Dr. Michael Favor is the Superintendent of Intermediate School District 917. Dr. Favor brings a wealth of experience in educational leadership to ISD 917. Most recently, he served as Assistant Superintendent of Roseville Area Schools. Prior to that, Dr. Favor's district leadership roles include Interim Superintendent of Monticello Public Schools and Executive Director of Robbinsdale Area Schools. Dr. Favor holds a Master of Education degree as well as a Doctorate in Educational Leadership. Most recently, Dr. Favor received his Director of Special Education licensure. Dr. Favor is widely known as a transformational leader in the area of educational equity in the Twin Cities metro area and beyond. A strong advocate for traditionally underserved student groups, Dr. Favor's strategic leadership has been instrumental in improving academic and social and emotional outcomes for students in each of the districts he has served. In addition to a successful career in educational leadership, Dr. Favor experienced great success on the football field at North Dakota State University. He was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2011. Dr. Favor has been with ISD 917 since 2021.
Nicole Flesner is the Director of Human Resources. She is responsible for providing leadership in the development and oversight of the school district's Human Resources department, including labor negotiations, contract interpretation, employee relations, legal matters, etc. Nicole earned her Professional in Human Resources certification in 2008, and she is actively involved with the national Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and local groups, including the Minnesota Association of School Personnel Administrators (MASPA) and Twin Cities Society for Human Resources Management (TCSHRM). Nicole previously worked as the Director of Human Resources for Mahtomedi Public Schools for 19 years. She joined ISD 917 in 2024.
Kate Hulse is the Director of Social/Emotional Learning & Support for Intermediate District 917. Kate is responsible for the oversight of the district's social-emotional frameworks and curriculum, mental health services grants and coordination, crisis prevention, intervention, and postvention, restrictive procedures prevention, oversight, and reporting, McKinney-Vento coordination, districtwide due process, and Core Values Committee leadership. She is also responsible for the supervision of the Setting IV program administrators, School Psychologists, Board Certified Behavior Analysts, School Social Workers, and the Central Intake Coordinator. Before joining ISD 917, Kate held various administrator roles at Intermediate District 287 including Director of Mental Health & Partnerships and Assistant Director of Crisis Prevention & Response, and prior to that she served as a setting IV program lead in the Anoka-Hennepin school district. Kate is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist and holds licenses in school psychology, K-12 Principal, and Director of Special Education. She has been with ISD 917 since 2021.
Mark Johns is the Director of Finance for Intermediate School District 917. Mark is responsible for directing, planning and implementing district business and financial operations, overseeing the processing of the District’s payroll, benefits, payables, receivables, budget, financial records, and audited financials. He develops financial analytics for negotiations under the direction of the Superintendent. His work involves setting policies, goals and supervision over business office staff. Prior to joining ISD 917, Mark was a Vice President of Finance at Optum. Mark has been with ISD 917 since 2024.
Cory Langenfeld is the Technology Coordinator. Cory is responsible for providing leadership for the development and implementation of the District’s technology plan, and for maximizing the use of technology at all ISD 917 sites. Implementation includes instructional technology, administrative applications, related staff development, and technical support. Prior to joining ISD 917, Cory worked at Hastings Public School and was responsible for being the Lead PC Technician. Cory has been with ISD 917 since 2004.
Dr. Brooke Peterson is the Director of Teaching and Learning for Intermediate School District 917. Dr. Peterson is responsible for oversight of testing, curriculum, professional development, multi-tiered systems of support, assistive technology, and continuous improvement planning. She is also responsible for the supervision of Reading Specialists, the Instructional Technology Coach, MTSS Lead, Teachers for Multilingual Learners, Occupational Therapists, Speech/Language Pathologists, and Developmental Adapted Physical Education Teachers. Prior to joining ISD 917, Dr. Peterson worked in various roles (Literacy Coordinator, Deaf/Hard of Hearing Program Facilitator, Reading Specialist, and Teacher of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing) at Intermediate District 287. She has taught in the Deaf Education Teacher Preparation Program at the University of Minnesota. Prior to that she worked as a Teacher of the Deaf/Hard of Hearing at Eden Prairie Schools. Dr. Peterson has been with ISD 917 since 2017.
