Many new faces rolled into Logansport High School for the 2021-2022 school year, and many of those new faces are staff members.

As these new staff members are welcomed into Logansport High School, some of them are brand new to teaching. This year is specialized IA Brittany Moss’s first year at Logansport High School.

“I spent the last eleven months as a registered behavior technician providing ABA therapy as an early intervention for kiddos diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder,” Moss said.

Moss may be new to the school system, but she isn’t new to the town.

“I have lived in Logansport for 10 years, but this is the first time I have worked within the community,” Moss said.

There are many pros to being occupied within Logansport. One of Moss’s favorite pros is the support from the community.

“My favorite thing about Logansport is the sense of community you feel from everyone when something is happening. The community has really shown support for Cpl. Sanchez, but it goes beyond that. I have seen so many fundraisers that local businesses have donated to when a member of the community has cancer and needs to raise money for treatment; if someone lost everything in a fire, there are social media posts put out almost immediately. It’s nice to know the community you live in has your back, even if they don’t know you personally,” Moss said.

As Moss finishes her time at Ball State University, she looks forward to many years at Logansport High School.

“I look forward to many years at Logansport High School. The first few as a specialized IA and eventually a special education teacher. I have a little more time at Ball State. I will graduate with a master’s in applied behavior analysis, and once I graduate, I’m off to grad school for a master’s in special education,” Moss said.

Building new relationships with the students is also something Moss looks forward to.

“I also look forward to the relationships I build with the students. Getting to know the kids in my class has been so much fun, and watching the peer tutors engage with them in ways the general population of students normally don’t is such a rewarding experience,” Moss said.

Another new staff member, Chad Barlow, who teaches science, has taught for six years before Logansport High School.

“This is my sixth year teaching, and teaching as a profession is one that you love, but it takes a lot out of you. You get to know the kids and their stories, and you take a lot of that home with you. Wondering if they are okay, did they get something to eat that night, stuff like that,” Barlow said.

Some of Barlow’s relatives are based in Logansport. His wife worked at Franklin Elementary for a number of years. He has recently taught online school.

“I was teaching at an online school, and I missed the interaction with the students. Granted, I got sick a week after I got here because I had been out of the public, but I still missed the kids. I have always heard good things about Logan. My grandpa is from Logan, my wife worked at Franklin for a number of years, and I had done some work during my college classes in this district. I saw the job posting and applied right away. I think things happen for a reason, and this position posted right when I happened to look at the job board,” Barlow said.

One of Barlow’s favorite things about Logansport is the people.

“The people, both students and staff, have been extremely welcoming. Like I said before, I was sick for a week, 5 days, after starting. I hadn’t even really gotten to know everyone, and they were willing to do whatever to help me. That doesn’t happen everywhere,” Barlow said.

Barlow looks forward to helping in other areas himself in the future.

“I am looking forward to getting more involved once I get settled in. I don’t even know what all my room has in it right now, so I have to take care of that first. I have approached about a couple different groups, and I want to be involved in a little bit,” Barlow said.

New staff member Vincent Huffman teaches social studies.

“Eighteen full years of teaching. Other than one year, I have enjoyed it very much,” Huffman said.

Huffman looks forward to being in line with his kids’ daytime schedule.

“My kids go to Logansport, and it is nice being on the same schedule as them. I was also concerned with long-term stability at my previous school corporation,” Huffman said.

Huffman agrees with Barlow about the kindness of the staff.

“The staff has been very friendly and welcoming,” Huffman said.

Huffman also happens to look forward to being involved.

“I am looking forward to being caught up from the transition and for things to be running smoothly,” Huffman said.

Jeremy Stroud teaches art at Logansport High School. He has around nine years of teaching experience.

“I have a Master’s of Fine and Autonomous Arts from The Netherlands, a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Columbus College of Art and Design, and two associate degrees from Southeastern Illinois College, Arts and Psychology, respectively. I am starting my fifth year of teaching on record, but counting all of my undergrad/grad teaching assistantships, I would be around nine years,” Stroud said.

Stroud originally lived in New Orleans, Louisiana, and was in love with the culture. However, New Orleans was a handful for him. He soon applied to numerous states which brought him to Logansport.

“I was living in New Orleans and fell in love with the culture, but couldn’t stand the heat or constant evacuations for hurricanes, and then like, I ‘shotgunned’ out about 30 applications all across various states, and here I am,” Stroud said.

Stroud enjoys that things move at a much slower pace than things normally do in New Orleans.

“Things move at a much slower pace here. It is giving me time to complete my Building Level Administration license through Purdue University, while still being comfortable teaching full time,” Stroud said.

