Mari Rasmussen has a Ph.D. in Teaching and Learning from the University of North Dakota. She is licensed at both elementary and secondary levels and has an English Learner endorsement. She has taught English Learners in the United States and in Turkey. She has also taught in higher education, worked with English Learners and multicultural education at the national and state level. Currently, Mari works part-time for Valley City State University in the Education Department and part-time for Standing Rock Community School as an English Learner teacher.
Executive Officers
Heather May is currently employed at the Bismarck Adult Learning Center, working with intermediate level EL students. During her time in North Dakota, she has been an EL Coach and ELA teacher at Fort Yates Public Middle School and an EL and GED teacher at the North Dakota State Penitentiary.
In her work abroad, she has taught English to preservice English teachers in Guiyang, China with U.S. Peace Corps China, conducted in-service training for Chinese university and middle school teachers, trained three cohorts of new Peace Corps China volunteers in TEFL, and spent school breaks teaching English to Buddhist nuns in Myanmar.
Prior to teaching, Heather spent 10 years as a data specialist in support of accreditation in the Department of Teacher Education at the University of Dayton.
Heather’s credentials include an MA in English from the University of Dayton, an EL certificate from Valley City State University, and a Peace Corps TEFL certificate.
Casey is currently employed with the Tri-Valley School District in Crooks, SD working as the district’s ELL Coordinator as well as teaching elementary level EL students. She has lived in the Sioux Falls area for her entire life and has been teaching in the area for the last 14 years.
Her education experience includes teaching third grade at Lowell Elementary in Sioux Falls, upper elementary at the Elementary Immersion Center in Sioux Falls, and currently kindergarten through fourth grade EL for the Tri-Valley School District.
Casey’s credentials include a BA in Elementary Education from the University of Sioux Falls as well as her Master’s Degree from Southwest Minnesota State with an emphasis in Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL).
Stephanie is starting her 16th year as an EL teacher in the Brookings School District in Brookings, SD. In 2008, she started her teaching career as a K-5 EL teacher and traveled between schools for 14 years while primarily teaching at Hillcrest Elementary and Camelot Intermediate. As of last year, Stephanie works full-time with 4th and 5th grade EL students at Camelot Intermediate.
Her credentials include secondary and middle level learner education certification from the University of Minnesota Morris. Her student teaching experience at an international boarding school in England allowed her the opportunity to work with many English Learners from around the world at the elementary and secondary levels. This led her to pursue a K-12 EL endorsement and she quickly realized that working with English Learners was her passion. Her passion for working with EL students also led her to become a certified SWEL (School Wide English Learning) coach.
In her free time, Stephanie enjoys spending time with her husband and three sons, reading, and being outdoors as much as possible. She also spends time visiting the family farm.
Dakota Breen received her Master of Education in English Learner Education from the University of North Dakota (UND) in 2015. She also received her Bachelor of Arts in English Education with a minor in Spanish and an EL certification in 2011 from UND. She earned her National Board for Professional Teaching in Secondary EL in 2019. Dakota has been teaching EL Language Arts at West Fargo High School since 2012. Dakota has also filled the role of District EL Support (EL Coordinator) for West Fargo Public Schools since 2022. In her free time, she enjoys reading books, gardening, hanging out with friends, and spending time with her family.
Kristijana Dogan is an 8th-year ML teacher at Grand Forks Central High School. She was born in Bosnia and her parents moved to Grand Forks in 1998 as refugees. She graduated from the University of North Dakota in May 2016 with an undergrad in Elementary Education and an EL certificate. She started teaching EL in August 2016 at Red River High School in Grand Forks, North Dakota, and found that her passion is EL students. Finding this passion led her to get her Master’s degree in EL Education. Her career and personal experience have come full circle as she can connect with her students and their experiences. In her free time, Kristijana enjoys traveling, spending time with family and friends, teaching yoga, and reading.
Jean Larson is an Instructional Specialist with the South Dakota Statewide Title III Consortium that provides program development and instructional guidance to South Dakota Schools with English Learner students. As a result of previous work experience and educational preparation, Jean fully understands the diverse needs of the growing English Learner student population, the importance of connecting with schools while supporting their efforts to establish and sustain effective and results driven instructional programming.
