Sarah Felder:
Sarah Felder got her masters degree in education at Portland State University, along with her undergrad. Before becoming an English teacher, she had jobs in security and retail. From those jobs, she has learned a lot about organization, budgeting, and advocating for yourself whenever others are trying to put you down. She then started subbing all over the district up until now. She now splits her time between Beaverton High School and Aloha.
“As I mentioned I have always enjoyed teaching,” she said. Providing others with knowledge has always been important to her. “In addition, my senior year was very difficult for me, and it was my teachers who supported me and showed me I could keep going and be successful. I want to give back and become that teacher for a student like me,” said Felder. When they’re not encouraging they’re students, Felder enjoys reading and building legos with her partner.
Deniz Gezer Oguz:
After graduating with a major in math education, Deniz Gezer Oguz moved to Türkiye, where she taught in public schools for about six years. She then went to Ireland, where she studied English. After three years of living in Ireland, she moved to Portland and had her daughters. Around the time her daughters started school was when she started subbing for the Beaverton School District, which she has been doing for the past three years until now. She teaches mathematics here at Beaverton High School, and hopes to create an engaging classroom where her students can become confident to explore and solve problems.
“I think that everyone can learn anything they want,” she said. “All it takes is for a person to want it and work hard. You, our students, have a long and beautiful life ahead of you. Make your plans, dream and start working.”
Tim Montgomery:
Tim Montgomery is a learning strategies teacher. He enjoys photography, along with hanging out with friends, walking around the city, and crocheting. He got his bachelor’s degree in art photography at the University of Kentucky, but then went back to school for art education, where he was certified to teach art for all grade levels. After getting his first degree, he “ended up getting a photography job that wasn’t really fulfilling.” Because of this, he went back to school at Ashland University for his master’s degree and got his special education endorsement before moving to Oregon in 2014. He worked at Woodburn High School for a total of 10 years. He was a special education teacher for seven years and an instructional coach for special education for two years. His last year at Woodburn High School was spent as an assistant principal. Montgomery values all of the connections he has made with students in his life, and is excited to make more at Beaverton High School.
William Van Der Wal:
William Van Der Wal teaches English Language Development. “I really enjoy helping students learn English and watching them make progress,” said Van Der Wal.
He got his masters degree in teaching about two years ago at Lewis & Clark University. He then started teaching at a middle school in Oregon City before coming here. Van Der Wal values the community and hopes to get to know his students more this year. In his free time he enjoys biking, hiking with his dog, watching movies, reading, and traveling!
