Matthew Lukens grew up in southern Africa, the son of medical missionaries.  When he was thirteen his family moved to northern California.

In college, Mr. Lukens earned two bachelors degrees, graduating from Newbold College with a B.A. in Literature and from Pacific Union College with a B.A in Spanish.

After earning his teaching credentials at Sacramento State University in California, he moved to the Midwest and began working for the Illinois Conference as an English teacher at Broadview Academy. After Broadview, Mr. Lukens moved into the city of Chicago to finish his Masters in Literature at Northwestern University and to teach at North Shore Adventist Academy. Upon completion of his Masters, he moved to the beautiful state of Montana where he currently teaches English and Spanish at Mount Ellis Academy.

Jonathan was born into a family with deep roots in service to the church and Mount Ellis Academy. Even as a potential fourth-generation teacher, he wasn’t sure that teaching was the profession for him. However, after serving as taskforce dean and chaplain at Mount Ellis Academy in 1999-2000, he saw that academy life was in his future.

After completing his degree in Religion/Religious Education at Union College in 2001, Jonathan spent a year at Broadview Academy in Illinois, 10 years teaching religion and social studies at Redwood Adventist Academy in Santa Rosa, California, and two years at Dakota Adventist Academy.

Jonathan is married to Lauren, and the two have a dog, Eva Peace, and two cats, Bartholomew and Ophelia. He likes to read, hike, fish, camp, and spend time outdoors. Every year and each day bring new challenges and ideas for enhancing what Jonathan does in his classroom. He believes in being a student of perspectives and events of history, instead of merely teaching it. Being back at Mount Ellis Academy is a dream come true.

Leisel Rogers graduated from Andrews University in 1999 with a B.A. in music and a minor in biology. She married her college sweetheart in 1996. She has been blessed with two wonderful children. Mrs. Rogers began teaching music at MEA in the fall of 2001 and became a dean in the fall of 2009.

Mrs. Rogers loves making music, reading, coloring, and spending time with people. She also enjoys cross country skiing, being outdoors, and gardening. If that wasn’t enough, she also really likes cooking, baking, and food information.