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| Meet The Staff  Anita Ott, Principal
Hi, I’m Anita Ott, principal of South Columbia Family School, mom, grandma, lover of kayaking, dance, and travel. Retirement came at the age of 51 after 30 years in the field of education. I traveled, I golfed, I had lunch out, I kayaked, I volunteered, but I missed working with educators and children. When the opportunity came to apply for the half-time principal position at SCFS, I couldn’t resist. I love it so much I call it my “hobby job.” My friends tease me and say I flunked retirement. 2009-2010 will be my sixth year as principal of South Columbia Family School.
My greatest joys are my two sons Jeremy and Jesse. My three year old grandson melted my heart when he said, "Grandma, you're my best friend." My daughter-in-law Penny is an incredible wife and mother.
Oregon State, University of Oregon, and Lewis & Clark provided the foundation for my life as an educator. Prior to coming to SCFS, I was a principal in Hillsboro, and a classroom teacher, staff developer, talented and gifted specialist, reading specialist, and student supervisor in Beaverton.
Recent travels took me to Egypt. I realized how young I am compared to pyramids and tombs over 5000 years old. I enjoyed being face to face with the sphinx, riding a camel, cruising the Nile, and learning about Egyptian culture. In the May of 2009, I marveled as I rafted the Grand Canyon with an incredible group of people!
As the leader of our school, I am also a learner. I certainly learned a lot as we built our new facility. It’s a good reminder that when someone is learning something new, be patient! Good things take time. My favorite education quote is a Chinese proverb “Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand.” At SCFS, the whole family is engaged to involve our students in their learning processes. The teamwork between home and school works wonders for our children.
 Vickie Weaver, Office Manager
Graduating from Arizona State University with a Bachelor’s in Business Administration May 1980, I came back to Portland and worked in an attorney’s office. My mom had moved out to Warren and took me to a little church in Scappoose, where I met my husband Tom in November. Two months later we got married. Three decades and four boys later we are still here.
I was a stay-at-home mom for 20 years. Our eldest, Josh, had severe brain damage due to having spinal meningitis when he was two weeks old. He died when he was eleven. I consider that my great learning experience of life. Skyler is at OSU pursuing his PhD in electrical engineering. Jared graduated from OSU with a double degree in exercise/sports science and education. Doug is pursuing a degree in Fine Arts at Columbia College in Missouri.
I was a substitute teacher and am currently the office manager for South Columbia Family School.
We attend Columbia River Four Square and are very involved in the high school and community theatre programs. Currently I am a Mom’s-in-Touch leader for a college group and assist with chapel at Lewis and Clark. Instead of “empty nest”, I realize we are starting a “30 year honeymoon!”
 Valena Tabor, Primary Educator and Ed. Coordinator
My name is Valena Rose Taber and I was born and raised in Carson City, Nevada. I am the second oldest of four girls, but I was very much of a tomboy growing up. Ever since I was eight years old I knew I wanted to be a teacher. That road was a lot longer than I expected. My education started in Rexburg, Idaho at a two year church school, Ricks College. After graduating with my Associates in Bachelor Science, I moved back to Nevada to see what adventure lay ahead for me. Surprise! I met David and soon after we were married. We have been married for over 15 years now and have two sons, Kamron – 15 and Daniel – 11. They are two of the most grateful, respectful, and obedient children you could ask for. We love them and feel so blessed to have them in our lives. I continued my education going part time while raising a family along with picking up part time jobs and doing volunteer work. (I like to stay busy.) Some of the jobs I’ve had include Summer Youth programs, Mad Scientist, Assistant Manager of Customer Service at Albertson’s and substitute teacher. My first two years as a substitute were in Nevada after receiving my associates from Ricks College. The next two were after graduating with my bachelors from Portland State University. I didn’t realize it then, but I wasn’t finished with my education just yet. I continued on at Portland State University to receive my teaching license and my Masters in Education. Whew! Some of the volunteer work I have done include 4-H leader, Scout leader, primary teacher, preschool co-op, youth dance instructor, Art Literacy Coach, and best of all a mother!  Lisa Bishop, Intermediate Ed. Coordinator
Hi, my name is Lisa Bishop. I have lived in the St. Helens area for most of my life. After high school I went away to Brigham Young University where I met my husband Calvin, a native of Los Angeles. It wasn’t difficult to convince him to move back to the beautiful Northwest to start our family. We are both outdoor enthusiasts and have enjoyed many family camping and hiking trips over the years.
