Meet the CO-OP Staff

Brian King holds an MS degree in Applied Psychology from Montana State University. Brian serves as the associate director for CO-OP. Mr. King has 20+ years’ experience working with American Indian Tribes, managing grants and supervising projects. Brian and his family are enrolled members of the Blackfeet Tribe and enjoy participating in their cultural customs and traditions.

Stephanie Kern is an educator and advisor who has spent the past 22 years helping students reach their academic and career goals. Stephanie has designed and taught a wide variety of educational programs and curricula in a number of settings - from camps and community programs, to K-12, post-secondary, adult education and special education classrooms, including teaching a Learning Strategies course at Montana State University. Stephanie has also enjoyed advising secondary and post-secondary students on academic and career issues over the past decade.  She holds a Master of Education degree from Montana State University and Bachelor of Science degree from Northwestern College.  Stephanie was born and raised near Valier, Montana and has a deep appreciation for the land and culture in Montana.  She enjoys camping, hiking and spending time with her family. Stephanie is a direct descendent of the Creek/Cherokee Tribal Nations.

Grace Gauthier is the administrative assistant for the Caring for Our Own Program.  She is currently studying equine science at MSU and currently a sophomore. She is originally from New Hampshire where she spent her time riding horses and playing softball. Although this is her first time being away from home, she has absolutely fallen in love with Montana.  She hopes to get into research trying to improve horses lives once she graduates from MSU.  

Casey Jones is master's degree trained as an Adult Gerontology Clinical Nurse Specialist in Critical Care and Trauma.  His academic interest is in Palliative Care in the ICU setting and just recently published an article in the American Journal of Critical Care Nursing.  Casey has spent bedside time in nursing in the cardiac intensive care setting.  He has been a nursing instructor, mentor or preceptor in some capacity for about a decade.  Recently, Casey served as a Fellow in Global Health Clinical Nursing Education with the Global Health Service Partnership.  For two years he assisted a nursing team in Uganda to start and run a Bachelor of Nursing Science Program at Muni University.  Not only is Casey a part of COOP, he also is a faculty member for the College of Nursing.  Casey's interest in working with COOP students is based on his experience as a world traveler.  Indigenous culture, including spiritual practices, medical care, culinary practices, music, and arts have always fascinated Casey.  

 Cathlyn received her BSN from MSU in 2008.  After receiving it she worked as a nurse at Kalispell Regional in the labor and delivery department, the NICU and the mother/baby clinic.  She says that working with clinical students as a floor nurse in OB was always a treat, so Cathlyn became a clinical instructor, finishing her MSN in nursing education and she now teaches full-time.  Since she loves being a floor nurse, she continues to work PRN at the hospital as well.  Cathlyn think the best thing about being in the field of nursing is that there are so many opportunities to grow.  She moved to Montana in 1994 from Memphis, Tennessee after falling in love with the wild west during a summer visit to Yellowstone Park.  Cathlyn has now lived in Kalispell for 17 years and has raised two children with her husband.  Her son goes to the University of Montana and her daughter is a freshman in high school.  As a family, they enjoy hiking, skiing, camping, watching movies and going to museums.