Since leaving a career as a counselor in the Huron School District, Jean is now beginning her seventh year as an Instructional Specialist with the South Dakota Statewide Title III Program. In this capacity, she has the benefit of working alongside five other well trained colleagues. Working with immigrant and refugee students has long been a passion of hers. As a result, she takes immense pride in helping schools grow a sustainable and effective educational program that addresses the needs of the English Learners in their schools.
Jean makes her home in Huron, SD. When she is not playing with new grandbabies, she enjoys camping on the Missouri River, golfing, and playing piano at her church
Interest Area Representatives
Bobbie Kilber is in her third year working as an Instructional Specialist with the SD Statewide Title III and Migrant Consortia. Bobbie supports approximately 25 of the member districts. She provides professional development and technical support to schools with English Learners and/or migrant students. Throughout Bobbie’s 22 years working in education, she has gained experience working with multiple grade levels and has worked directly with English Learners for several years. She has been an instructor for Preschool, Reading Recovery, Title I, Grades 1 and 2 combined, Grades 4-8 at a Hutterite Colony school, Middle School Social Studies/Advanced Reading, and she has served as an ESL Interventionist. In addition, Bobbie has two years of experience as Principal for three Hutterite Colony Schools. She has a BS in Early Childhood Education from South Dakota State University, Elementary/Middle School Certification from Black Hills State University, Reading Recovery certification from the University of South Dakota, a Master’s in Leadership and Administration in Education from Northern State University, and an ENL Endorsement through Dakota Wesleyan University.
Sarah Oleksik, an EL Teacher for Williston Basin School District #7, works with students grades K-4 to help them achieve English Language Proficiency. As a first-generation American, with Polish immigrant parents, Sarah knows firsthand the challenges and opportunities of learning a new language and adapting to a new culture.
Before working as an EL Teacher, Sarah spent three years as a general education classroom teacher in West Fargo, ND, and completed an international student teaching assignment in South Africa. She has also studied abroad in Helsinki, Finland, and Stockholm, Sweden, further enriching her global perspective on education.
Sarah holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with an endorsement in English Language Learning from Valley City State University and a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Science from North Dakota State University, providing her with a comprehensive understanding of both the academic and social aspects of learning.
Jenn started her teaching career subbing for the Sioux Falls school district and area schools while her children were in school. She then became a grade level tutor for Harrisburg school district for five years. She moved north and became the first ELL Coordinator and Grades 5-12 EL teacher for the Flandreau school district. She has been the ELL Coordinator and EL teacher since May 2018. In her spare time, she likes to spend time with her kids, who are both in college, her family and friends. She also likes to keep busy with projects for her new house she bought in August 2023.
Bio to come
Kristina Starr is a teacher for the Mitchell School District in her tenth year teaching K-8 at Rockport Colony. Before teaching in Mitchell, she taught three years with the Freeman School District and one year at Lake View Colony in the Lake Andes School District. She and her husband, Mike, live near Mitchell with their four children. She enjoys spending time outdoors with her family.
Michelle Candy has taught in the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for almost nine years. She teaches GED prep classes, adult literacy, and MLs at the minimum security facility in Bismarck.
Before moving to North Dakota, Michelle taught high school and college English and EFL / ESL classes in Oregon, Hawaii, Northeast China, and Hong Kong. Before moving to North Dakota, Michelle had not lived in one place longer than the six years she spent in Hong Kong.
Michelle is from Colorado, with a BA in English literature from the University of Northern Colorado. She has an MA in TESOL from Azusa Pacific University, and is currently studying for a graduate certificate in dyslexia from Central Arkansas University.
In her free time, she loves reading mysteries and science fiction, spending time with her granddaughter, and posing with public art.
Bio to come
Nikkie Duin has been an adjunct professor at the University of Sioux Falls for four years. Her education experience includes teaching Kindergarten at Tiospa Zina Tribal School, Kindergarten at Longfellow Elementary, and third grade at Hawthorne Elementary. She was also a Math Instructional Coach and Math Interventionist for one year at Hawthorne Elementary. In 2015, she became the admin intern (aka assistant principal) at Anne Sullivan Elementary School, a position she held for three years. She then moved to Harvey Dunn Elementary to gain experience at a non-Title I school. In 2019, she returned to Anne Sullivan Elementary as the principal, a role she still holds in addition to her work at USF.