Staff Profile

Hello to HPE ELL Families!

I'm Shawna Nielson, and I've been teaching EL at HPE since January of 2021. I'm excited to begin my 5th full year at HPE this year. I love building relationships with students and supporting them with their language development and ability to access the content in their classrooms in literacy, math and inquiry. Our students have so many skills and diverse perspectives they bring to each classroom community. I look forward to getting to know my students and collaborating with their classroom teachers to help them reach their potential. I will primarily be working with Kindergarten and 1st Grade in the 2025-2026 school year. 

I have a degree in art from Bethel University, and prior to teaching, I worked in healthcare administration. In 2010, I left Minnesota to teach English in Japan with the JET Programme for three years, and then one year at a private English school. I enrolled at Hamline University to obtain my teaching license in ELL when I moved back to the U.S. I went on to complete my master's degree in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) this past spring.  

Outside of school, I enjoy baking, gardening, painting & drawing, being inspired by other people's art, seeing live music and traveling.