Greetings! My name is Lindsey Altenhofen (she/her/hers) and I am delighted to join the staff at Grinnell United Church of Christ – Congregational as the Director of Outreach and Education. My husband Jordan and I moved from Des Moines to Grinnell in April of 2021. In August of 2021, we welcomed our first child, a baby girl, into the world. Her name is Raelynn Francis and she is now a talkative and very curious 10-month old who is learning to crawl and stand up on her own! As a family, we began attending Sunday services both in-person and online this past winter and immediately felt welcomed with open arms by a great community of like-minded folks.

Prior to this role, I have served as the Data and Planning Coordinator at the Grinnell Education Partnership, a campus community initiative, supported by Grinnell College as the backbone agency. I am a licensed upper elementary classroom teacher and have taught in both public and private school settings in the greater Des Moines area. I hold a Master of Science in Literary Education from Drake University as well as a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education, K-8 from the University of Iowa. My passions have always been focused around pursuing educational excellence and its access for students and families of diverse backgrounds in hopes of ensuring equity across lines of difference. I am excited to get to know you all and cannot wait for us to connect in the future!