Dr. Melissa Schaller is the Executive Director of Student Services for Intermediate School District 917. Melissa is responsible for oversight of the district's departments of special education, teaching and learning, and social/emotional learning and support. She supervises the assistant directors/principals and principal for the district. Melissa has experience as a director of special education in a single district in greater Minnesota as well as a special education teacher in metro area school districts. She has her Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development from the University of Minnesota. Melissa has served many state level organizations in the field of education including the Minnesota Administrators for Special Education (MASE) and the Minnesota Council for Exceptional Children (MN CEC). Melissa currently serves as a governor appointee representing directors of special education on the Board of School Administrators (BOSA) as well as the special education component representative for the metro area on the Minnesota Association of School Administrators (MASA) board of directors and the Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE) representative for the MASE board of directors. Melissa has been with ISD 917 since 2008.
Steph Betley serves as the Assistant Director of Special Education and Principal for Intermediate District 917. She is responsible for the supervision and oversight for the TESA programs located at Dakota County Technical College and the Bloomington Transition Center, as well as supervision of nursing services across the district. Steph joined Intermediate District 917 in 2022, bringing with her a strong background in special education leadership. Prior to her current role, she served in administrative positions in Shakopee Public Schools and Southwest Metro Intermediate District 288, where she supported a wide range of specialized programs and services. Steph is passionate about creating inclusive, student-centered environments that support successful transitions for all learners.
AJ Boehmer is an Assistant Director of Special Education and Principal for Intermediate School District 917. AJ is responsible for supervising the Lebanon Education Center TEA and Early Childhood TEA programs, as well as serving as the supervisor for the district's speech/language pathologists. AJ coordinates the ISD 917 Member District Collaborative. AJ started at ISD 917 and was a special education teacher in the district for 9 years. They then transitioned to the assistant principal/special education coordinator for the TEA programs starting in 2023, and now is in their current role for the 2025-2026 school year.
Dr. Frank Herman is the Assistant Director and Principal for DCALS and CTE at Intermediate District 917, where he oversees the district’s alternative learning school and career and technical education programs. He holds both a Master of Education and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership. Prior to 917, Dr. Herman’s career includes a wide range of educational experiences including teaching social studies at an alternative high school, serving as Dean of Students at the middle and high school levels, Director of an Area Learning Center, and leading two metro-area urban high schools as the head principal. Most recently, he served as Director of Career Pathways, where he focused on building and expanding CTE opportunities for students.
Jennifer Hetland is an Assistant Director of Special Education/Principal for Intermediate School District 917. Jennifer is responsible for supervising Cedar School and DASH Programs. Prior to joining ISD 917, Jennifer worked as a 4th grade teacher at Jefferson Elementary School in Hawaii. Jennifer has been with ISD 917 since 1995.
Taylor Lovin is an Assistant Director of Special Education for Intermediate School District 917. Taylor is responsible for the supervision and administration of the Intermediate School District 917 Deaf/Hard of Hearing Resource Programs (preschool, elementary, middle, and high school locations), as well as the following ISD 917 itinerant programs and services available to ISD 917 member districts: Audiology, Blind/Visually Impaired, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Interpreter/Transliterator, Physical and Health Disabilities, and Physical Therapy. Prior to joining the ISD 917 administrative team, Taylor worked in various roles within the district over the last 10 years (Teacher of Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Lead Teacher, and Dean of Special Education). Taylor has been with ISD 917 since 2011.
Jackie Pauley is an Assistant Director of Special Education/Principal at Alliance Education Center (AEC). She is responsible for the supervision of the SUN, IDEA, and CASE programs. Jackie started at ISD 917 in 2012 and taught special education in the SUN and IDEA programs for seven years. She returned to ISD 917 in 2022 as the Assistant Principal/Special Education Coordinator at Alliance Education Center. Jackie has also held positions as Lead Teacher at Simley High School, Special Education Teacher and Administrative Intern in District 196 at Dakota Ridge, center-based teacher at Two Rivers High School, and elementary resource teacher at Dugsi Academy Charter School.
Amy Swaney is an Assistant Director of Special Education/Principal at Concord Education Center (CEC) where she is responsible for the supervision of one of ISD 917's SUN programs. She also coordinates the ISD 917 Member District Collaborative. Amy started at ISD 917 in 2000 and worked for 10 years as a Special Education Teacher in the IDEA program. She then served as a Lead Teacher for 12 years before moving into a Dean role for five years. At the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year, Amy was elevated to her current role.