kids (ages 20 and 16). Some of their favorite activities include traveling, camping, hiking, biking, swimming, playing games and doing puzzles. She also loves to read, play sports, watch college football, garden and take naps. She has been an Idaho resident since 2006 and loves living here.

Victoria Woodward

Victoria Woodward

Physical Science - 8th

vwoodward@northstarcharter.org

Mrs. Woodward has been teaching since 2002. She came from being a Navy airplane mechanic on the F/A-18 to graduating with honors from BSU in Chemistry with a professional emphasis and a minor in Mathematics. After working in research on anti-cancer drugs and then EPA testing for the City of Meridian and Nampa, she obtained her teaching certification and has taught all math levels from 6th grade through Calculus, AP, General, and Intro Chemistry, and Physical Science.

SPECIAL EDUCATION

Catherine Griffin

Catherine Griffin

Special Education Director

cgriffin@northstarcharter.org

Catherine Griffin is returning to North Star Charter as a secondary learning specialist. Ms. Griffin has taught special education in Idaho for more than 15 years and has worked as a director of special education since 2012.

Ms. Griffin received a B.A. in Anthropology, a M.A. in Curriculum and Instruction, and is certified to teach secondary social studies. In 2007, she received a M. Ed. in Special Education after pursuing an interest in twice-exceptional students from Boise State University. She supports inclusion, differentiation, and teaching literacy through content instruction and has endorsements in literacy, gifted and talented facilitation, as well as English language development. Ms. Griffin also graduated from Northwest Nazarene University with an Education Specialist degree in Leadership with a focus on Special Education Administration. Ms. Griffin embraces all opportunities to continue her pursuits as a lifelong learner and encourages her students to adopt a “growth mindset”, persevere through difficulty and not give up.

She has two adult children and likes to go hiking, canoeing, work in her garden, and spend time with family. Exploring the natural areas surrounding Boise with her Siberian Husky mix is a favorite pastime. She enjoys visits with family and to spend time by the Pacific coast. She lived in Central America for several years and is looking forward to the opportunity to return in the future to improve her Spanish.

She is excited to continue teaching at North Star to serve students, families, and staff through her commitment to support student learning through beauty, ingenuity, and peace. One favorite quote by Margret Mead demonstrates her ideals, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

Kendyl Owen

Kendyl Owen

Special Education Teacher

kowen@northstarcharter.org

Kendyl Owen was born in Eugene, OR and moved to the Boise area when she was in the 3rd grade. She graduated from Lewis-Clark State College in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology. Shortly after graduating, she returned home to Boise and started working at North Star as a Special Education Paraprofessional. Miss Owen quickly realized her passion was in the education field and returned to school to complete her teaching credentials. She graduated from Boise State University in 2020 with her Master’s in Teaching Special Education. She came into her teaching role with a great amount of experience with children with disabilities. She has a sister who has Autism and serves as her greatest inspiration in life. Miss Owen has also spent time as a developmental therapist, youth development professional, and a long-time nanny.

When she is not at North Star, she enjoys spending quality time with her friends & family, trying new recipes, or hiking the foothills with her 4-year-old golden retriever, Huntley. Miss Owen is so excited to continue her career at North Star, seeing that it is the very place where she found her passion for teaching!

SPEECH PATHOLOGY

 

Madison Chisholm

Madison Chisholm

Speech Pathologist

mchisholm@northstarcharter.org

Madison Chisholm grew up in Bend, Oregon, surrounded by lakes, rivers, forests, and the great cascade mountain range. As a student she attended an alternative K-8 school that focused on teaching children through interacting with the world around them, emphasizing self-directed learning and creative problem solving.

In pursuit of continuing her love for the great outdoors, Madison moved to Boise, Idaho and went to Idaho State University where she received her Bachelor of Science degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, Magna Cum Laude. Madison went on to complete her Masters of Science degree in Speech and Language Pathology from Idaho State University. Throughout her time as both an undergraduate and graduate student, Madison worked as a research assistant in the ISU Communication Sciences and Disorders department Clinic where she worked with pre-school and elementary aged children with speech and language disorders. In 2019, she presented her teams findings at the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Convention.

In between her academic accomplishments, Madison met her husband and fell in love with the state of Idaho. She enjoys spending her free time hiking, mountain biking, skiing, fly fishing, and white-water river rafting with her husband Heath and their dog Finley.

This will be her first year at North Star Charter and she is excited to continue her passion for Speech and Language here. Madison greatly enjoys getting to know her students, helping them build their communication goals, and supporting their progress along the way!

ABOUT NORTH STAR CHARTER

North Star Charter School (NSCS) is a K-12 public charter school located in Eagle, Idaho. Founded in 2003, NSCS provides students a world-class education characterized by a safe, supportive and structured learning climate that encourages high academic achievement, intellectual confidence, leadership and virtuous citizenship. The school’s charter articulates the vision of its founders to think critically and to become virtuous citizen leaders in our local and world community.

We Look Forward to Getting to Know Your Family!

Our main admission entry points are kindergarten, sixth,  and ninth grades. Applications for other grade-levels are fully considered, but admission is solely based on space availability due to student attrition.

ACADEMIC OVERVIEW

NSCS is committed to improving student achievement through high expectations for student engagement and meaningful preparation for postsecondary education and careers. Explore our Elementary, Middle and High School divisions.

HUSKY ATHLETICS

North Star athletics is committed to developing our student-athletes in an educational-based environment. Through a positive coaching atmosphere, student-athletes will be encouraged to expand their athletic abilities. 

CAMPUS LIFE

Our students receive an exceptional learning experience enabling them to reach their full potential and discover their place in a world of possibilities.

Phone:
208-939-9600 (Main Office)
208-939-9645 (Attendance Line)
FAX: 208-939-6090

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