Kids College

Jim Bartos holds a B.S. in Business and a Masters degree in Special Education for teaching pupils with mild disabilities. He has been an elementary Special Education teacher for 17 years.

Jamie Bruinsma holds a Masters degree in Administration and has taught 5th grade for 6 years in District #126 in Illinois. She is very passionate about scrap booking and reading.

Keith Evans has been making and studying bubbles for over 20 years in many states and Canada. He is a faculty spouse…his wife teaches at IU Northwest.

Cynthia Gil, a Purdue University graduate, is currently teaching Spanish at River Forest High School. She has been with IU Northwest Kids College for many years.

Joseph J. Guzik, Jr. teaches full time at IU Northwest in the Criminal Justice field for the School of Public and Environment Affairs. Formerly he was employed by the Merrillville Police Dept. for 21 years, 11 of which he was Chief of Detectives. He also was an investigator at the Horseshoe Casino.

Helen Marie Harmon, M.A. has been teaching career-oriented and college success courses at IU Northwest for over five years. She believes in the potential of each individual she meets in the classroom and strives to motivate them to be the best student and workplace professional they can be.

Ashley Klakoski is entering her third year at IU Northwest. She is pursuing a major in Biology and a minor in Spanish. She is preparing to go to medical school.

Megan Lindsey is Adjunct Professor, Dept. of Performing Arts at IU Northwest. She holds a B.S. in Dance Performance from Ball State and an M.A. in Dance/Movement Therapy from Columbia College.

Verlean Martin earned a B.S. in General Studies and a minor in French Language and Culture from IU Northwest. As a former preschool teacher and an active community volunteer she has supervised and contributed her skills to many creative art projects.

Rory McMahan is a graduate of Indiana University and a licensed instructor in Secondary and Elementary Education. He works at the Wee Care Child Development Center in Valparaiso. He appears in many local theatrical productions and appears monthly at the Westchester Library in Chesterton presenting figures in time as “Mr. History”.

Cori Murphy has a B.S. in Special Education from IU Northwest. She is licensed in Reading and currently teaches match and language at Kuny Elementary in Gary.

Margaret Murphy has a B.S. in Education from IU Northwest. She teaches 3rd grade at Glen Park Academy in Gary.

Agustin Reyes has a B.F.A. from IU Northwest and is currently pursuing a Masters in Fine Arts. He currently works in the Instructional Media/Audio-Visual Dept. of IU Northwest.

Pamela Threatt brings with her 20+ years of craft experience. She is a Simplicity Service Award Recipient.

Pete Trgovich is the head Men’s Basketball Coach at IU Northwest. Coach Trgovich is a two-time Indiana state champion as a player and coach and a two-time national champion as a player at UCLA. He earned a B.A. in Sociology from UCLA and teaching license from IU Northwest. Coach Trgovich teaches at East Chicago Central High School.

Atilla Tuncay, Ph.D. Professor of Chemistry, Health Professions Advisor, and Chairperson, Dept. of Chemistry/Physics/Astronomy at IU Northwest.

Jill Vagner has a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education with an endorsement in middle school science from Purdue University. She also has a Masters Degree from the University of Delaware in Economic Education and Entrepreneurship. Jill has been teaching 7th grade science and accelerated languages for 7 years in the Homewood School District, Homewood, IL.

Laura Vazquez has a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from IU Northwest. She has worked for many years in the Gary School System in their Spanish and Bilingual Program.

Omar Vazques, B.A. from University of Puerto Rica and M.S. from the University of Dayton. Currently, he is the head Women’s Volleyball Coach at IU Northwest, Health/Physical Education teacher at William A. Wirt High School, and multiple honoree of Who’s Who in American Teachers.

Shenita Walker graduated from IU Northwest with a degree in Elementary Education. She currently teaches at Franklin Elementary School in Gary.

Rebecca Zimmers is in her 6th year of teaching at the middle school level. She taught Career Education and Reading at Gavit Jr./Sr. High School in Hammond for 5 years.