Fresh faces added to First Lutheran School staff

A new school year brings fresh faces to First Evangelical Lutheran School in Glencoe. The church welcomes two new additions to its school this year, fifth-grade teacher Luke Dahl and Director of Christian Education (DCE) intern Tori Kidd.
Dahl was born in Mankato but lived in many places in the Midwest during his childhood. He graduated from Concordia University in St. Paul. Before accepting his new position at First Lutheran, he taught in Howard Lake for 15 years.
He made the move to First Lutheran in search of new opportunities for growth.
“I was generally pretty comfortable in my previous school but had the sense that I needed some new challenges,” Dahl said.
Confronting these challenges is one of the things he’s looking forward to this school year.
“To be pushed to grow professionally as an educator, that’s definitely something I’m excited about,” he said.
In his 20 years of teaching, Dahl has taught every grade except fifth.
“In many ways it’s kind of like a first year teaching,” he said.
Despite the change, Dahl said the first days of school have  gone well.
“I was a bit overwhelmed and then the kids walked in the room and within the first five minutes I go, ‘I know how to do this,’” he said.
Dahl said he also is excited to meet new people and make new friends in the area. One of his goals for the year is to get to know the people in the community in addition to his students.
Across the street, fellow newcomer Kidd began her work within the church’s youth education. She is from Oviedo, Florida, near Orlando, and graduated from Concordia University in Nebraska.
She made the move from Florida to the Midwest to prepare for a position as a director of Christian education (DCE). Her interest in the career was first sparked by her relationship with her own DCE.
“I really looked up to mine and she was super awesome,” Kidd said.

For more, see the Sept. 16 print edition of The Chronicle.