New teachers and staff join NHS

As the 2024-2025 school year begins, Niwot High School welcomes a new registrar, a student engagement specialist, and eleven new teachers in math, English, social studies, science, and Spanish.

The new teachers and staff are Chevron Bayley (social studies), Michael DeCamillis (science), Sarah Florek (social studies), Gunilla Godebu (registrar), Priscilla Gonzalez (student engagement specialist), Kristen Keronen (Spanish), Stephanie Polutchko (science), Kyle Rees (art), Taylor Richardson (math), Taylor Renquist (math), Laura Schoenfeld (chemistry), Marcus Williams (English/social studies/business), and Julissa Zimbleman (English).

Bayley, a new social studies teacher, went to Rocky Mountain High School in Fort Collins, lived overseas for eight years and then returned to Colorado. She has taught IB Middle Years Program and other IB classes in Qatar and Taiwan. She is a former collegiate basketball player who expanded her basketball career with the Qatar National Team where she played tournaments in Qatar, Turkey and Jordan.

“I specifically chose Niwot High School because I wanted to get back into the IB world and work with a diverse group of motivated students,” Bayley said.

Schoenfeld, the new chemistry instructor, has a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from CU Boulder and a master’s degree in education from CU Denver. She worked at Arvada Senior High School for six years before taking a one year break to spend time with her two-year-old daughter while she worked part time at the CSU Science Outreach Center. During COVID, Schoenfeld got her master’s degree in chemistry from South Dakota State University. Outside of teaching and chemistry, Schoenfeld likes to rock climb, read, run, camp, and travel.

Schoenfeld said, “I like the various applications of chemistry and teaching people all about it. I am excited to work at Niwot High School this year - so far everyone has been very welcoming and is excited to learn and be at school.”

Polutchko, a science educator, grew up in Broomfield and is a CU Boulder graduate where she discovered her love for plant science and teaching. After teaching at Erie High School, she returned to CU Boulder in 2020 to pursue a PhD. Her research is focused on how plants move sugars and water to grow and perform photosynthesis and how different light environments can be used to enhance plant nutrition. At CU Boulder, she also taught Principles of Ecology and developed a case study to connect research with learning. Despite her passion for research, Polutchko always wanted to return to high school teaching.

Polutchko said she is “beyond excited to be at Niwot and to be part of such a welcoming community that feels like home. I can't wait for all the great experiences this year has in store.”

Keronen, a Longmont native and Skyline High School graduate, earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish and International Studies from the University of Southern California, and also studied Spanish in Valencia, Spain. Keronen completed her Master of Arts degree in Spanish at Colorado State University in 1999 and spent 23 years teaching Spanish at Skyline High School before joining the Niwot High School faculty this year. Both of her children, Samuel and Sofia Keronen, are alumni of NHS, graduating in 2021 and 2024, respectively. In her free time Keronen likes to spend time with her family and friends, travel abroad and go to the mountains. She also enjoys trying new recipes and finding new hobbies.

“As a parent, I loved the support my children got from their teachers, coaching staff and the administration at Niwot,” she said. “I was very honored to get a job teaching here this year and am very excited to be a part of the Cougar team. So far, I'm enjoying the friendliness of the staff and students here and am looking forward to teaching Spanish 1.”