Becoming a new teacher at a brand new place for most of Pleasant Valley High School’s newest staff can be an intimidating and scary situation for some. But Mrs. Ivy, a new English teacher, states that, “ everyone (students and staff) are very kind, helpful, and respectful”, and the rest of the new staff agrees. Students and staff should strive to get to know the new faculty a little better, but doing so is hard if not much is known about them. Here is an introduction to these amazing new teachers.
In the Science department, there are two new teachers: Zach Marotta and Jackie Edgin. Marotta teaches physical and earth science this year. He graduated from South Elgin High School and went on to University of Dubuque to further is education. He also spent a month in Paraguay bird-watching and doing other scientific research. Marotta says, “The struggles and the triumphs in your life are put there to sculpt you into the person you are meant to be.” Mrs. Edgin teaches biology and environmental science at the high school. She originally went to college to be a physical therapist and athletic trainer, but missing her student athletes, she went back to school at UNI to get her teaching degree. She has two kids, Tevin and Brynn, and she enjoys walking, vacationing and dinner with friends.
In the Music department, the new teacher is David Baxter. Baxter teaches Choir and Intro to Music Theory. His favorite high school memory is when his team got 9th at the state track meet in the 4×100, breaking the 9 year streak of not having a 4×100 race at state. Baxter says, “I’m single, no pets, but I have a cactus!” If that doesn’t say anything about his personality, nothing else will.
In the math department, Pam Ancelet is our only new teacher, and she teaches geometry and pre-calculus. Ancelet is married to her high school sweetheart, who proposed to her under the Eiffel Tower. She has two sons in 6th and 8th grade. She also has a mini golden retriever. An interesting fact about Ancelet is that she lived in Brazil for two and a half years.
In the English department there are two new teachers: Gabbie Ivy and Jessica Scadden. Ivy teaches English 10 and Critical Writing. She went to Belmond-Klemme High School and went on to get a degree at the University of Iowa. Ivy just got married over the summer and has two cats and two dogs. She enjoys cooking, reading and running. Scadden is also a new English teacher. She teaches English 9 and American Literature. Her hometown is Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. She attended Western Illinois University to earn her degree. She has been a vegetarian for the past 11 years and has had two organs removed! She also likes to watch the Olympics when they are on.
And lastly, in the art and FACS department, there are two new teachers: Alexandria Medenciy and Claire Slifka. Medenciy teaches Drawing, Ceramics, Art 1, and Painting. She attended Bethany College in Kansas. She is also recently married and has 3 dogs– all named after characters from the movie Up. A couple of interesting facts about Medenciy are that she is left handed and has had 4 surgeries on her left knee. Lastly, Claire Slifka is the 8th grade foods teacher and the Family and Consumer Sciences teacher at the high school. Her hometown is Bettendorf, which is why she attended Bettendorf High School and then furthered her education at Iowa State University. Slifka is not married and doesn’t have any kids, but she is a puppy parent to her 6 month old beagle, Sawyer. Her favorite high school memory was playing on the varsity volleyball team and getting to play in the UNI dome for the state playoffs.
Hopefully, these short biographies of our newest faculty members will help students and other staff members get to know each other a little better.
