Kristin Barnes has eclectic professional teaching background
By MELISSA DUNN
Staff Writer
English teacher Kristin Barnes is no stranger to the high school, having been a substitute teacher in the district for some time. When the opportunity to apply for an English position arose, Barnes took it. “I have always had very positive experiences at NRHEG,” she says.
Barnes resides in Waseca with her husband Rick and five children: Alexandria, 14; Saphira, 12; Evelyn, 11; Lydia, 9; and Ricky, 2. Her hometown, however, is up north. “I grew up in Duluth and have lived on both the east and west coasts, but will always consider Duluth to be home as well as the most beautiful city in the world.”
Barnes graduated from California State University East Bay with a BA in Liberal Studies and a minor in sociology, and has had “an eclectic professional background,” she says. The list of positions she’s held is quite varied: Three years teaching seventh-grade English and social studies in a title one school in California, two years teaching English to middle school and high school at a private Turkish Muslim school in New Jersey, and three and a half years working as a Mental Health Practitioner at a mental health treatment facility and juvenile detention center in Duluth. Since moving to Waseca, Barnes has been a long-term substitute and EBD teacher.
Outside of school, Barnes enjoys gardening, foraging, hiking, and spending time with her family. In fact, she says she could talk forever about gardening and medicinal herbs. She says her faith and her family are her “rock,” but admits to a love for dancing and goofy “dad” jokes. Barnes says she hopes students leave her classroom with an appreciation for those as well, along with “the ability to analyze a text and think and write critically about it.”