DJDS Hires New Middle School Science Teacher

After the departure of Chris Butler, the seventh and eighth-grade science teacher at Denver Jewish Day School, the school welcomed Patricia Kidder as his replacement. 

Earlier this year, Butler accepted a lucrative position at Luma, a technology company that develops educational platforms for large transportation companies. 

To fill his role, DJDS hired Patricia Kidder, an educator with over 30 years of experience across various grade levels. Originally from New Hampshire, Kidder initially envisioned a career as a fish and wildlife biologist. That changed when she took a job teaching non-major biology labs at a small college in her home state. 

She found herself drawn to the teaching aspect of the work and decided to pursue a full-time career in education. Kidder went on to earn a master’s degree in teaching and then spent 22 years at a day school in Virginia. “I wore a lot of hats while I was there,” she said, recalling how she taught everything from technology, reading, science, and math, throughout all different grade levels. 

Throughout her years in Virginia, she consistently gravitated toward math and science instruction. Most recently, Kidder taught at Cardigan Mountain School, a sixth-through-ninth-grade boys’ boarding school in Maine. 

She later moved to Colorado to be closer to her daughter and two young grandchildren.  “I wanted to be in my grandchildren’s lives, so I came here to Colorado,” she said.

After relocating, Kidder worked briefly at the Rocky Mountain School of Expeditionary Learning (RMSEL), but found that the school’s culture wasn’t the right fit. She then became a floating substitute at the Montessori School of Denver. 

When she came across a posting for a full-time teaching position at DJDS, she applied, and the rest is history. Kidder has enjoyed her first few weeks at DJDS. “I’ve really enjoyed it… the kids have been really welcoming and very respectful,” she said. 

Currently, Kidder teaches seventh and eighth-grade science, leading four periods each day. She is also looking ahead with excitement to her first full year at DJDS, where she hopes to lead student clubs and get even more involved with the school community.