Mr. Schulte's Current Events                    Mrs. Grbavac's Current Events

Matt Schulte:

Hello! My name is Matt Schulte and I am the current 8^th grade homeroom, language arts, and social studies teacher in addition to teaching 7^th grade language arts and social studies.  After a wonderful first year at SJF, I look forward to another great one.  Teaching language arts and social studies at a Catholic school has given me an opportunity to fuse my love of learning with my sense of faith and desire to serve.  Teaching has enriched my life greatly, and my hope is to be able to pass some of that wisdom along to my students.

Growing up in Lake Oswego before attending the University of Notre Dame and teaching for three years in Yakima, Washington, I am thrilled to be back in the Portland area.  When I am not at SJF, I love to read and write, travel, ski, play guitar and bike.  I look forward to a great year as I get to know the families and students of the SJF community even better!

Debbie Grbavac:

I am a graduate of Oregon State University, with a degree in Education.  I was initially drawn to teaching because I always enjoyed the school environment, the rhythm of the school calendar year, the curriculum, special events and projects.  Additionally, I was involved in sports, camp counseling and other activities where I enjoyed working with children.  Besides, in the early 70’s, it was teaching or nursing!  I have taught several 5^th grade classes and substituted in many districts.  I have been teaching combinations of middle school math and religion here at SJF for the last 15 years.  I feel blessed to work in this community.

My family and I lived in Huntington Beach, California and Princeton, New Jersey before returning home to Oregon.  I am proud to be the mother of two daughters and two sons, who are all graduates of St. John Fisher and Central Catholic.  Three have finished college and one is nearing the end.  Living in other states, being part of other school communities, and guiding my own children has given me a wealth of experiences as both a teacher and parent.  These experiences have focused my goals as an educator.  I want students to gain confidence in their abilities and gain many strategies to attack problems. Relating math concepts to familiar situations makes it more personal and definitely more practical.  Students are more engaged when they see a reason for the work they are doing.  A strong foundation in the basics will serve all students well as they advance to upper grades and go on to high school.  I have found many ways to practice math with games and projects, which is enjoyable for the class and me!

 Thank you for entrusting your students to us.

Mr. Schulte Current Events:

Mrs. Grbavac Current Events: