I am Jill Burke and have been a principal for over a decade within Des Moines Public Schools. I have a husband Jon and am a mom to four children—Tyler, Mya, Landon, and Emery.  My true professional passion and love is for the diverse students at South Union that have amazing talents and skills to achieve academic excellence.  At South Union, I have the privilege to witness each year the growth and development of each student under the guidance of the amazing staff and teachers.  We work in collaboration to create a supportive learning environment that is loving and nurturing.  We work hard at South Union to engage our families to create strong partnership for our students.  We believe all students belong here, because SU…THIS IS US!!!

Hi!  My name is Kelly Ruden and I am honored and excited to be Associate Principal at South Union.  This is  my 15^th year teaching and leading in Des Moines.  Before coming to South Union, I taught 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th grade and served as an Instructional Coach and Dean of Students at Monroe and Madison Elementary Schools.  I love being a school leader because it means I get to work with every classroom and get to know every single student.  It’s so fun to watch kids as they grow from kindergarten to 5^th grade!

When I’m not at school, I enjoy spending time with my husband, my three sons,James (10), Logan (8), and Grayson (18 months), and my dog, Dasher.