Going into the 2021-2022 school year here at Skyline, we are starting off with a total of 15 new teachers and administrators. This adds up to be about 19% of the total staff. Within this, we received a new assistant principal, Rulon Nielson, who’s preferred name is David. His dad goes by Rulon, so he goes by his middle name, which is David. His reasoning is so that, “Then my dad and I know which one of us is in trouble.” 

     Nielsen was born in the old LDS hospital here in Idaho Falls. He grew up here, attended and graduated from IF High School. With this, when asked what he dislikes about Skyline, he said “There’s no orange.” Although he says this, his wife and two daughters graduated here, with a son currently attending. Nielsen has been married for 24 years, and has 3 kids. His oldest daughter, Chloe, graduated in 2018, and his second daughter, Eryn, graduated in 2020. His son is currently a freshman, so he will be a 2025 graduate. 

     Nielsen was originally planning to found his own landscaping business. He got his associate degree in landscaping/horticulture from Rick’s College. After this, he received his bachelor’s degree in secondary education, specifically, math and biological science, from ISU. He then continued his schooling and got his master’s from the University of Idaho. Along with this, he is passionate about education, baking, and his lawn. He believes that his lawn must look like it could be on a magazine cover, and he says, “I will be that old man shaking my fist.” He greatly dislikes animals doing their business on his lawn. 

     Outside of school, he loves to go fishing and golfing, even though he’s not very good at it. He loves planting and being in his vegetable garden, as well as playing games. His favorite games are Skull King and Settlers of Catan. He even owns all of the expansions to Catan! His favorite places to eat out are Famous Franklin’s and Plum Loco. He likes to play sports just for fun, with his favorite being football. 

     When students are in class, the faculty actually do engage in work, as opposed to just watching Netflix or playing on their phones. They do walk-throughs, clear the hallways, resolve any issues, and get familiar with teachers, who each have a unique teaching style. Mr. Nielson loves the student body, the staff, and all of the school spirit we have here at the school. His goals for the future of our school are to have a growth in education, as well as to help prepare students for what’s to come in the near future. Nielson looks forward to being around the school and helping out students.