Changes of heart led Kingfisher Public Schools to regain a teacher, but see the departures of two others who were recently hired.

Four new staff members were approved Monday night at the Kingfisher’s Board of Education’s regular June meeting while two resignations were accepted.

Those resigning were Jacque Komers, who was hired at May’s regular meeting to teach special education, and Madylin Meier, who was approved to teach fifth grade English during a special meeting held May 21.

Also during last month’s meeting, the board received the resignation letter of first grade teacher McKenna Gilles.

After a 30-minute executive session on Monday, members unanimously approved Gilles’ request to have that resignation rescinded.

In their next move, the board approved rehiring Gilles at Gilmour Elementary.

Approving the move were Bill Reitz, Brad Wittrock, Mike Copeland, Charles Walker and Dana Golbek.

They also accepted Superintendent Andy Evans’ recommendation to employ:

• Jessica Toledo as a high school English teacher;

• Brady Wardlaw to teach junior high and high school math as well as coaching duties;

• Nick Smith for summer maintenance.

Toledo spent last year teaching sixth grade English/ language arts (ELA) at Guthrie Upper Elementary School.

Prior to that, she taught sixth grade ELA and sixth and seventh grade creative writing from 2019 to 2024 at Ponca City West Middle School.

Toledo graduated summa cum laude from Southwestern Christian University in Bethany with a bachelor’s degree in English education in December 2018.

Wardlaw is an Okeene native, graduating from there in 2007.

He’s spent the last decade at Minco, where he taught seventh and eighth grade math from 2015 to 2021 and has taught Algebra I since 2019.

He was named the Bethany Middle School Teacher of the Year in 2015.

Wardlaw also has a plethora of coaching experience.

He was the offensive coordinator at Minco, where his brother Brock Wardlaw was the head coach, since 2015.

Wardlaw was also the head track coach for the last 10 years as well as the boys fifth and sixth grade basketball coach.

Before joining his brother at Minco, Wardlaw spent three years coaching and teaching at Bethany.

He was a part of Reagan Roof’s football staff at Bethany, coaching quarterbacks, wide receivers, running backs and defensive backs.

Roof is entering his second season as head football coach at KHS.

Evans indicated to the KT&FP that Wardlaw will be a part of the football and track programs here.

Wardlaw graduated from Southern Nazarene University with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics education in 2012.

While at SNU, Wardlaw was a part of the football program and set a number of records as the Crimson Storm’s quarterback. He still holds the records for passing completions, passing yards, passing touchdowns and touchdowns responsible for.

Wardlaw was inducted into the SNU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2023.

Smith was a standout KHS athlete before graduating from El Reno High School. He currently lives in Kingfisher with his family and has children attending KPS.

He is currently a crew tech for RIP Lawn Control and also served on the wrestling and baseball staffs at El Reno since 2023.