Leaders of the Pack - New Staff

4 l Back to School Edition l The Pepper Box

Leaders of the pack

Caitlin Balestreri SSD

I loved Ritenour’s long history within St. Louis! I am passionate about helping students achieve the skills and confidence they need to go after their post-secondary goals!

Lisa Brougham Counselor

In the business world I saw people who were in jobs that were not a good fit and I thought it would be better to help people understand themselves and the world of work before they go to college or get into the job market.

Lindsey Buxman OP Main Office

I am a 2005 Ritenour graduate and a member of the Ritenour community. I have always wanted to work in a school, so when the opportunity came up to work at Ritenour I was excited.

Maria Campbell English

I grew up not too far from the district and my oldest sister graduated from Ritenour in the 80s. I was impressed with the diversity and progressive initiatives within the district.

Catherine Farris OP - Seniors

I have a senior here at the high school and he’s been in the district since kindergarten. I’ve enjoyed all of his teachers, so when an opening became available I applied.

Laura Garay Spanish

I love working with Ritenour students; I’ve met so many bright students who work hard to achieve big goals.

Dr. Jana Haywood Principal

I was drawn to Ritenour because of the diversity, strong community involvement and rich history of academic success. I look forward to honoring the past while looking towards an exciting future.

Blake Hernton Orchestra

Between the faculty and students, there are so many different students with different backgrounds in the district that I get to interact with, learn from, and share the joy of learning music.

Barbara Maguad SSD

I have some previous coworkers who grew up here and are currently sending their children to the district and they have had nothing but positive things to share.

Yarmon Kirksey Grad Coach

I love the diversity of Ritenour; it’s really what drew me in. But I also love their traditions- and I hope to make winning one of them.

Grace Manternach Math

The main reason I went into teaching was to help young people discover who they are as individuals. I had a lot of great teachers growing up and I wanted to be like them.

The Pepper Box l Back to School Edition l 5

Meet the new RHS staff members

Patrice Mitchell Math

I heard nothing but great things about Ritenour. I wanted the opportunity to grow in a new direction.

Adam Monterusso Counselor

I know that many students experience barriers that impede their academic success and social/emotional well being. I wanted to help provide solutions to those barriers.

Abigail Russell FACS

I came to Ritenour last January as a long term sub. I enjoyed my time here and I was thrilled to come back as a full time teacher for the 21-22 school year.

Rebecca Ohmer Social Studies

I knew I wanted to be a teacher after my junior year in high school after I had a really great history teacher who helped me realize how much bigger the world was than just my little part of it.

Tyrese Robinson Main Office

What drew me to Ritenour was the impact of helping students just like me to succeed in future. The challenges that students are facing can be a burden on them, but I would like to help those students achieve their great potential.

Alyson Schroeder Spanish

The diversity of Ritenour is what brought me to this position. It is amazing to teach in such a culturally diverse environment.

Seaver Sherod CCR Counselor

I am a Ritenour alumnus myself. I enjoy pouring into the same school that played such a pivotal role in shaping me into the person that I am. I hope to have a positive impact in the same way that many of the staff and faculty members had on me.

Juliann Tinsley Nurse

My nieces and nephew were students here, so I was familiar with the district. I’ve always been interested in being a school nurse and it was even better that it was in a community that my family is a part of.

Amy Wilson Speech/Lang

I wanted to work with a diverse population, not to mention I speak Spanish and wanted to work somewhere I could use it! I believe our social interactions are a vital part of what makes us human :)

Jennifer Wilson FACS

My husband and I graduated from Ritenour as well as my brother and one of his sisters. I love that I got to start a new chapter of my life where an old chapter ended.

Linze Zarzeck Counselor

I worked with Dr. Haywood and other counseling staff members in another district. I was excited to join them again and continue our work in providing socialemotional support for the Ritenour students.