Local Charter School Shares Exciting News

By Misty Cryer

In addition to having a new administrator and new staff members, students and staff of Jefferson Montessori Academy can expect some other positive changes, from improvements to the building to the enhancement of programs. The opportunity for new students to enroll is expected to reappear on the school’s website on July 1.

“Ms. Barta did retire, so I’m stepping up as the Head Administrator,” said Dr. Katie Appling. “Mr. Mathias McGee will be teaching STEM, Mrs. Diane Resendez will be secondary ELA, and Ms. Mindy Rodriguez will be secondary Math,” said Appling about new staff members.

Recently, Appling and Doña Cassingham attended the STEM Summit, hosted by Permian Strategic Partnership and the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation at Southeast New Mexico College. Cassingham confirmed she was awarded the Classroom Makeover from the drawing at the STEM Summit, which included furniture and a fundamental kit of several mini sets of different STEM workstations.

When asked if it was just for her classroom or for the school as a whole, Cassingham said, “I will be giving it to the school as a whole.”

Cassingham is in her third year with JMA, she said. “I am currently teaching seventh to 12th grade Science and Health.”

About the STEM Summit, Cassingham said, “I really enjoyed it. Some of the classes I took were able to give me quite a bit of information that I hadn’t had before. It gave me some ideas of how to incorporate it into my regular science classes as well as true STEM classes.”

Cassingham said she will be offering a new STEM-based club after school for the elementary students. As the departmental head, she said she will assist the new STEM teacher with themes, lesson plans, and things of that nature.

Appling said she and Cassingham were actually able to meet with JaNel Alston, the Assistant Director of STEM Education for the Cal Ripken, Sr. Foundation. “JMA received the Carl Ripken STEM Program many years ago. Since then, we’ve not been able to have a refresh or an inventory. Because I’m a new head administrator, and because of the focus I want to do for next year, they’re actually not only going to give us that fundamental kit. They’re going to give us a total refresh of our STEM Program, which is great,” she said.

Appling said that, for the elementary students, JMA has what are called pullouts or specials, so once a week, they would already get an hour of STEM from the STEM teacher. “With this refresh and having gone to the summit and received some training, we’re actually going to be able to help our elementary teachers incorporate some STEM programs into, like, their language arts lessons, their math lessons, so that it’s not just in the ‘STEM Room’, it’ll be a little bit in all classrooms. I’m excited,” she said.

Other school news that Appling shared is that the school is in the middle of a construction renovation process. She said this includes painting, installing flooring in the classrooms, and a total overhaul of the STEM classroom.

“We’re going to have a lot of family nights next year. We’re putting some resources into our STEM and Science program, including STEM and science competitions, like encoding and robotics. We’re bringing back science fairs and spelling bees,” she said.

“We do still have openings,” said Appling. “The enrollment form is going to go live again on our website July 1st,” she said.

“We typically run a lottery system and so, after the lottery closes, I use the month of June to look at our numbers and be able to tell exactly what I have open,” said Appling. She said she believes there will be openings for everything, except maybe kindergarten.

“I’m a local girl. I graduated from Carlsbad High School in ‘92,” said Appling.

“I started my whole educational process as an Instructional Assistant in Hobbs while I finished getting my bachelor’s degree,” she said, adding she worked in Hobbs for five years teaching middle school Social Studies while also working with their 21st Century and Junior Broadway after-school programs.

Along with the COVID pandemic, Appling said her parents’ health started going downhill, and so she moved from Hobbs back to Carlsbad. “I taught in Loving for three years—again, middle school social studies,” she said.

When her parents were doing better and COVID was over, Appling said she went out to Los Angeles for a year. “I was a director of after-school elementary programs,” she said. While she was in L.A., her dad passed away, so she came back to Carlsbad because her family needed her. She said she was a Social Studies teacher for JMA last year.

About her educational background, Appling said, “I have a bachelor’s in history. I have a master’s in curriculum development, a master’s in educational administration, and then my doctorate in education.”