Park County School District 1 is welcoming in a good amount of new teachers this school year with a range of experiences, from brand new teachers to ones with more experience. Some are moving to the area for the first time while a number are coming home to Powell.

Jada Collins

Jada Collins is joining the staff at Parkside Elementary School as a fifth grade teacher. Originally from Casper, she recently graduated from the University of Wyoming with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. During her preparation to become an educator, she completed student teaching in Lovell, as well as in Thessaloniki, Greece. In addition to her student teaching experiences, Jada has worked with students in preschool through fifth grade through classroom practicums, the Boys & Girls Club, Teton Science Schools, and a special needs therapy business where she supported students with a variety of learning and developmental needs.

Brenda Coombs

Brenda Coombs will be teaching sixth grade composition and literature at Powell Middle School. She earned her associate’s degree from Northwest College and completed her bachelor’s degree through Valley City State University’s distance education program in 2013 while raising her family in Powell. During that time, she also worked as a seventh grade paraeducator at Powell Middle School.

Brenda began her teaching career in Lovell, where she spent 12 years there teaching sixth grade social studies and language arts, seventh grade language arts, and two ELA-related elective courses she developed.

Devon Curtis

Devon Curtis will be stepping into the role of special education teacher at Westside Elementary School. Devon is a Powell High School graduate who earned her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Health Promotion from the University of Wyoming and is currently working toward her master’s degree in Teaching Special Education. She is teaching elementary special education as part of PCSD1’s Learn and Grow Your Own Teacher Program where she will earn her teaching certification while working alongside and learning from experienced educators.

Jaimie Dalmann

Jaimie Dalmann will be taking over as a new third grade teacher at Southside Elementary School. Jaimie, originally from the Lovell area, earned her bachelor’s in health and human development in early childhood from Montana State University in Bozeman and her masters in education from Grand Canyon University. She has spent the past four years teaching first grade in Reno, Nevada, prior to returning to the basin.

Ashlyn Duncan

Ashlyn Duncan will be joining Southside Elementary School as a second grade teacher. Ashlyn graduated from Chadron State College with a degree in Elementary Education and a minor in Special Education. She spent the last four years teaching third grade in Kemmerer, where she loved building relationships with her students and making learning fun.

Brett Forester

Brett Forester will be stepping into the role of Spanish teacher at Powell Middle School. Originally from Sanford, Colorado, Brett earned his bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Adams State University. During his college years, he served as the president of the Spanish club, organizing travels to Guatemala, Mexico and Peru. Brett brings seven years of teaching experience to the district, having spent one year teaching in Colorado and the last six years in Huntsville, Texas. In addition to his work in the classroom, he has a passion for athletics, having coached basketball in Colorado for four years and soccer in Texas for four years.

Olivia Graff

Olivia Graff will be stepping into the role of IMC clerk and freshman volleyball coach for Powell High School. Olivia is an Idaho native but spent the last 20 years in Washington and South Carolina. She received degrees in Environmental Studies and Accounting, as well as played volleyball for Eastern Oregon University in La Grande.

Breanna Hall

Breanna Hall will be teaching fourth grade at Westside Elementary School. Originally from Nevada, Breanna recently graduated from Western Governors University with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education. She has previously served as a kindergarten paraprofessional, a long-term substitute teacher and student teacher at Parkside Elementary School.

Cody Helenbolt

Cody Helenbolt joins Powell High School as the Learning Center teacher beginning this fall. He has lived in Powell for the last two years after moving to the area to become the Northwest College women’s basketball coach in 2024. Helenbolt previously worked in Converse County School District 1 in Douglas for 15 years. While in Douglas, he served as a secondary social studies teacher, varsity girls’ basketball coach and middle school football coach. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance and Real Estate and a Post-Baccalaureate Teaching Certification in Social Studies from the University of Wyoming and a master’s degree in Coaching and Athletic Administration from Concordia University-Irvine. Helenbolt is a graduate of Lander Valley High School. He will continue to serve as the Northwest women’s basketball coach while teaching at Powell High School. 

Katelyn Miller

Katelyn Miller is returning to Westside Elementary to teach fourth grade. Entering her fourth year in education, Miller previously taught fifth grade at Westside for two years before spending the past year teaching in North Dakota — her home state. Miller earned her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Montana State University-Billings and is currently working toward her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction through American College of Education.

Luke Myszewski

Luke Myszewski will be stepping in as the new science teacher at Powell High School. Luke grew up in Buffalo, where both of his parents were teachers. He studied at Northern Arizona University where he majored in Physics and Astronomy. He obtained his teaching license in 2012 after enrolling in a teacher preparation program after graduating. He earned his master’s degree in teaching science from Northern Arizona University in 2014. His first teaching job was in Pinedale where he taught and coached for 14 years.

Alison Rogers

Alison Rogers will be stepping into the role of occupational therapist within the Special Services Department of Park County School District 1. Born and raised in Powell, she graduated from Powell High School in 2006. She attended Northwest College and the University of Wyoming, receiving her bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and Health Promotion. She went on to earn her master’s degree in Occupational Therapy from Eastern Washington University in 2012. Her work experience includes several years in the outpatient setting treating adults and primarily children.

Brady Schaefer

Brady Schaefer will be teaching eighth grade math at Powell Middle School. Originally from Powell, Brady received his associate’s degrees in Secondary Education and Mathematics from Northwest College, bachelor’s degrees in Secondary Education and Mathematics at the University of Wyoming, and most recently his master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Western Governor’s University. Previously to returning to Powell, he taught sixth through eighth grade math at Pinedale Middle School for nine years During that time, he also coached junior varsity boys and girls basketball alongside golf at Pinedale High School.

Brianna Schwan

Brianna Schwan will be the new speech pathologist out of Southside Elementary School. Brianna grew up in Powell and graduated from Powell High School in 2010. She began her college studies in Elementary Education at Montana State University in Bozeman before discovering the field of speech-language pathology. She then transferred to the University of Wyoming, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Speech, Language, and Hearing Science, followed by a master’s degree in Speech-Language Pathology.

For the past nine years, Brianna has worked as a senior speech-language pathologist at UCHealth Children’s Therapy Services, a pediatric outpatient clinic, providing speech and language services to children from birth through adulthood.

Karen Skoric

Karen Skoric will be the new reading recovery teacher for Southside Elementary School. Karen is originally from Cody and got her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from the University of Nebraska. She earned her master’s in early and intermediate literacy from Walden University and has spent over 20 years in education. She has worked in PCSD1 since 2022, where she has been serving as an IMC clerk at the Powell High School.

Kathryn Waibel

Kathryn Waibel will be stepping into the special education resource role at Powell High School. Kathryn is originally from Powell before she left to study art, elementary education as an undergraduate at Minnesota State College and her Master’s in Special Education from Purdue University. She has spent 13 years as an educator with her most recent experience being at Green River High School.

Rachel Whipple

Rachel Whipple will be a special education teacher at Westside Elementary School. Originally from Powell, Rachel comes from a long line of educators, including her father who served in Wyoming schools as a principal and superintendent. Rachel studied at Western Governors University and received a degree in Elementary Education and Special Education. She started her teaching career last year at Cowley High School as a special education teacher.

Hailie Wilhelm

Hailie Wilhelm is the new Physical Education teacher at Southside Elementary. She is originally from Casper and is a recent graduate of the University of Wyoming, where she was a part of the PE Teacher Education Program for the last two years.