Tara Cassmann, Jordan Anderson, Hannah Terry, Katie Hansen, and Anna VanRavenswaay joined the Lanesboro School staff at the start of this current school year.
First year teacher Anna VanRavenswaay, Lanesboro’s new band teacher, grew up in Montevideo, Minn., and attended college at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. As a member of a musical family, Anna began piano lessons in first grade and piano quickly became more than a hobby for her. When she started middle school band, she knew that music would always be a part of her life. Her high school band instructors encouraged her to pursue music as a career. She credits her fabulous teachers who inspired her as her role models in her choice to teach music.
VanRavenswaay feels that every student has a place in band; band challenges students in completely new ways and teaches responsibility as well as life skills. Her goals this year are to help her students become more confident musicians and create a safe environment where students support and encourage each other. She wants to encourage students to always follow their passions.
She sees her challenge for this year to be getting students used to playing their instruments again. This year will be a rebuilding year for the band.
In her free time, Anna loves to travel and explore new places. She loves to learn about different cultures. She loves to hike and find the best views along her hikes; she enjoys tennis and basketball, but also likes to watch a good Netflix show from the couch.
Anna lives in Chatfield with her significant other and their kittens, Charlotte and Titan. Her parents and two brothers all live in different areas of Minnesota.
Ms. VanRavenswaay looks forward to getting to know her students, the staff, and the Lanesboro community, calling it a “unique area of the state.”
Jordan Anderson, the new 5th and 6th grade teacher, comes from a family full of teachers. Both her mom and oldest sister are teachers in Spring Grove. They, along with Anderson’s high school English teacher, Mrs. Nelson, inspired her to become a teacher. She wants to impact and engage her own students in the same way.
Anderson attended Winona State University and graduated in May 2020 with a major in elementary education and a minor in middle level social studies. She student-taught in Houston; after graduating, she returned to her home in Spring Grove and worked last year as a full-time substitute and Title 1 teacher.
In her spare time, Jordan loves to hike and fish; she also loves sports — playing, watching, and coaching. She lives in Spring Grove and has two sisters, a niece, and a nephew living in the area. Her significant other, Gabe, is a farmer in Black Hammer.
Ms. Anderson considers COVID-19 her biggest challenge this year; she wants to bring the students a sense of comfort and normalcy in her classroom.
Anderson looks forward to learning from Lanesboro’s “amazing veteran teachers.” She finds Lanesboro to be a very welcoming community. It reminds her of home; this reassures her that it will be a great place to work. Her goal is to help her students grow into the best versions of themselves possible.
Hannah Terry is the new 1st and 2nd grade teacher at Lanesboro. She said that school was not always easy for her as a student, but she enjoyed going to school and admired her teachers. She wants to help students grow in their social, emotional, and academic lives and wants to be a “light in children’s lives.”
She chose first and second grade because she enjoys the eagerness of that age — they love school and are motivated to learn every day.
Terry grew up in Bloomington, Minn., and graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School. She received her elementary education degree from Winona State University, majoring in early childhood.
Terry enjoys hiking, going to coffee shops, making clay earrings, and just spending quality time with people around her. She has a younger sister, mom, dad, and grandparents.
Ms. Terry will be commuting from Winona, Minn., to Lanesboro School. She has not taught elsewhere; this is her first year of teaching.
The biggest challenge Ms. Terry foresees for the year will be learning her teaching style and adapting effective classroom management techniques to best fit her style.
Ms. Terry is looking forward to growing in her teaching skills, making lasting relationships with her students, and getting to know the community better. She has set a goal to teach her students how to be good citizens, love each other. She wants them to continue to enjoy school and learning in her classroom.
Ms. Terry ended by thanking people for taking the time to get to know her and enthused that she would love to get to know the members of the community as well!
Tara Cassman is not new to teaching or to Lanesboro School, but she is new to teaching at Lanesboro School as the Intervention Specialist for the elementary. Cassman graduated from Lanesboro High School and went on to earn a K-6 Elementary Education degree with a Reading endorsement from Wartburg College. An experienced teacher, she has taught in Woodbine, Iowa; she also has owned, operated, and taught at Sylvan Learning Centers and owned and taught at a Rochester children’s dance company.
Cassman shared that her own elementary teachers helped her with her speech challenges that had resulted from ear infections in her youth as well as with reading and confidence. Her goal is to do the same for her students: she wants her students to overcome their academic challenges and become confident students.
Ms. Cassman feels the biggest challenge for her this year will be “to take it slow to ensure that each student has mastered the earliest reading skill they struggle with and to continually monitor their progress.” With that in mind, she has created an individual learning plan for each student.
Cassman lives in Lanesboro with her daughter Elianna, an eighth grader at Lanesboro School, and their dog named Daphne. In her spare time, Cassman enjoys exploring, bicycling, and spending time with family and friends.
Ms. Cassman is looking forward to being part of a team and working collaboratively with her fellow teachers at Lanesboro Schools to make a positive impact on her students.
Katie Hansen, Lanesboro’s new elementary special education teacher, claims she “always had the natural tendencies of a teacher.” Even though she tried to go to college for something else, she ultimately came back to teaching. Hanson’s mother was a preschool teacher; Katie says she’s always enjoyed working with children and learning from her mom. Katie loves working with students and helping them learn to become the best they can be.
Hanson grew up in La Crosse, Wis., graduating from La Crosse Central. She attended University of Wisconsin — Stevens Point, focusing on music and special education; she recently earned her Master’s in Education from UWSP as well. Her previous teaching experiences have been in the La Crosse area.
Katie lives in Mabel with her boyfriend and her cat. She enjoys music, playing percussion and piano. Katie also enjoys the outdoors, especially kayaking and boating. Her mom and two brothers live in nearby La Crosse, Wis.
Ms. Hansen feels that COVID remains the biggest challenge to her as a teacher. She wants to grow as a teacher this year; she looks forward to having a positive impact on her students with early intervention.
Ms. Hansen is excited to be in Lanesboro and experience the small town community and school. She remembers coming to Lanesboro on family camping trips and looks forward to enjoying another aspect of Lanesboro.
Welcome to the Lanesboro School and community, ladies; have a great school year!
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