Publications Department

I believe that Hillcrest is a great place for students to learn. I enjoy its size and the friendliness and closeness of staff and students. I have a desire to help it grow and become an even better place.

Educational Background
I was born in Fergus Falls on June 8, 1956 during the Annual Convention of the Lutheran Brethren even though my parents lived in Minneapolis. We moved a few times in my preschool years as my dad served as pastor of a church in Faribault, MN for a few years and then he returned to Fergus Falls to teach at Hillcrest. He later became the manager of Lutheran Brethren Publishing Co. and was a part of the leadership that built the building which now houses our Junior High.

I went to Adams School in Fergus Falls until the 4th grade when my dad accepted a call to serve as Pastor in the Rose of Sharon Lutheran Brethren Church in Portland, OR. In Portland I attended Lynchwood School through the 8th grade. In 1970 our family moved back to Fergus Falls and my dad taught in the Bible School. I attended one year at the Fergus Falls Junior High and then went to Hillcrest for three years.

After graduation I attended the FFCC for one year and then attended Moorhead State University for three years, graduating in 1978 with a BS degree in English. Over the next few years I attended Lutheran Brethren Seminary and graduated in 1982 with a Master of Arts in Religion degree.

Work Experience
After graduating from MSU, I substituted at Roseau Public school for one semester. Then I taught part-time at Hillcrest for the second semester of that year. The following fall I entered seminary full-time for one year. The next year I taught English and Social Studies full-time in Holdingford, MN. The following year I returned to seminary to finish a M.A.R. degree. I was married in the fall of 1982.

After graduation from seminary I started working as Manager and Pastor of Inspiration Point Bible Camp.   We worked there for seven years and were blessed to be a part of its growth. In 1989 we moved to Pennsylvania to become managers of Tuscarora Resource Center for two years. At that time I began to feel the call of God to return to teaching.

We moved back to Minnesota in 1991 and I was able to find a teaching job in Warren, MN. Two years later we moved closer to home and began five wonderful years in Perham teaching at the Middle School.

In 1999 we moved home and I began teaching at Hillcrest and have been enjoying it ever since.

Family
My wife Carrie and I have 3 children,

• Titus (a freshman at Fergus Falls Community College),

• Calvin (an 9th-grader at Hillcrest), and

• Taylor (a 5th-grader at Fergus Falls Middle School).

Activities
In the summer I enjoy camping with my family and playing golf and softball. I like to read a good book occasionally and enjoy keeping up with current movies. I also enjoy learning new computer applications and applying what I learn to what I teach.

Dreams & Goals
I hope we can continue to keep students current with new technologies and prepare them as best we can for a life which will undoubtedly include computers. I would like to see us able to offer a diversity of classes and give students who have a heightened interest in the computer technologies to grow, be challenged, and explore beyond what we offer in classes. I want to have students continue to produce quality products.

I also really want a new gym!!!

Favorite Quote about Teaching
“The true function of the teacher is to create the most favorable conditions for self-learning.   ...True teaching is not that which gives knowledge, but that which stimulates pupils to gain it. One might say that he teaches best who teaches least.”    John Milton Gregory