About

Shannon Borntrager was born in Scottsdale, AZ, February 5th, 1974 to Linda Bruvold Allen and Richard ‘Dick’ Allen.  A few years after birth his family moved to Linda’s family farm in North Dakota where Dick worked as a sculpture and Linda worked on finishing her education degree and being a mother.  Still in his young years his father went on to pursue dreams elsewhere in the world.  Shannon and his mom ended up on the plains of Eastern Montana living with his step-father, Walter Borntrager.  It is here that Shannon spent his time until graduation from Richey High School.

However, before even arriving on the steps of Richey High, Shannon was taught by his mother in a one-room school house in Bloomfield, just eight miles down the road from the Borntrager Ranch.

It was during those years that Shannon had his first experiences teaching, as this was a common occurrence during class.  Students would always be helping other students throughout the whole educational experience.  He attributes his love of teaching to the days he spent within these four walls.

Meanwhile on the ranch Shannon was learning the other side of life.  Work.  In his younger years up to graduating from high school he learned the trade of being a farmer and rancher by the only way possible, doing it.  It was during this time that he learned a well rounded work ethic and the necessity of working through problems as they came considering there wasn’t always someone to ask when situations arose.    He considers his step-father a very influential mentor in his life for teaching him a strong work ethic and dedication through direct experience.

Upon graduation from the small high school located in Richey (eight students in his graduating class), Shannon went onto college and through a few different adventures ended up with his Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Crown College in Minnesota in the spring of 1999.  After graduation, he spent time with his father, Richard ‘Dick’ Allen in Pt. Roberts, WA; traveled Europe and worked as a waiter in the Rainforest Cafe in the MOA.     Education began calling him back to reality and he ended up back in Montana.  It was there that he taught Adult Education classes for local farmers and housewives on how to use Microsoft Office and classes at Richey High School for basic Photoshop skills.  During this time he was sending out resumes and searching for a teaching job.

This search took him to California and due to a desire to still travel the world ending up taking a job as an ESL instructor at LCI Kids Club in Seoul, South Korea during the summer of 2002.  During this year he met his wife, Katie Esguerra Borntrager, and they were married soon to be followed by the addition of their first daughter, Kiara Shea Borntrager.  They  spent three years in South Korea teaching English and in the late fall of 2005 they moved to the Phillippines where Shannon worked as a Foundation Manager at Epixtar (a call center) and later as an educational consultant.   During the summer of 2008 his family moved back to South Korea to accept a position at a private school in Daejeon.  Recently they were blessed with the addition of their first son, Orion Allen Borntrager.

In the future Shannon hopes to move into the field of educational technology full-time and obtain his masters.  He is unsure at this moment if his travels will take him back to the states but he knows a little Montana air would be a welcome feeling.