Chris Carte is the business education teacher on the team. Students will be enrolled in her School-to-Career class sometime during the school year.  Her classroom is a welcoming “business setting” to simulate working in the real world. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Business Education and a Master’s degree in Economics and Education.  She has a genuine interest in helping her students start to figure out their interests and learn about future career pathways.

Topaz Shryock is excited about the opportunity to teach science at Thunder Mountain High School.  She taught math and science at Dzantiki Heeni Middle School for 5 years, and she recently completed her first year of teaching Biology at Juneau-Douglas High School.  After earning a degree in Biology, with a minor in Chemistry, Topaz moved to Juneau to gain a Masters of Arts in Teaching from the University of Alaska Southeast.  She quickly identified with the untamed splendor of Southeast Alaska, rain and all, having grown up on Kodiak Island.  Away from school, Topaz relishes hiking, jogging, hockey, art, travel and spending time with her friends and family.

Carol May was born and raised in upstate New York.  After earning a degree in bioengineering, she worked in the field of ophthalmological research before returning to school to earn an MS in electrical engineering from Carnegie Mellon University.  She then spent 7 years in New Jersey working as an R&D engineer developing digital imaging systems for ophthalmologists.  She and her husband, Scott, moved to Juneau in 1996, where she entered the Master of Arts in Teaching program at UAS.  This is her 11th year teaching mathematics at JDHS.  She is excited to be a part of the TMHS staff, and looks forward to helping develop a series of engineering and robotics electives to help her students apply the math they have learned.

After graduating from JDHS in 2001 Jake spent four years at Western Washington University studying Geology and Math.  His studies at Western included not only Geology and Math, but also biology, physics, chemistry and many humanities classes.  Jake graduated from UAS' Masters of Arts in Teaching program and was soon after hired on at JDHS to teach both math and biology.  He will be teaching physical science at TMHS in the silver small Learning Community,  a task which he is extremely excited about.  The ability to teach freshman some of the basics of science, which will create a foundation for later scientific study, in a brand new classroom, at a brand new school is an opportunity he said would never pass up.

Kristin Garot has been teaching English and history in Juneau for nine years. At JDHS she’s taught government, history, world literature, and AP Language and Composition in a project-based team and on her own.   She is excited about teaching again on a team and is looking forward to engaging students in global studies, which is a passion of hers.

onna received her BA degree in mathematics and teaching certificate from San Diego State University (1976). Donna has over 25 years experience in education. She has taught sixth grade math through pre-calculus, mostly in traditional classrooms. Donna has also coordinated or taught in a learning center, math lab, correspondence study, and adult education programs. She has experience in both public and private schools; including 11 years at JDHS. At JDHS she taught Carnegie Algebra and Geometry, Algebra I, Geometry (regular and advanced), Algebra II-Trig (regular and advanced), and Pre-Calculus.

Graham Storey graduated from  Whitman College with a degree in English Literature, minors in Biology and Education, and a teaching certificate.   He is excited about teaching science again at TMHS.  His claim to fame happened when he was in the Navy and his submarine was used to film the movie Hunt For Red October.

Casady Herding is in her 15th year teaching English—eight at JDHS. Originally from Arizona, she moved to Juneau with her husband and two children in 2000. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona and a Master of Science from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland.  She is thrilled to be a part of Thunder Mountain High’s Exploration and Discovery Academy.

Kent Mearig, Math

Kent Mearig is a graduate of Juneau’s public schools system. Since that time, he has been active in educating students here in Juneau in a variety of ways in roles ranging from substitute teaching to tutoring in juvenile detention centers to teaching restart math classes. The 2007-2008 school year offered Kent his first opportunity to work full time teaching math to high school students from all grades and all achievement levels.  In addition to working with youth in the school setting, Kent has also enjoyed several years assisting the Crimson Bears baseball program and serving in teaching roles in other community organizations.

Enrichment teachers will join the academy to teach specialty areas such as business, art, and other subject areas to compliment academy studies.