We have been blessed with six amazing children: Michael, Heather, Heidi, Emily, Becca, and Sam. They are unique individuals and have been both a great pleasure and a great challenge for us to raise. Our home has been my greatest laboratory over the years as I have taught homeschool, assisted the kids through their public school journey, and supported them in their many extracurricular endeavors. (Not to mention trying to keep everyone happy, organized, fed and wearing clean clothes each day.)
I figure I was doomed to be a voracious reader from the start. I remember my mother always had at least two books going at once when I was growing up. My father, now in his 70’s, still reads everything he can get his hands on. With the advent of the Internet, there is a lot of information out there to keep him busy. I love to read and I love to learn! I am excited to share my love of reading with my students and hope to inspire in them a life-long love of reading and learning.
I was also raised in a very musical family. I probably love to play the piano best, but singing and directing choirs runs a close second. I taught private piano lessons for the past 22 years while I stayed home raising kids. More recently I founded and directed a children’s choir and a girls’ choir. I have volunteered “millions” of hours in both music and other educational programs in the schools, at church, and in the community. My latest and possibly greatest volunteer endeavor was directing the ShoeString production of Beauty and the Beast in 2007. I am very excited to be an education coodinator at SCFS. I was lucky to be involved just a little during the conceptualization phase of this innovative school. When the school first opened its doors we enrolled two of our daughters. "We" attended SCFS for two years. I am thrilled to be a part of the SCFS family again. I feel privileges to be working with an amazing staff and I look forward to supporting each student and their family in this distinctive educational environment.  Sonja Morton, Intermediate Educator Go, Beavs! Hello, I'm Sonja Morton, avid OSU Beaver fan and a new staff member for SCFS as of 2009-2010. I will be the educator for the Intermediate Community. I've been in the field of education for almost four decades as a classroom teacher, math consultant, and private tutor. My passion is math and inspiring students to understand math concepts. I delight in having their lights go on and say, "I get it!" I spent most of my career in the Beaverton School District prior to my retirement. My husband Steve and I have two sons Shane and Trevor, a daughter-in-law Brina, and an amazing grandson Jackson, who is only five months old. Our family enjoys "roughing" it at our cabin in eastern Oregon, going to Beaver games, and taking cruises. Learning about the business world is one of my favorite past times. It is fascinating learning about marketing, networking, and corporate America. I enjoy learning ways to teach others about the business world and to provide opportunities for people in the business world. I belong to Business Builders International.  Gretchen Landin, Middle School Educator and Ed. Coordinator
Hello Families, I can't believe how lucky I am to be working for South Columbia Family School as the Middle School Educator and Education Coordinator. My name is Gretchen Landin. I am the mother of a pre-teen daughter (12) and have been happily married to my wonderfully supportive husband for fourteen years. I also live with three dogs and a vocal cat who are usually a happy-go-lucky group. Currently, I am earning my Master's Degree, Mid-Level Specialization, online from Walden University. As for teaching, I had high hopes in college of becoming a teacher, just as muy parents always dreamed. But I turned to English and the study of literature and the written word. With a four year degree in hand from Washington State University and a fiancee, I set out to begin my new life. Three weeks after graduation, I married the love of my life and settled in Vancouver, WA. Two years later, we had Molly and again everything changed. Teaching came back into the picture when I started as a volunteer in my daughter's kindergarten class. After a few weeks of volunteering I was asked to work with the ESL group, as a full time aide. My principal suggested that I go back to school to earn a teaching certification, and I did, from Arizona State University. I taught for two years at a K-8 campus as and 8th grade language arts instructor. I was not happy with the curriculum and jumped head first into helping change what was available to teach by updating the language arts curriculum and texts. That was great fun! Unfortunately, economic times hit my husband earlier than most. We moved to Oregon two years ago. I have been working to become highly qualified for the state of Oregon, which led me to Walden's Masters Program. Then just a few short weeks ago this new position opened up with SCFS and I began teaching again. I am looking forward to working with our middle school families and the wonderful staff at SCFS. | |
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