McNicholas welcomes new faculty and staff

Please join us in welcoming eleven new faculty and staff members to the McNicholas family, many of whom are filling new positions in our growing community. 

Principal Dave Mueller said, "Our strong faculty and staff has become even stronger with the addition of our new colleagues. They bring impressive credentials. They also put a broad diversity of interests and talents at the service of our students. Most importantly, they are outstanding role models.  They have jumped with both feet into their professional areas as well as into school spirit."

 

Front Row: Ms. Sophia Kostoff, Mrs. Mary Kiger, Ms. Maria Schroeder, Mr. John Blackwell. Second Row: Ms. Jeannine Blatt, Mr. Steve Rice. Third Row: Ms. Amanda Beatty, Mrs. Tricia Conrad. Back Row: Fr. Kevin Scalf, Mr. Rob Boese. Unavilable for picture: Mr. Matt Brunner.

 

Ms. Amanda Beatty - Theology and Service Learning Intern
B.A. in Theology, Mt. St. Joseph University; M.A. in Religious Studies, Dominican University

Ms. Beatty loves spending time with her nephew, taking him to visit museums and libraries around the United States. She collects library cards, and has several from Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and the District of Columbia…and she doesn’t have fines on any of them! 

Mr. John Blackwell - Math Teacher; Girls Varsity Basketball Coach
B.A in Business Administration – Marketing, University of Notre Dame; M.A.E. in Educational Administration and Supervision, Ball State University

Mr. Blackwell had both of his parents as teachers when he was growing up and today loves to spend time with his own kids, Lucas who is 9 and Logan who is 7. He was a student athlete in high school and is looking forward to helping his girls basketball team grow to be the best versions of themselves.  

Ms. Jeannine Blatt - School Nurse, Health Teacher
B.S.N., Wright State University

Ms. Blatt joined the McNicholas staff last year as our School Nurse, and this year joins the faculty as a heath teacher. Ms. Blatt loves spending time with her four grandkids under four years old and is excitedly awaiting the arrival of grandchild #5! She spends lots of time at the pool with friends and is passionate about her international mission work in Uganda and Nicaragua.
 

Mr. Rob Boese - Director of Technology
B.S. in Hotel and Restaurant Management, University of Houston; M.S. in Cybersecurity, Utica College

In high school, Mr. Boese was a member of the band and the basketball team.  Today, he loves playing board games with his wife, McNicholas science teacher Mrs. Jessica Boese, and making their seven-month-old daughter laugh.  

Mr. Matt Brunner - Math Teacher
B.A. in Education, Northern Kentucky University; M.A. in Education: Teacher as a Leader, Northern Kentucky University

Mr. Brunner, McNicholas Class of 2001, is excited to return to his alma mater and to work in the Math Department with former IHM and McNicholas classmates Mrs. Ashley Brothers and Mrs. Kendra Lonneman. He loves to be creative with science, technology, engineering, and math; he’s made hovercrafts, programed robots that open a box at the light of a match, engineered escape rooms, and managed a greenhouse full of peas for genetics experiments, just to name a few!
 

Mrs. Tricia Conrad - Special Events Coordinator
B.S. in Organizational Communication, Miami University

When Mrs. Conrad was in high school, she loved to be involved, including spending every Friday night on the football field or basketball court during half-time as part of a 60-person competitive dance team. Today, you’ll see her on the sidelines cheering on her children, including current McNicholas sophomore Mitchell.

Mrs. Mary Kiger - Intervention Specialist
B.A. in History, University of Cincinnati; M.Ed. in Secondary Education, Xavier University
Licensure as Intervention Specialist, Mt. St. Joseph University

When she’s not at work, you can find Mrs. Kiger outside, gardening, landscaping and enjoying beautiful weather. As a McNicholas graduate of 1991, she still cherishes the long-lasting friendships that she made while a student at McNick and remembers Church History being one of her favorite classes. Thanks to Fr. Ed, her theology teacher at the time, she will always remember how flying buttresses are made!
 

Ms. Sophia Kostoff - French Teacher
B.A. in International Affairs/History, Xavier University 

Along with her three daughters, Ms. Kostoff loves to ride bikes, watch old black and white movies, and listen to music from around the world. She is a self-proclaimed “language nut” who speaks Spanish, French, German, Macedonian, and some Danish and she is currently learning Greek and Latin. She also loves to travel and has lived and worked abroad in several countries including Spain, Japan, Guatemala, and Germany.

Mr. Steve Rice - Manager of Alumni Relations, Freshman Football Coach
B.S. in Business Administration, Thomas More College

Mr. Rice graduated from McNicholas in 2008 and returned to coach football beginning in 2011. He started dating his wife Rachel, also a 2008 grad, during high school, and they now have 2 sons and 1 more Future Rocket on the way! Mr. Rice loves talking about his alma mater and is excited that it is now his job to do so!

Fr. Kevin Scalf - School Chaplain, Theology Teacher
B.A. in Philosophy, Mt. St. Joseph University; B.A. in Communication Arts, Mt. St. Joseph University; B.A. in Religious Studies, Mt. St. Joseph University; M.A. in Theology, Xavier University; M.A. in Biblical Studies, Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary; M.A. in Divinity, Catholic Theological Union; D. Min. (candidate), Catholic Theological Union

Fr. Kevin is a member of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood who loves reading, sharing meals with others, and going to the gym. When he was in the third grade, he wanted to be a broadcast journalist, but his vocation called him from the “evening news” to the “Good News!” As a theology teacher and School Chaplain, he is looking forward to inviting the McNicholas family to intensify their love for Christ and the Church.
 

Ms. Maria Schroeder - Theology Teacher
B.A. in Theology, Marian University

Ms. Schroeder loves traveling and exploring the outdoors. She plans to visit every national park and every state capital. So far, she has visited 24 parks and 38 capitals. In high school, she helped out behind the scenes with the theatre sound crew, running the sound board, cueing sound effects, and making sure all the stage mics were charged. Her favorite show during those four years was The Addams Family.

 

Our strong faculty and staff has become even stronger with the addition of our new colleagues. They bring impressive credentials. They also put a broad diversity of interests and talents at the service of our students. Most importantly, they are outstanding role models.  They have jumped with both feet into their professional areas as well as into school spirit.

Dave Mueller, Principal