New staff members at VHS
By Olivia London-Chambers, reporter
Gavin Kovite
Positions: Senior English, AP English Literature, and Sophomore English
Past job experience: Taught one year full time at Kingston High School in North Kitsap.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I’m excited about the rigor of the academics and the ability skill of the students here, and I’d like to develop my teaching practice of getting deep into literature and writing.”
Nan Hammet
Position: Individual Education Plan (IEP) case manager
Past job experience: Worked with the Vashon School District Student Link and Family Link programs for over 20 years.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I want to do the best job possible in serving the students and supporting staff.”
Kathleen Regovitch
Positions: Chemistry and AP chemistry
Past job experience: First time teaching high school classes, taught chemistry classes at the University of Illinois before moving to the Pacific Northwest.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I hope that my students learn chemistry and understand it, but also understand how science relates to the real world.”
Karah Weber
Positions: Chemistry and forensics
Past job experience: First-year teacher
Hopes and goals for the year: “I want to connect with as many individuals as I can to establish a foundation here.”
Callan Foster
Position: Librarian
Past job experience: First-year librarian, graduated from Western Washington University in 2019 with an English degree.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I really think that in terms of accessibility, equity, accountability … all those things often start at the library. I’m just really excited for students to be excited about literature.”
Stephanie Detwiler
Position: French I
Past job experience: Teaches humanities, French, and drama at McMurray Middle School.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I hope that we have a French trip of some kind planned and ready by the end of the year. … I hope we have a strong enrollment for next year and a lot of kids continue on to their second year [of French].”
Kevin McLaren
Positions: Sophomore English and Engish Language Learner (ELL) Educator
Past job experience: Taught at Decatur High School in Federal Way and Tacoma Community College.
Hopes and goals for the year: “Just to get better at teaching. The first year at a school can be challenging in a number of ways, but so far so good.”
Sarah Sullivan
Position: ELL Educator
Past job experience: Worked at Vashon Youth and Family Services (VYFS) before becoming an ELL educator, and now works as a bilingual counselor and case manager. Previously worked as a teacher and tutor for multiple grade levels. Has taught in Spain and Mexico for a combined 8 years.
Hopes and goals for the year: “My goals for this year are to support our English language learners and the certified teaching staff so that we may best serve the students at Vashon High School.”
Ryan Jaeger
Position: Sports medicine teacher
Past job experience: Athletic trainer at Vashon High School, first-year teacher
Hopes and goals for the year: “I’m working on having some fun activities for the class … and if they get that interest in health care or sports medicine, then guiding them to research college programs and potentially going into school for it once they graduate.”
Britt Dahlgren
Position: Band teacher
Past job experience: Private lessons and marching band coach for 15 years, educational assistant for McMurray middle school band, and a substitute teacher in both Washington and Illinois.
Hopes and goals for the year: “I hope to be a welcoming, fun, and supportive teacher and that more students will want to participate in or continue in the band program.”