Jan Castrigno
4th-6th grade (ELA) - Building Lead
jcastrigno@pistem.org

Mrs. Castrigno was born in England and grew up in California. She has been in the Boise area since 1995. She graduated with BA in Multicultural Elementary Education and English as a New Language in 2000 from Boise State University. Mrs. Castrigno then received her Master’s in Curriculum & Instruction with an emphasis in Literacy from Lesley University, in 2007. She has enjoyed teaching since 2000.

Mrs. Castrigno comes to Project Impact STEM Academy from Heritage Middle School in West Ada School District where she taught English to middle school students, prior to this she worked for Galileo STEM Academy for many years. Mrs. Castrigno has taught all grades, but spent most of her career teaching in first grade and English in middle school.

She has two beautiful adult daughters, and in August she will become a new grandmother!  Mrs. Castrigno recently remarried this past March, and she loves spending time with her husband and family. She also enjoys reading, traveling, and being outdoors. She is obsessed with learning new things and sharing that knowledge with my students.

Mrs. Castrigno can’t wait to meet all the new families and staff at Project Impact STEM Academy!

Scott Thornton
​4th-6th Team Teacher (Math Specialist)
sthornton@pistem.org

Mr. Thornton is in his third year of teaching. He graduated from Boise State University in 2012 with a Bachelors in Communication. In August of 2016, he received his teacher certification through ABCTE.  Mr. Thornton taught 7th-grade Math at Kuna Middle School during the 2016-17 school year and 4th-grade in Marsing during the 2017-18 school year.  He loves the time he gets to spend with all of the students, helping them learn how to become the best version of themselves. His favorite part about teaching is seeing kids laugh and smile while they are learning.

Mr. Thornton and his wife Jessica have been married for 11 years and three wonderful children,  Natalee (9), Grant (5), and Jack (2).  Their free time is spent as a family, supporting their children in sports, 4-H, camping, and traveling. His children are involved in basketball, baseball, and softball. Mr. Thornton also enjoys being a high school football official in the Fall and having season tickets to the Boise State University football games.

Julie Duty
4th-6th Team Teacher (Science & Engineering Specialist)
jduty@pistem.org

Mrs. Duty graduated from Lewis-Clark State College in 2007 with a Bachelors of Science in Standard Elementary Education all subjects K-8 with a minor in Literacy K-12.  She spent her first year as a teacher in a one room schoolhouse in Pine, Idaho.  She taught grades K, 1st, 3rd, 4th, and 7th.  She found teaching in a one room school a wonderful experience, but wanted to live within a larger community.  Mrs. Duty worked at the BSU Children’s Center from 2011 to 2017, as an assistant teacher and then lead teacher. After substituting in area charter schools, she discovered the joy of working within a charter school environment. Mrs. Duty has been at Project Impact STEM Academy since the Spring of 2019 as the 4th - 6th grade science teacher.

Mrs. Duty enjoys reading and writing and has recently taken an interest in acrylic painting.  She has a black belt in Kajukenbo and her favorite animals are cats, wolves, and jellyfish. She believes in teaching through doing and she is enjoying the opportunity to teach science at Project Impact STEM Academy.

Curtis Constantino-Middleton
K-6 Social Studies 
cconstantino@pistem.org

Mr. Constantino (Mr. C for short), has a Bachelor of Arts in History from Azusa Pacific University and a Master of Arts in History with an emphasis in Education from Grand Canyon University. He received his teacher certification through ABCTE. Mr. C taught 4-8th grade social studies at Trellis Christian Academy before coming to Project Impact STEM Academy. He loves to show students that history can be fun. He enjoys teaching through hands-on learning and focusing on the “why”. Mr. C has three fears. These fears are heights, public speaking, and garbage disposals. Before teaching, Mr. C served in the US Army for about ten years. 
​Mr. C has been married to his beautiful and fantastic wife Megan for ten years and has a seven-year-old son, Rylee. The Constantino house has three dogs and three cats. When Mr. C is not in the classroom showing the wonders of the past he can be found on the river fishing, enjoying the outdoors, or in the winter he may be looking out his window wishing he was fishing!

Lorri Brenneman
K-12 Art Specialist
lbrenneman@pistem.org

Mrs. Brenneman has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and a Horticulture/Plant Science minor from Montana State University.  She also has a Master’s degree in Education and Curriculum Development/Instruction from Montana State University.  She has taught art and agriculture in public schools, colleges, and universities for over 17 years.  She has served as the Agriculture Literacy Specialist for the Department of Agriculture in Montana.
Mrs. Brenneman has also served as the President of the National Agriculture in the Classroom Organization (NAITCO) and served on their Board of Directors for several years.  She has been the Executive Director of the Montana Agriculture in the Classroom Foundation, and for her work with agriculture literacy was chosen as the “Ambassador of Education” award recipient for the state of Montana in 2014 by Governor Steve Bullock.
Mrs. Brenneman grew up in a cool mountainous area near Glacier National Park in Montana. She loves nature, animals, huckleberries, and farming.  She has owned and operated her own pottery business, and currently lives on a small farm with her husband and several farm animals. She loves cats, horses, flowers, and creating habitats for wild birds and animals.  In her spare time, she enjoys watching British comedy and funny movies.
In the classroom Mrs. Brenneman and her students learn alongside each other about the connections of the world and its cultures through the arts.  She introduces nature into her art studies as often as possible and integrates agriculture into the lessons as well.

Vince Taylor
1st-12th grade Physical Education/Health Teacher
vtaylor@pistem.org

Mr Taylor graduated from Boise State University in December of 2014 with a Bachelor's in Kinesiology.  He taught PE & Health at Idaho Arts Charter School & Pathways In Education prior to joining the team at Project Impact STEM Academy.  He loves helping students grow and develop academically, socially, and physically.  He keeps his classroom a safe, fun, and respectful environment to learn. 

Mr. Taylor has a 5 year old son, Brody. He enjoys spending time with his son going to  Monster Truck Rallies, Bull Riding events, & Dinosaur expos!  In the summer you will catch these two on a paddleboard and in the winter you may see them sledding or snowboarding to stay active.  Mr. Taylor is very excited to be a part of Project Impact STEM Academy and help students develop lifelong skills to use toward their futures.

Christian Lenier
1st-8th grade Agriculture Technology Teacher
clenier@pistem.org

Mr. Lenier graduated from Grand Canyon University in 2021 with a Bachelors in Education and a minor in Science. Mr. Lenier is a huge enthusiast for hands-on learning which always strives for. He loves to spend his free time playing sports, fishing, playing with his dog, and cooking!

Catherine Keesee
K-12 Special Education Teacher
ckeesee@pistem.org

Mrs. Keesee graduated from Texas A&M University- Corpus Christi with a Bachelor's degree in Psychology. She received her teacher certification in Special Education and Elementary Education through American Board. Prior to joining PiSTEM Academy, Mrs. Keesee worked in several areas of education and child advocacy. She began her journey as a Court Appointed Child Advocate for the state of Iowa. Additionally,she taught preschool in Iowa for 5 years before realizing her true calling...Special Education. She then worked as a Special Education  Paraprofessional for 4 years in Iowa and spent another 4 years as a Special Education Paraprofessional at North Star Charter School in Eagle, Idaho.

Mrs. Keesee is married with three daughters, Madeline (20), and twins, Allison and Amelia (16). She also has three fur babies, a dog (Ernie), and two cats (Lucy and Autzen). In her free time, you can almost always find Mrs. Keesee hiking somewhere in the Idaho foothills with her husband, Scott.