Staff
Rev. Andrew Richard
Headmaster & Upper Level Humanities Teacher
Pastor Richard has served at Mount Hope Lutheran Church since 2019. He is the Assistant Pastor at the church and Headmaster of Mount Hope Lutheran School. He received a BA in Theater Production from Oakland University in 2008 and a Master of Divinity from Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN in 2012. Prior to coming to Casper, Pastor Richard served as a church planter in Iowa. During that time he began studying classical education and homeschooling his children. He and his wife, Renae, have seven children. Pastor Richard enjoys studying Greek, Latin, and Hebrew, reading with his family, cooking, singing, listening to classical music, writing poetry and hymns, and doing home improvement projects.
Mrs. Jade Stutheit
5th-6th Grade Teacher
Mrs. Stutheit has been with Mount Hope in various capacities since 2020 and currently teaches fifth and sixth grade. She graduated from the University of Wyoming in 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education, then from Adams State University in 2016 with a Master of Arts degree in Literacy Education. Mrs. Stutheit enjoys baking, playing tennis, gardening, practicing Spanish and Latin, playing piano and singing.
Mrs. Emily Baird
3rd-4th Grade Teacher
Miss Hannah Engwall
1st-2nd Grade Teacher
Miss Engwall graduated from Concordia University Wisconsin in 2021 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Parish Music and a minor in Christian Thought. She began teaching at Mount Hope Lutheran School in 2021, leads Kammerchor and Choristers, and teaches high school music theory. Miss Engwall enjoys playing the organ, composing, reading and discussing literature, singing hymns, quilting, and talking to her family in Florida.
Mrs. Elizabeth Allred
Kindergarten Teacher
Mrs. Elizabeth Allred has been at Mount Hope Lutheran School since 2019. She teaches Kindergarten and Physical Education. She graduated from Seattle Pacific University in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Christian Education and a minor in Christian Scriptures. Before joining Mount Hope she homeschooled her children using the classical model, finding it to be the best way to unite Christian faith and learning. Mrs. Allred is married to John and they have three children. Outside of school she enjoys growing flowers, kayaking, and spending time with her family and three-legged tabby cat.
Mrs. Amanda Christensen
Upper Grade Math Teacher
Mrs. Christensen is a member of Trinity Lutheran Church and her children have been attending Mount Hope since 2022. She is teaching three math classes at the school this year. Mrs. Christensen has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Secondary Math Education from the University of Wyoming and a Master of Arts degree in Special Education from Bemidji State University. She taught in the public school system as a tutor for a year and was a high school math teacher for 8 years. When Mrs. Christensen isn’t teaching, she enjoys cooking, crafting, watching movies, riding horses, camping, helping with MHLS’s PTO and spending time with family and friends.
Mr. Joseph Cook
Upper Grade History Teacher
Mr. Cook graduated from George Fox University with a degree in History in 2005 and from Western Oregon University with a Master in the Art of Teaching degree in 2008. He has been at Mount. Hope since 2023, teaching history to Junior High and High School students. Mr. Cook enjoys hunting, fishing, spending time with his family and good Lutheran hymns.
Rev. Chris Curry
Upper Grade Religion & Science Teacher
Pastor Curry taught in Lutheran schools in California and Oregon before attending our seminary in Fort Wayne, Indiana. As a pastor, he served small churches in Oregon for 20 years and also served part-time in LIFE! Lutheran School, Eugene, Oregon. His wife, Cindy insisted that it was time to move to Casper to be near the grandchildren, while also assuring him that he would love the community, the church, the abundant sunshine, and the great fishing. She was quite right.
Mrs. Severin Finch
Foundations of Music Theory Teacher
Mrs. Finch earned her Associate of Fine Arts in Music from Sheridan College in 2014, transferring to the University of Wyoming where she completed her Bachelor of Arts in Music in 2017. After moving to Casper in 2022, she founded SF Piano Studio where she tutors K-12 private piano, music theory, and accompaniment. Mrs. Finch is an active member of the Casper Music Teachers Association and is currently enrolled in NCTM certification with projected completion in 2026. Mrs. Finch has been a member of Mt. Hope with her husband and two daughters since 2022.
Mrs. Mary Gottwalt
Chorale Conductor (3rd-6th grade choir)
Mrs. Gottwalt is the Chorale Choir teacher. She graduated in 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music, focusing specifically on Vocal Performance and Pedagogy. Mrs. Gottwalt’s love of music began as a little girl singing traditional Lutheran hymns during family devotions. She and her husband William have seven children, five of whom currently attend Mount Hope Lutheran School. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and baking, singing and playing piano, reading mystery novels, and spending time with her husband and children.
Mrs. Diane Hayes
Music Coordinator
Mrs. Diane Hayes has been at Mt. Hope since 2026. She earned her Bachelor of Arts Degrees in Business and Music from Concordia University Chicago in 2006. Since then, she has played cello in numerous community orchestras and chamber groups, and taught private lessons as she and her family moved around the midwest, Colorado, Kansas, and eventually landed in Casper in 2025. She earned her teacher certification credentials for “First Steps in Music for Preschool and Beyond,” and “Conversational Solfège” in 2023. In her spare time she likes to spend time with family, knit or crochet, ignore the laundry pile, and arrange music for string ensemble.
Rev. Christian Preus
Upper Grade Latin Teacher
Pastor Preus has served as Senior Pastor at Mount Hope Lutheran Church since 2016. He is the son of Pastor Rolf and Dorothy Preus and comes from a large family with ten brothers and one sister. Pastor Preus received a BA in Classics from the University of North Dakota and an MA and PhD in Classics from the University of Iowa. He studied to become a pastor at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, IN. He and his wife, Lisa, have nine children. Pastor Preus enjoys skiing and running on the mountain, playing hymns on the piano, playing football with his boys at the park, and talking theology, politics, and history with his wife and children.
Mrs. Meghan Waterbury
Upper Grade Math Teacher
Mrs. Waterbury has had children at Mount Hope since 2016, and taught math there for two years prior to Mr. Hahn’s tenure. She has a bachelor’s degree in mathematical and computer sciences from the Colorado School of Mines, and a masters degree in mathematics from Texas A&M University. She has a son in college, two daughters attending Mount Hope, and a third daughter at home for one more year. She enjoys math (obviously!) and has a wild garden and a sourdough starter named Grendel, and if you want to win her loyalty for life, buy her a beautiful old book (and for bonus points, get her to a warm sandy beach where she can read it).