Students may be surprised to see some unfamiliar faces around school this year. Here’s a little more information about some of Blake’s new teachers.

Ms. Wogstad may be new to Blake, but she is certainly not new to teaching. She has been teaching for 30 years. She has taught Mandarin all levels, ranging from elementary school to college. Ms. Wogstad has previously worked with Blake’s own Shirley Johnson, whom she is excited to be working with again. She is also very excited to be working with the students and other members of the faculty. Before teaching at Blake, Ms. Wogstad spent the past 25 years teaching at St. Paul public schools. She has been speaking Mandarin for a long time, having spent most of childhood in Taiwan, and she is excited to be teaching it here at Blake.

Mr. Drill Mellum is another teacher who is new to us at Blake, but a seasoned teacher having taught for 24 years, including several years at Blake. He will be teaching Latin American Studies and Economics first semester. Second semester he will be taking over two U.S. History courses while Mr. Graham is on sabbatical, in addition to teaching Human Geography. Mr. Drill Mellum is particularly excited about “the curiosity of learning and the excitement of being in a classroom with so many interesting, inquisitive and dedicated students at Blake.” Before coming to Blake, he was acting as “Mr. Mom” for his kids as well as teaching at the MBA program at Concordia in St. Paul. He also teaches in the Executive program in Health Care at the University of Minnesota. In addition to teaching, Mr. Drill Mellum provides a foster home for abandoned cats and dogs!