School Board Members

Great Expectations School is a membership organization, meaning that parents, teachers, and staff elect the board. The school board must include teachers and may also include parents and community members.

School board members are elected for three year staggered terms.

The board is comprised of no fewer than 5, but no more than 11 members.

Elections are held in November at the school's annual meeting.

Meet the Board

President                         

Julie O'Neil :: Parent

Jule has been an active parent volunteer since her sons came to GES.  Two years ago, she joined the school board, becoming its chair this past November.  Bringing a strong "can-do" attitude and a love for building community (especially if food is involved!), Julie provides tremendous leadership to the board.

Vice President

Kathryn Nelson-Pedersen :: Educator

This year marks the beginning of Kathryn's second cycle on the school board (educators rotate participation).  Kathryn has been an educator at GES since its founding and leads our middle school classroom -- the Otters.  In addition to education, Kathryn's background includes strong business, art, and social work aspects.  This broad perspective is particularly valuable to the board in its decision-making process.

Treasurer

Amy Henrikson :: Parent

Secretary

Susan Miller :: Educator

Susan joined Great Expectations near the end of the first school year and has been the Special Education teacher ever since.  Re-elected to the board this past November, Susan brings a practical, common-sense  approach to dealing with issues.  She also serves on the Personnel/Policy Committee.

Members At Large

Peter Barsness :: Community Member

Sue Butter :: Educator

Licensed in pre-K through 6th grade, Sue comes to GES with a broad range of teaching experience, including 10 years of home-schooling her three children, 5 years of providing community day care services, and her most recent positions heading the Early Childhood Family Education program for preschoolers and their parents, the Middle School Youth Program, and the Kids Summer Camp and After School Programs.

Jon Hedstrom :: Community Member

Jon's involvement with GES began as a student mentor for our Science Fair.  He was elected to our board as a Grand Marais Community member and serves on our Technology Committee.

Dave Ingebrigtsen  :: Parent

A member of the Cook County community since 1991, Dave has coached youth hockey, baseball and soccer.  He has been employed by the Department of Natural Resources for 23 years, most recently as a wildlife manager with Cook County as his work area.  Dave considers education a life-long endeavor.

Suzy Schweig :: Educator

An educator of 14 years in a private school in St. Louis, MO, Suzy brings her experiences in multiple intelligences, personalized learning plans and a project based learning approach to her students, the board and as a founding member of Great Expectations School. She is a wonderful addition to the board and has greatly assisted and enhanced how we are moving forward.

John Morrin :: Community Member

John has been involved in education for many years and is a frequent contributer to community activities seeking to build understanding and tolerance as a way to fight discrimination.  He was elected this past November as a Grand Portage Community member.  John's perspective and contributions help the board better serve not only our Native American population, but all our students.

© Copyright 2004, Great Expectations Charter School.
PO Box 310 • Grand Marais, MN 55604
p: 218.387.9322 • e: learn@GreatExpectationsSchool.com

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