Staff Profiles
Mr. Lamb
District Superintendent
Mr. Lamb is currently enjoying his 6th year as district administrator and his first as district superintendent. He received a bachelor’s degree from Western Illinois University in 2005. He obtained master’s degree in elementary education from Roosevelt University and a master’s degree in education leadership from Aurora University. Last May Mr. Lamb received his Education Specialist degree from Western Illinois University. In his spare time Mr. Lamb enjoys going to Iowa Hawkeyes sporting events, golfing, and playing basketball. He and his wife Amanda have a wonderful dog named Carver, and a healthy baby girl named Cleo.
Bookkeeper/Secretary jhorn@kings144.org
Mrs. Horn and her husband live on a farm near Kings. She has a senior at Rochelle Township High School, and a fifth grade Kings student. She feels very fortunate to be a farm wife, while also able to work as Kings School secretary. In her free time, she helps on her family's farm, supports her sons at their many sporting events, and watch them show their animals at the fairs. She is looking forward to another great year at Kings, and feels so lucky to have the privilege of working with so many great students!
Ms. Martillaro
Kindetgarten Teacher
Ms. Martillaro is in her second year here at Kings. She lives in Monroe Center with her fiancé Nate and their son Caleb. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family, shopping, and reading. She is proud to be part of the Kings family. She also enjoys getting to know all of the students and their families that make Kings such a wonderful place to be.
Ms. Hunter
First Grade Teacher
Susan Hunter has been happily working at Kings School for 28 years. She lives in the town of Byron. She has twins, Vance and Maggie, who are seniors in high school. During the week you can usually find her at the soccer field or the golf course. She is proud to be a teacher at this wonderful school. She has enjoyed the many students and family members she has had the pleasure to meet.
Mrs. Ost
Third Grade Teacher
Mrs. Ost is beginning her 22nd year of teaching. This is her third year at Kings. She lives in the country in Rochelle with her husband and three children. She has a dog named Cooper, many barn cats, and chickens. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family. She is loves working in Kings, and looks forward to continuing her work with parents, students and the Kings community.
Miss Greene
Fourth Grade Teacher
Miss Greene has been teaching for 29 years. Her free time is spent with family, reading, or playing golf. She adores her many nieces and nephews. She enjoys walking and crafting. She likes to read and share books with others. In her spare time she is a mentor and friend to others who are undergoing cancer treatments.
Miss Greene enjoys traveling to historic sites, and loves teaching History, especially Lewis and Clark. She has won several awards for her teaching abilities, including teacher of the week, and best History teacher in Illinois. Miss Greene's commitment to her students shines through her battle against cancer, which she has beaten twice.
Mrs. Valdivieso
Fifth Grade Teacher
Mrs. Valdivieso (Mrs. V) has been teaching at Kings School for 33 years: Twenty-five years in Kindergarten, five years in second grade, two years of combined second and third grade and this is her first year in fifth grade. She has been married for 36 years and has four wonderful adult sons, three daughters-in-laws and one grandson named Bo. Two of her sons live in the Rochelle area, one lives on the east coast and one on the west coast. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, biking, quilting, painting and traveling to visit her sons.
Mrs. Dewey
Reading Enrichment/ Middle School Teacher
This is Mrs. Dewey's 22nd year of teaching at Kings School. She grew up in the small town of Noble in Southern Illinois, received her teaching degree at Eastern Illinois University, and her Master's Degree at Rockford University. Mrs. Dewey enjoys reading, sewing, crafting, traveling, gardening and learning new things. She also enjoys spending time with her husband exploring the countryside on their Harley Davidson.
Miss Costa
This is Miss Costa’s sixth year teaching at Kings School. During her time here she’s taught a variety of subjects including special education, middle school language arts, 5th grade science and social studies, and she even taught 3rd grade math one year. Miss Costa grew up in Byron, Illinois and after graduating from Byron High School she went to Saint Ambrose University. She played golf at SAU and studied elementary education and special education. When Miss Costa isn’t in the classroom she loves coaching the Byron Tiger Girls Golf Team and the Kings Speech team!
