Athlos Academy hires new director

Athlos Academy announced Friday that Dan McKeon will be the charter school’s new executive director.

McKeon, who will replace director Kathy Mortensen, has previously served 11 years as executive director of TrekNorth Junior and Senior High School in Bemidji.

“It has been so exciting and rewarding to watch as this school grows, from the years of hard work put in by the school board, to now concluding its first year serving students,” McKeon stated in a news release issued Friday. “I feel honored to take on the role of the executive director at Athlos Academy of St. Cloud, and look forward to being a part of the school’s continued growth and success.”

Athlos Academy spokeswoman Camille Wells said Friday that Mortensen resigned to pursue other endeavors.

McKeon was born in St. Cloud and raised in Avon and Cold Spring. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English from St. John’s University and a master’s degree in secondary education and teaching from the University of Alaska-Southeast. Under McKeon’s leadership, TrekNorth was ranked as the No. 2 high school in Minnesota and the No. 25 charter school in the nation in the 2016 U.S. News and World Report. Prior to leading TrekNorth, McKeon taught in New York, South Dakota, and Alaska.

“We are beyond thrilled that Dan McKeon, a founding board member of our school, will be rejoining us in this new role,” Jacqueline Hoyhtya, board chair, stated in the news release. “We are confident that his extensive school leadership experience paired with his personal, vested interest in the success of our school will continue to lead Athlos Academy of St. Cloud in a direction of excellence.”

Athlos Academy of St. Cloud is a tuition-free charter school on the south side of St. Cloud. It opened last fall and has approximately 515 students in kindergarten through sixth grade. The school is authorized by Volunteers of America.