Stroud looks forward to being able to push students into art to become better at art than students believed.

“Being able to push students in art to creative boundaries they thought they would never overcome. As well as, pushing the modes and fashions of contemporary art and theory in the young minds of the student body,” Stroud said.

Allyn Penn is another new staff member at Logansport High School and teaches math. Penn has taught for six years with experience in Math 8, Algebra 1 & 2, Geometry, and MA153 at Purdue University.

“This is my sixth year of teaching. I have taught: Math 8, Algebra 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, and MA153 at Purdue. Boiler up! I enjoy teaching and try to make high school math as approachable as possible for students that have struggled previously. I didn’t go to school for teaching. I graduated from Purdue with degrees in Actuarial Science and Applied Statistics. I had some great professors that inspired me to pursue a career in the classroom,” Penn said.

Logansport is home to Penn, who happens to be a 2011 Logansport High School graduate. Penn believes it is rewarding to influence the community he was raised in.

“I went to LHS and graduated in 2011. Logansport is home, and it’s incredibly rewarding to have an impact on the community that I was raised in,” Penn said.

Along with many other staff members, Penn enjoys the opportunities for students to find their niche and to get more involved at the high school.

“I love all the opportunities for students to find their niche and get involved at the high school!” Penn said.

Penn looks forward to the Berry Bean Coffee Shop and Fast Fridays. Penn believes that fast Fridays are a great way to help students.

“The coffee shop!!!! And Fast Fridays. I think FFs will be a great opportunity to help students who do not have time to come to after-school tutoring,” Penn said.

Raquel Perez Coto has had five years of on and off teaching experience and really enjoys meeting and communicating with the students and teachers.

“I have about five years on and off experience, but I really enjoy it a lot. I like meeting and communicating with the students and teachers,” Coto said.

Coto lived in El Salvador until she was two years old, moving to Logansport.

“I actually moved to Logansport when I was two years old from El Salvador, so I was basically raised in Logansport,” Coto said.

Coto likes the Logansport farmers’ markets and the parks and trails. Coto and his kids love enjoying walks on the trails.

“One of my favorite things about Logansport is the farmers market and all the parks and trails. My kids and I love enjoying walks on the trails,” Coto said.

Coto’s ambitions are aimed at his career and new things.

“I am mostly looking forward to learning new things about this position and getting more experienced,” Coto said.

Erica Plutat, who works as a math teacher, is starting her first official year of teaching. She has three years of experience substituting at Northwestern High School. She found her passion during her first month of subbing.

“This is my first year as an official teacher. I subbed for three years at Northwestern High School in Kokomo, Indiana. While I was doing that, I was working toward my teaching license and completing my student teaching. During student teaching, I taught Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry, and Probability/Statistics. I absolutely love it! During my first month of subbing, I knew this is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I had people that would encourage me, and students that were happy to see me each day. But, I also had people discourage me, and say I could make more money doing something else or that I would be stressed out. But, it is the most fun and rewarding job. I love helping students learn and trying to make math fun,” Plutat said.

Plutat was looking for high school math teaching jobs in Kokomo but had no luck. Eventually, she found and applied for a job at Logansport High School and got the job.

“I am from Kokomo and was looking for jobs teaching high school math. None of the schools in Kokomo were hiring, so I started looking further and further. Then I saw that Logansport High School was hiring. Some of my friends went to high school here, and they really encouraged me to apply, so I did. Then, I interviewed and got the job,” Plutat said.

Plutat can’t get over how friendly, inclusive, kind, and helpful Logansport is. Although being from Kokomo, Plutat has also tried out some Logansport restaurants and even Black Dog Coffee.

“I currently still live in Kokomo, so I don’t spend a lot of time in Logansport the town. I have gone to some of the restaurants and really want to go to Black Dog Coffee. I love the high school and my favorite thing here is the students and staff. I can’t get over how kind, inclusive, friendly, and helpful everyone is,” Plutat said.

Plutat can’t wait to watch her students learn and grow and watch them at the end of the year reflecting on all they have learned. Plutat also looks forward to attending to some of her students’ activities.

“I can’t wait to see how my students continue to learn and grow. I look forward to seeing them at the end of the year and reflecting on all they have learned. I’m looking forward to going to sporting events and seeing some of my students in their various extracurricular activities,” Plutat said.

There are many more that are not included in this article. These include Haden Deaton, who teaches social studies, Shane LaFaure, who teaches Spanish, Natalie Pineda, who is a nurse, Lucy Ponce, who is the Dean’s Office Secretary, Nick Price, who teaches weights, and Joe Stetz who is a JAG teacher.