Several new teachers joined the ranks at the Steelville School District for the 2012-13 school year.

    Ashley Bolling is teaching Art at the high school and has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Missouri State in Ceramics and a Masters degree in Teaching from Webster University. She is originally from Branson and has taught in a variety of settings, including public and private locales, and to students with disabilities and to those who live in inner city settings. Her hobbies include cooking foods from scratch, knitting, hiking and camping.
    April Mathews has been hired as a paraprofessional for Special Education. She holds an Associate degree in Business Administration. Mathews worked for the city of Rolla for 12 years in the Finance Department and was responsible for payroll and Human Resource functions. She is married to Nic Mathews and has two children and her hobbies are working out and fun activities with her family. Her hometown is Steelville.
    Matt Thomas will teach Spanish, Weights and Home Repair at the high school. His hometown in Farmington, Iowa and he has a B.S. in Industrial Tech Education and a Masters in Athletic Administration. He has 13 years of teaching experience in Iowa and in Palmyra, Mo. Thomas’ wife Carey will also be teaching in Steelville this year and the couple has three children and he enjoys playing basketball in his free time.
    Carey Thomas is a Special Education teacher at SHS. She is also originally from Iowa and graduated with a degree in Elementary Education from William Penn University in 2000. She also has a Masters degree in Special Education. She has taught a 11 years in Special Education, nine of which were at the secondary level. She enjoys spending time with her family and playing sports.
    Christina Booker, a native of Cook Station, will serve as a Special Education teacher in sixth grade and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Legal Studies and a Masters of Arts in Special Education. She has worked in the Steelville School District as a substitute teacher since 2008. Her husband is David and the couple has five children. Her hobbies include horses, swimming, gardening and reading.
    Tina Goosz is teaching seventh and eighth grade Social Studies. She has a degree in Music Education and Clarinet Performance and taught Band and Music at Cabool for five years, was a summer school teacher’s aide at Boys and Girls Town and was a substitute teacher in Steelville last year. She is engaged to be married to Matthew Grann and is originally from Hoffman Estates, Ill. and Steelville. Goosz enjoys music, reading, playing Wii and computer games, cross stitch and scrapbooking.
    Sharon Ransom is from Steelville and holds an Associates degree in Human Resource Management and a Bachelors degree in Business Administration. She will serve as a paraprofessional in the elementary computer lab, library and with RTI. She worked for 18 years in her family business and has been a substitute teacher for the past four years. She’s married to J.T. and they have three children. Her hobbies include reading, sewing fishing, hunting and painting.
    Stacey Schroeder graduated from Texas A&M in Commerce, Texas this year with a degree in Elementary Education (Early Childhood through 6th grade). She is originally from Washington, Mo. and will be teaching kindergarten in Steelville. In her free time, she enjoys trapshooting.
    Amy Martin is also teaching kindergarten and is a native of Steelville. She taught kindergarten in Steelville previously from 1999 to 2006 and has a Bachelors degree in Early Childhood and Elementary Education along with a Masters of Education. She is married to Harry Martin III and has two children. She likes being outdoors with her husband and her two boys, Hayden (age 5) and Evan (age 4). She loves to travel and to visit local state parks.
    Christian Corbett has been hired to teach third and fourth grade Special Education  and has a degree in Elementary Education from Missouri Baptist University. She has worked as a teacher at Boys and Girls Town and as a paraprofessional for Special Education in Cuba Middle School. She is from Cuba, married to Dane and has three children. Her hobbies include reading, playing basketball, being involved in the community and traveling.
    Melody Ward is from St. James and graduated earlier this year with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary and Special Education. She served as a Title I Reading and Math paraprofessional for ten years at Steelville Elementary and taught Computer Lab there for one year. She will teach kindergarten and first grade Special Education. She likes to spend time with her husband Dane and her three daughters and enjoys cross stitching and reading.
    Ashley Dicus is a Steelville native and will be teaching Special Education in the elementary this year. She also graduated earlier this year with a Bachelors in Elementary Education and has been a substitute teacher for the district for about three years. She is married to Brad and has one child. In her free time she likes to take pictures, scrapbook, camp and spend time with friends and family.
    Tifanie Stephens is teaching first grade after graduating earlier this year from Lindenwood University with a degree in Early Childhood Education. She is originally from Florissant and has worked for the Special School District of St. Louis County for four years as an ABA paraprofessional. She is married to Benjamin “Craig” Stephens and likes to scrapbook, make cards and spend time with her family.