Instructors
Ms. Vaughn
Ms. Vaughn has been teaching since 2012, teaching at McCluer since 2014, teaching AP Language and Composition since 2017, and teaching AP Seminar since 2019. She also took the role of AP Department Chair in 2019 and will be adding AP Research to her course load in the 2020-2021 school year. Ms. Vaughn has a passion for reading and writing, but her favorite part of the job is making mutual learning relationships with her students. Ms. Vaughn has a Master’s in English from UMSL and is currently in her second year of doctoral studies at Lindenwood University. Some fun facts about her include her love of travel, Harry Potter obsession, and her proclivity for British accents.
AP Lang & Comp, Seminar, & Research
Dr. Ebner
AP Environmental
Ms. Tidball
Ms. Tidball has been teaching at McCluer since 2005 and began teaching AP Literature in 2008. She is excited to begin teaching AP Seminar for the first time in 2020. Ms. Tidball has a Master’s in English from Pennsylvania State University and a Master’s in Education from Maryville University; she is currently working toward her Educational Specialist degree from UMSL. Reading has always been a love of Ms. Tidball’s since she was a young child, and she also enjoys writing, spending time in nature, and staying active by working in her yard, running, or working out at the gym. Ms. Tidball loves great food and great conversations, especially conversations with students about life, literature, and contemporary social issues.
AP Lit, Seminar, & Research
Mrs. Motil-Pazarena
Mrs. Pazarena has been teaching at McCluer High School since August of 2001. She has been the Department Chair for Art and Music since 2012. Mrs. Pazarena has been teaching AP Art History since the fall of 2017; though, she has been studying the subject of Art History since 1994 due to her huge passion for learning about art AND the purpose for making art in order to tell a story. Besides her love of art, Mrs. Paz is a huge fan of music, dogs, and driving on old country roads to find new places to visit. (note: In the photo, Mrs. Paz is with artist Kehinde Wiley who created the Presidential Portrait of President Obama)
AP Art History
Mr. Lakey has been a teacher at McCluer High School for 15 years. He is in the Business Department and teaches a variety of classes including AP Macroeconomics, Entrepreneurship, Marketing, Sports and Entertainment Marketing, and Personal Finance. Teaching is Mr. Lakey’s third career. He was hired to work on the assembly line at General Motors shortly after he graduated from high school. After being transferred to Fort Wayne, IN to work on the assembly line there he decided to pursue a degree in accounting. Mr. Lakey graduated from Indiana-Purdue at Fort Wayne in 1991. He also passed the CPA exam that year. After graduating he left Fort Wayne and returned to St. Louis to be closer to his family which includes 9 siblings. He worked at a few accounting jobs including being a controller at a brick factory for AP Green in Bessemer AL. While working at AP Green he picked up his MBA at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He was also the Manager of Budgets and Forecasting for White-Rogers which is a division of Emerson Electric. After working at Emerson for 10 years he decided to move on to his 3rd career as a high school business teacher which he has really enjoyed for the last 15 years. Mr. Lakey has taught AP Macroeconomics for 3 years. He loves teaching AP Macroeconomics because of the subject’s relationship to what is happening in the United States economy, and the global economy.
Mr. Lakey
AP Macroeconomics
Mrs. Borodin
Mrs. Borodin has been teaching since 2012, teaching in the Ferguson Florissant District since 2017 and At McCluer Specifically since 2019, teaching biology, Principles of Biomedical Science, Human Body Systems, Birds and Mammals, Earth Science, and AP Biology. Mrs. Borodin has a passion for Science, specifically Biology and Medical subjects. She attended Truman State for her undergraduate work, earning her teaching credentials and her Master's degree at the University of Missouri - St. Louis. Mrs. Borodin has a passion for medical history and crochet.
AP Biology
Mr. Albright
Mr. Albright has been teaching Social Studies at McCluer High School since 1997. Mr. Albright has mostly taught Government, World History, and African-American History. Mr. Albright received his Bachelors in political science from the University of Richmond in 1995, his teaching certification from UMSL in 1996, and his Masters in African-American Literature and History from Washington University in St. Louis in 2000. Mr. Albright has also been the Assistant Varsity Soccer Coach for both boys and girls for the last 10 years. Outside of school Mr. Albright has three children, and likes to spend his time biking and travelling.
AP World History
AP Chemistry
Mrs. Den Houter
Mrs. Den Houter has been teaching at McCluer High School since August of 2006. She is in the fine arts department and teaches Art Basics, Graphic Design, and Airbrush. She attended the University of Michigan and holds a Master of Fine Arts in Medical and Biological Illustration. Her passion for teaching has stemmed from her previous careers as an exhibit designer for a natural history museum in the Boston area and as a medical illustrator for the University of Michigan Medical School where the purpose of her artwork was to teach scientific and medical concepts. She loves to cook and is a strong patron of the arts with her daughters studying acting and ballet and her art professor husband. She believes that studying and participation in the fine arts helps develop critical creativity and self-confidence skills that are so important to becoming successful in any field.
