Meet our School Staff

“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lords’ purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21

After 35 years as a public-school teacher, I retired in May of 2024. Little did I know at the time, that retirement was not in God’s plan for me. I am so thankful that He chose to lead me to First Baptist Christian Academy as their principal. I am blessed to work with some of the most talented and caring people who desire to challenge their students academically and to share the love of Jesus with them.

During my teaching career I taught in North Carolina, Kodiak Island, Alaska, and the Poplar Bluff Kindergarten Center. I attended college at Missouri State University where I earned a Bachelor of Science in Social Work and Teaching Certification. My Master of Arts in Elementary Education was earned through Grand Canyon University.

My husband, Greg, and I are members of First Baptist Church. We serve as small group leaders and are on the hospitality team. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with family, reading, traveling, working on home projects, and watching football.

One of my favorite verses is Ephesians 3: 20, “Now to Him who is able to do immeasurable more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us.” It is amazing to see God moving and working within our school. We trust Him for our future and would love to have you “Come Grow With Us” at First Baptist Christian Academy.

I was born and raised in Poplar Bluff, Missouri and graduated from Poplar Bluff Senior High in 2012. I attend church at First Church of God here in Poplar Bluff where I serve on the Ministry Leadership Team. I enjoy devoting time out of my Summer every year serving at church camp, Camp Sharon, on the beautiful Lake of the Ozarks.

In my free time, I enjoy being outdoors, crafting, swimming, kayaking, and spending time with my niece and nephew. My favorite place to be is on the river with my family. I love attending concerts, hanging out with my church family, traveling, camping, spending time on my family’s cattle farm, and floating the river.

I attended First Baptist School for preschool, and I feel blessed to be a part of the staff of a school that is so dear to my heart. I started teaching at FBCA in 2019 and brought many years of early childhood education experience with me. I am always excited to meet my students and see how much they learn and grow throughout the year. Working with young children is definitely my passion and calling from God. My favorite thing about working at FBCA is having the opportunity to share the love of Jesus with my students each day!

My husband, Don, and I have one daughter, Debbie, and 3 grandchildren, Dalton, Donielle, and Jaydon. I am the kindergarten teacher here at First Baptist Christian Academy. I grew up in the small town of Broseley, Missouri. I received my BS degree from SEMO as well as a Masters in Early Childhood. I started my teaching career in kindergarten at Oak Grove. The following year I moved to 1st grade and taught there for 15 years. While there I was able to squeeze in a 3-year course in Reading Recovery, a specialized reading program to help young readers, along with teaching my first graders. I then moved up to 2nd grade where I taught for 9 years. After retiring in 2014 I continued to work at Oak Grove in the Reading Dept. part time. In 2018 I got back into the classroom at First Baptist Christian Academy teaching kindergarten.

My name is Allison Knowlton. I was born and raised in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. I attended First Baptist School as a student in Preschool and Kindergarten. I started teaching in 2023. I feel like God has truly blessed me to be able to come back and teach at the same school I began my education journey. I attend the Bluff Church and serve on the Praise Band there. I could not be more excited to teach at First Baptist Christian Academy.

My love for Jesus and children have led me to First Baptist Academy and I feel so blessed to be a part of this community. My husband Zachary and I have been together for six years and married for three. We have two amazing children, Colton Matthew and Melody Sue-Grace. We are absolutely crazy about our kiddos. We moved here from STL a few years ago when my husband accepted a position as the Assistant Baseball Coach for TRC. While we miss our friends and family in STL, the people of Poplar Bluff have been welcoming. 

I was a preschool teacher for a private school in STL and fell in love with teaching. I get so much joy out of pouring knowledge and positivity into young children. I believe in creating a learning environment that allows children to learn about loving one another through Jesus and allow their creativity to blossom! My goal as a teacher will be to cultivate an environment of respect, kindness and support for all my students. When I am not teaching I am being a mom and baking! I love to bake, read and spend time with my family.

I have been teaching with FBCA since 2018 where I began teaching the music appreciation class. Since then, I have taken over the duties of teaching Art, STEM, and Library class. I have a bachelor’s degree in music from Liberty University, focusing on worship arts. When not teaching, I play keyboard and guitar with the First Baptist Church worship team. I reside in Fisk and have two boys, Connor and Liam. My favorite Bible verse is John 4:8,

“Draw close to God and He will draw close to you, so wash your hands and purify your hearts.”