We have outstanding staff in Meridian School District, each with their own incredible story. Please take a moment to get to know the wonderful people who work for our district and make it a great place to be!

Jen Nevins and Kim Bomar, bus drivers

Jen: “I’ve had route 10 since 2010. I started subbing on this route and just kept it. The kindergartners are now juniors. It’s like, oh my gosh, I remember when you were in kindergarten, crying on the first day of school and now you are close to graduating! I wouldn’t trade this job for anything.”
Kim: “I drive route two and I love my kids. I would never give up my route. You get to watch the kids grow, it’s like a family. You’re another adult in their life who supports them, helps them, cares about and listens to them. We hear about their day and we know what happened at school.”
Jen: “I used to have a boy on my bus, he could not sit in his seat for the life of him. It was always, “on your pockets, let’s be safe, on your pockets.” He was one that would get on the bus crying quite often. I’d say “hey, what’s up bud?” He would say he had a bad morning and would sit on my bus even after all the kids unloaded at the school. Sometimes he just needed 30 seconds to talk. I wanted him to know, I see you, I hear you and you matter. Then he would get off the bus smiling and feel better. We are the first person they see in the morning and the last one at the end of the school day.”
Kim: “I say good morning to every single one of my kids. One of my stops has 15 kids and I say good morning to every single one. I go to their sporting events and concerts. One day a middle school boy said to me, “hey, we have a concert today. Are you going to come?” And I said, “can I come?” This was during COVID. He said he didn’t know, so I asked, “are your parents coming?” He’s said they weren’t. So I told him, I’d see. I went to the office and asked if I could go to the band concert and they said yes. I went and I sat in the bleachers next to another student who rides my bus. I felt kind of silly being a bus driver sitting there, but when the boy saw me, he just lit up and waved at me from the band. I thought to myself, this matters. This matters to see and acknowledge this kid.”
Jen: “When you’ve driven your route for a long time, you build relationships with the students. It’s a great thing. It’s just part of the job. You love your kids and I mean, I would bend over backwards and do anything for them.”
Kim: “All the drivers, we are all very dedicated and we love what we do. None of the drivers dread coming to work and most have been here for a while. Drivers choose the same route year after year. I also love that we are a team. We’re all doing this together. One of my favorite things is pulling out of the high school when we’re all driving to the middle school. Just this little caravan of buses.”
Jen: “I do too, that is fun. If someone is interested in being a bus driver, I’d suggest they try a ride-along with us and see what it is like. This job is good for someone who is patient and flexible. If that is you, I’d say give it a try. If you love kids and want a flexible job this could be a great job for you.”

Collin Magnusson, substitute teacher

Colin Magnusson“I transferred to Meridian in fourth grade after attending school in Mount Vernon and graduated from Meridian High School in 2015. I had such a positive experience in our schools. After high school, I attended Western Washington University for college, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in education and mathematics. Math is something I have always enjoyed, my grandmother taught at WWU as a math professor for many years, so my childhood was filled with many opportunities to see the beauty of the subject. There’s an old myth that you get math, or you don’t, and I’d love to break that down and help students to enjoy math, just like my grandma taught me to. I also liked the idea of having the same schedule as my kids one day and have always enjoyed mentoring students. I knew these things made the teaching profession a great fit for me.

I started subbing after graduating from Western because it felt like a good place to get my start in the teaching profession. I have loved the flexibility subbing gives, you get to see so many subjects, schools, age groups, and students. I have been working as a long-term sub at Meridian Middle School for the past few months. The job has me working every other day and I have enjoyed the mix between freedom and consistency. Being in the same classroom for the past few months has given me the ability to get to know students and for us to connect over shared hobbies, teams, etc. it’s been awesome. Meridian is a small, welcoming community and it has been so fun to sub in the district. You really get to know the students here and they know you. I would recommend subbing here to anyone!”

Marcus Hollan, dean and STEM teacher at MMS

Marcus Hollan“I was originally hired to teach social studies, then the principal, Todd Torgeson, asked me three times to be the dean for a year. I decided to give it a chance. I teach STEM classes half-time and I’m dean of students half-time. Being the dean, has lots of different hats. I work with discipline, engaging kids in conversation about their behavior. I monitor lunch. I attend and run staff meetings. There’s no single day that is the same. I really appreciate that I get to know all the kids a lot more. I do miss being the head of a classroom, especially social studies, but I’ve learned a lot about being an administrator. We’re all very collaborative here. I don’t ever feel like I’m doing anything by myself.

I think I knew early on that I was going to go into education. I remember when I was in fourth grade, we had a parent-teacher conference. During the meeting, my teacher shared that I loved reading books on history and told my mom she thought I was going to be a history teacher someday. That teacher, Mrs. McGlasson, really inspired me to believe in myself and I want to emulate that here. I love history, which is why I focused on social studies, but I also want to be like Mrs. McGlasson and make that type of impact on our kids here.

My grandmother was a World War II veteran, she was an army nurse and a wonderful lady. She used to always take me to museums when I was a kid. She would take me to the natural history museum, Museum of Albuquerque and we went to Fort Union. I really appreciated those experiences. She was a big inspiration in my life and she’s the reason why I have a passion for history and social studies.

I love working at Meridian Middle School. I feel like we have a good sense of community here. I really like the people I work with, and they all are kid-focused. They put students first and most of my experience in education, it’s been that way, but I really feel it here. Whether you’re talking to teachers, the principal, counselors, or secretaries it’s always about putting the students first. The staff really care about the kids’ success.”