Mr. Hickman
Middle School Math; 8th Grade Science
jhickman@kings144.org
Mr. Hickman is in his 8th year of teaching and his first at Kings. He lives in Byron with his wife, three kids, a yellow lab, and two cats. He received a bachelors degree in business management from Quincy University, and also a bachelor's degree in math teaching from NIU. A sports enthusiast, he played college baseball while at Quincy and has coached high school baseball for 15 years. He enjoys playing and watching sports, is a die hard Cubs fan, and enjoys spending time with family and friends.
Mrs. Hopp
Physical Education; 6th and 7th Grade Science
vhopp@kings144.org
Mrs. Hopp has spent the last 10 years in the education setting. She enjoys spending time with her husband and their two kids. Most of that family time is spent watching the kids sporting events. She enjoys kayaking, gardening and scrap-booking.
Mr. Steiner
Middle School History/English
This is Mr. Steiner's first year at Kings. He attended college at Rockford University, and graduated with a Bachelor's degree in history with endorsements to teach English. He worked with the Meridian School District before Kings as a reading interventionist, and now teaches History and English to Middle school grades. Mr. Steiner spends his free time with his three dogs, or with his girlfriend, Sarah. He is also the one who currently operates the district web page!
Mr. Hynek
Music Teacher
This is Mr. Hynek's fifth year at Kings School. Mr. Hynek grew up in Rochelle, IL and he still lives there. He graduated from Millikin University with a BM in Music Education. As a musician, Mr. Hynek is a vocalist, percussionist, guitarist, and banjoist. In his free time, Mr. Hynek likes to read and write as well as learning other instruments and playing games with his family and friends. He is looking forward to a wonderful year at Kings.
Mrs. Butler
Librarian/Resource Teacher/ Middle School Teacher
Mrs. Butler is the Librarian, M.S. Study Hall, and K-4 Computers Teacher. She received her teaching degree from Northern Illinois University. This is her 17th year. She is passionate about reading and loves every kind of book. When not at school or when not reading, Mrs. Butler loves shopping, listening to music, working out, and spending time with her family. Her motto is “Color Your World…READ” and “If You Think You Can, You Can!” She is looking forward to another incredible, fun-filled year!
Mr. Wood
Transportation/ Custodian
Mr Wood and his wife have been members of the Kings Community since 1979. I have lived my whole life in the Rochelle/Kings except his time when he served in the U.S. Army. My wife and I raised 2 children here in Kings, and they attended the School here from Kindergarten through 8th grade. If you look, you can find their names on some of the plaques that are displayed in the lobby. My daughter lives in Warrenville with her husband and son. My son lives in Port Washington, Wisconsin with his wife and 2 boys.
Before coming to Kings School 21 years ago, I worked as Director of Maintenance at a local hotel as well ran a Plumbing and Remodeling business. I continue to do some remodeling as time allows. I'm currently helping 1 area business convert their lighting over to energy saving LED. I have also with the support of the School Board here started the process of converting our lights over to LED. You may have enjoyed the Gym lights that were installed last year. I work hard at trying to keep the building clean, safe and mechanically sound. I can only do this with the support and help of the Staff, Students, and the School Board.
Currently my wife and I divide our time between visiting our grandsons and traveling. For the last 7 years we have been able to spend a week together vacationing in North Western Wisconsin as a family. We also spend time at our Lake Home in Lost Nation. During the Summer you will find us lounging by the pool, but the winter we spend working on the house to bring it out of the 70's.
I'm looking forward to another year at Kings with the Students, Staff, and School Board.
Mrs. Holtsford
Speech Pathologist
Jeanine Holtsford attended college at Marquette University and received her master's degree in Speech and Language Pathology from Northern Illinois University. Currently she is working at Eswood School, Kings School and has a private practice out of her home in Saint Charles. She is married and has three children. Her passion outside of school is being on the board of Fox Valley Food for Health, a non-profit that trains teens to cook healthy meals for cancer patients in the tri-cities area. She also loves animals and has a dog and two cats.