Nashua Welcomes Three New Teachers

The Nashua School welcomed three new faces to the hallways at the beginning of the school year. Sarah Denning, is the new junior high English teacher, Greg Hetland is the new high school math teacher and Julia Kirkland returns back to her alma mater as the new athletic director and PE/health teacher.

Ms. Sarah Denning, the new junior high English and math teacher, has had a passion for teaching since she was in third grade. “When I was in third grade, I had five different teachers as a result of moving and a teacher going on leave. The very last teacher made sure I didn’t fall behind and she took the extra time to make sure I didn’t fall behind,” she said. That experience left an impression for Denning to forge her own path in teaching.

As a first-year teacher since graduating Carroll College, Denning wanted to come to different area of the state to teach. “I love Montana!” she stated. She grew up in areas all over, but her family is currently in Washington. Even though she has experienced different environments and communities, Nashua has quickly became home. “I just like the small community. I love being able to walk to school, and wave to neighbors on my way to work,” she explained.

Her teaching certificate from Carroll College is in kindergarten through eighth grade, but she really loves the middle school atmosphere. “I worked with middle school students during my practicum and observations while at Carroll. They have their own personality at this age,” she explained. Math and English were easy subjects to chose to teach as they were also her favorites growing up. “I am able to see my students twice a day and I love being able to connect with them,” she stated.

Even though she loves the junior high atmosphere, she has thought about one day teaching elementary school, specifically the first grade. She also hopes to one day get her masters focusing on teaching math, however hasn’t thought about what age-range the focus would be on. As she continues to teach math, she also wants her students to be able to to teach their tricks to remember certain concepts instead of directly teaching them. “Math is such a concept-based subject. I want to be able to have the students do the learning, on what works for them, so when I bring up the concepts, they can say ‘I know how to do that!’,” she explained.

Mrs. Julia Kirkland is a new face as the school’s athletic director and PE/health teacher for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The school and area are not new to her as she is an alumna of Nashua School and grew up in the area. “The community has been so welcoming. The school and town has given me so many opportunities growing up. I want to be able to give back,” she said.

While in Nashua, she played volleyball, basketball and participated in track. “I just love the atmosphere and sports. My dad instilled a passion of sports in me. I am very competitive in nature, and growing up, it was always me and my dad against my younger twin brothers,” she explained. After graduating from Nashua, she went on to Minot State University to major in Speech Pathology and minor in PE and coaching. After spending time in the Speech Pathology program, she realized it was not the right fit for her and decided to pursue a PE Health Degree instead.

She graduated from Minot with the PE Health Degree with a minor in coaching. She started at Frazer school after graduating, where she coached everything and even started up the volleyball program there. During her time at Frazer, Mike Erickson, from Wolf Point School, recruited her to coach there and she was at the school for three years. After taking a break from coaching and teaching to raise her children, she took on a part-time position as the rec director in Malta and then the job at Nashua opened up. “In Class C schools, you don’t see a full-time PE position. In most cases it’s usually a teacher at the school who is also doing PE,” she explained.

So far, the school year is going well being back at her alma mater. “The year so far is going great. I love being back teaching. I love the kids and the days go by fast. I am pleasantly surprised of what Nashua has to offer their students,” Kirkland stated. She is also excited to see how Nashua will grow over the years. “Our volleyball team is a young team, they are growing and learning. So is our basketball team. I would love to continue to build up the sports program and continue to build up the already existing school spirit,” she explained as her future goals for the school and sports program. She also likes the fact that Glasgow and Nashua co-op for different sports. “Kids here can have the opportunity to play football, softball and golf. It’s great to have that open door for our students,” Kirkland explained.

Mr. Greg Hetland has been teaching for three years and choose Nashua because he enjoys smaller schools and the rural area. His inspiration for teaching is helping students. “I want my students to be able to chase their dreams and have the knowledge and skills to accomplish them,” he told the Courier.

Hetland, Denning and Kirkland certainly strive to make a difference in the lives of not only their community the the school as well. Nashua school is located at 222 Mable St., Nashua, 406-746-3411.