Written by Phillip Myer
Algona High School welcomed a new face this year after the 34 year art teacher, Mr. Yi, retired at the end of the 2024-2025 school year. Mrs. Hellman came from Humboldt High School to Algona this school year. Hellman taught at Humboldt for 11 years before coming back to Algona High, where she student taught previously.
Hellman lives in Bancroft, Iowa, so teaching at Algona is much closer to home. Hellman said, “Driving past the high school every day to go to my job was not fun because I could be teaching closer to home.”
Hellman wanted to go to school originally to be an art therapist. She took art classes and really liked them and wanted to help other people, so she thought that art teaching would be a good fit for her. “The hardest part is getting started,” Hellman stated.
Hellman went to college for art and psychology at Buena Vista, which is located in Storm Lake, Iowa. Hellman played soccer at Buena Vista through a scholarship. She was also on the dance team. She really liked the atmosphere and the lake.
At Algona High School Hellman teaches art, clays, and photography. If you haven’t seen her around the halls yet, make a point to say hi to the new face at AHS.