The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

When Zurich Elementary School students began their school year on Monday, August 19, they welcomed a new K-2 teacher, Cassie Johnson; a new paraprofessional, Krysta Drugge; and a new cook, Sami Powell. However, none of the three newbies is new to the area.

Cassie Johnson, who grew up spending her summers on the family ranch on Lone Tree Bench South of Chinook, is eager to be part of the rural school system. She remembers begging her mother to allow her to attend elementary school at Lone Tree Bench, but her mother-who by that time had moved to Independence, Iowa-wanted a larger social experience for her daughter, who ultimately attended schools in Iowa and eventually went on to Southwestern Oklahoma State (SWOSU) on a rodeo scholarship.

While earning her Bachelor of Science Degree in Kinesiology (exercise science) from SWOSU in 2013, Johnson had to complete an internship at a hospital for a semester, so she chose Northern Montana Hospital to get her foot back in this area. At that time, Johnson had no idea she wanted to teach, but when she was approached in the Town Pump parking lot by Colleen Overcast, the supervising teacher at Zurich Elementary School who also teaches grades 6-8, and asked whether she'd be interested in working as an aid, she accepted.

For the past three years, Johnson has served as a paraprofessional at Zurich Elementary School. "I love it here," she said. "The atmosphere is so joyful, and there is just something so rewarding about seeing the students learn and grow and express pride in their projects."

Last spring, Johnson realized she wanted to teach, so she enrolled in UM-Western's fully online program to earn a Bachelor of Science Early Childhood Education: P-3 degree, which prepares preschool-third grade teachers. "I really love my classes so far," Johnson stated. "This past summer, I took a class called Cultural Diversity, and we learned to have compassion for students, knowing that behavior is often based on value differences since all children are raised in their own homes with their different traditions and beliefs. Although these may differ from our own, we have to respect and honor those differences."

When the position for a K-2 teacher came up, school officials, who have experienced difficulty in staffing for several years now, wondered whether Johnson, who would have to teach on a provisional, Class 5 license, wouldn't be their best choice. Overcast recalls thinking, "Maybe if we grow our own, we can keep her."

The Montana Office of Public Instruction will issue a Class 5 provisional teaching license to individuals who have completed a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited college or university and who have a plan of study from an accredited professional educator preparation program verifying that the applicant can meet the requirements for full licensure within the three year validity period of the license and meets the professional educator preparation program admission requirements. Having earned one bachelor's degree in 2014 and having already enrolled in the education program at UM-Western in Dillon, Johnson could check all of those appropriate boxes.

"For a while, I trolled the OPI website looking for eligible teachers, but most of those candidates were unwilling to come to a remote area where options are limited. And it wasn't just the salary that deterred them. They wanted the amenities and choices that living in a city offers. They also wanted a single-grade classroom. Here at Zurich, we each teach three grades in one room, and that takes a lot of energy, agility, and creative management," Overcast said. "I came up empty in my search; no one wanted the job, and I didn't think it would be fair to the public nor to the students if we assigned four grades per teacher."

So, the Zurich School Board offered the position to Johnson, who agreed.

About Johnson, Overcast said, "She'll be fine; she has a good guts and a great instinct."

On Saturday, August 17, all of the teachers were at the school working: Ms. Johnson, Mrs. Overcast, and Ms. Heather Brown, who teaches grades 3-5. "We have good assets here," Overcast said. "We try to do a lot of school-wide stuff so that our energy benefits and so that we can build social factors for our total school population of twenty students who just don't have the number of classmates required for social interaction."

To further build those social skills, Zurich Elementary School collaborates with other rural schools like Cleveland School and Bear Paw School on field trips and on special programs like Space Public Outreach Team, Star Lab, Miss Montana, and Art Mobile Montana Program.

This school year, Johnson will teach three kindergarten students, two first graders, and one second grader. She feels up for the challenge, crediting her drive, hustle, and ambition to her rodeo days. "I want my students to have a fun year, a positive experience. To achieve that, I have been planning, prepping, and asking others for ideas and resources. I have been getting lots of help from Krysta Drugge, who has an associate's degree in Early Childhood Education. She will be my aid and will lend her background to this work," Johnson said.

Drugge, who is married to Isaac Drugge and whose children also attend the school, lives in Zurich. About her position as a paraprofessional, Drugge said, "I missed being in a classroom, so I am enjoying it so far."

Johnson selected The Wild West as her theme and carried it throughout the room. One bulletin board will feature student work, celebrating their achievement with the slogan, "Hats Off To You." Another wall shares advice from the Old West, offering tips like "stand your ground" and "have a tough hide." On the classroom chalk board, the Wild West Rules were posted, with a sheriff's gold badge for each student. "They have to keep their stars above the line," Johnson explained. "If they cross the line, they have to earn back any demerits. We will have structure and high expectations in this classroom, but those expectations won't be so rigid that the students don't have wiggle room to try again."

As she described her plans for the year-strategies like bucket filling for positive mental health or designing super heroes who champion good vibes, kindness, and self-esteem by fighting the villains that work against those attributes-she named three goals: Creating Positive Classroom Guidelines, Achieving and Expanding Test Scores, and Preparing Students to Be Confidently Ready for the Next Grade Level.

While she teaches, Johnson will continue to complete coursework towards earning her degree. "Juggling the demands of the job while taking college courses will be a challenge," she said, "but I'll do what's best for now." That will probably mean taking only one or two classes so that her focus can remain on her students.

"Life is taking off in a good way," Johnson said. "And while I have the opportunity to work with young people, I will record the clever things they say; maybe I'll write a book!"

Johnson is also eager to build relationships with families and students in the small, rural community of Zurich: "I love how we can push the students that are ready to be pushed and work with the ones needing that extra one-on-one. I like the personalization of our academics here," she exclaimed.

Cassie Johnson's K-2 classroom at Zurich encourages students with its Wild West theme.

The school's third new hire, Sami Powell, will work in the kitchen. Powell, who also expresses a love for children, looks forward to preparing school lunches. Powell previously worked under Heidi Brown, head cook for Chinook School District, so she has completed the training to earn food handler certification. Powell also possesses experience with the Professional Standards Learning Objectives published by the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. The four Key Areas emphasized by the USDA are Nutrition, Operations, Administration and Communications/Marketing.

Because school lunch programs are governed by the USDA, Powell will plan and prepare standardized recipes and cycle menus that include the use of USDA Foods to meet all Federal school nutrition program requirements, including the proper meal components.

After her first day on August 19, Powell said, "I am extremely excited to be in a small and quiet environment. Every day I prepare for around 25 people as we have 20 students. Learning to cook for smaller numbers will be a learning curve, but I am up to the task. Dishes are all hand washed here so that is an encouragement to clean up promptly and often. I am looking forward to the 2019-2020 school year and to many more ahead."