LPHS choirs performed their first concert of the year on Wednesday, October 8th.

The choirs that performed in this concert were the eighth grade choir, Beginning Treble Choir, Beginning Men’s Choir, Treble Chorale Choir, Chorale Choir, and Show Choir. 

The first choir to perform was the eighth grade choir. They sang two songs and were directed by Mrs. Davidson, the middle school choir teacher. The eighth graders always join LPHS for their fall concert. 

All of the high school choirs sang two songs, and Show Choir sang a medley from Hades Town that featured Molly Cooper, Camryn Ruiz, Andrew Hayes, and Nick Oss. 

After Show Choir performed, a promotional video for choir was played for the audience. The video featured some of the current seniors and LPHS Choir alums. 

At the end of the concert, all of the high school choirs and the eighth grade choir sang "River in Judea" together. 

“The students did an outstanding job of preparing for last night's concert and they performed their music with a high level of polish and professionalism! It was really fun to direct each choir and make the musical things happen in each song. I was really lucky to get to watch the audience's reaction during Show Choir, especially our special guest 8th grade students. They were loving the whole thing! I think we successfully convinced them to join choir at the high school next year!” Tom Coe, the LPHS choir director, said. 

The next choir concert will be December 10th for their winter concert. 

Martin Briggs from Crichfield has placed in the top three for Indiana Teacher of the Year. 

Indiana chooses a teacher of the year annually, with a winner moving on to the national competition. 

Briggs was chosen as the LPCSC Elementary Teacher of the Year at the end of last year, which allowed him to toss his name in the hat for the state award. His application stood out, quickly making him a finalist for the prestigious award.

Briggs was invited to Indianapolis with along with six other teachers in the running for Indiana Teacher of the Year for an interview. They had to deliver a three-minute memorized speech, answer questions from a 25-person panel, respond to questions on camera, and write answers on paper to a question.

“I just prayed that I would be given strength to do my best, and that is exactly what happened. I didn’t even feel very nervous in front of the panel. I wanted to share my story,” Briggs said. 

He was surprised with a visit from members of the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) telling him that he made the top three, and the IDOE staff stayed to watch him teach a lesson, which was a piece of the extensive process in naming the state teacher of the year. His last step was an interview with Dr. Katie Jenner, state superintendent.

Briggs feels honored to receive this much support from students, teachers, and the La Porte community. He feels that when he goes down to Indianapolis that he tries to do his best for La Porte.

“I hope to share how powerful this is, and I encourage everyone to show their support or gratitude to the teacher who influenced or encouraged them,” Briggs said.

Briggs has been teaching since August 1978. He started at Riley and then moved to Crichfield in 2006. 

Briggs went to Anderson University at a small Christian school in Central Indiana. He also attended Purdue North Central, now Purdue Northwest, for his master's degree.

“I didn’t major in elementary education during my freshman year, but at the beginning of my sophomore year, I had to take a class in elementary education. It changed everything. I remember thinking that I related so much to this class, what they are discussing, and even the other members of this class. I felt that it wouldn’t be logical to change my major, but I also knew that I just had to do it. I felt called to the teaching profession. Out of the thirty-three hours I had taken my freshman year, only nine of them counted toward an elementary major, but I went ahead and changed. I worked hard to finish my degree in the remaining three years. I’m glad I did,” Briggs said. 

Briggs started off teaching third grade, but then he moved to fourth grade. He decided to stay in fourth grade because he liked the age group and was drawn to Indiana history.

Briggs has been recognized multiple times for his accomplishments in teaching throughout the years, including the Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). He credits his being recognized to leading teacher workshops.

“I was encouraged by a former principal to learn more and to begin leading teacher workshops. I then began working with Dr. Feikes from Purdue Northwest, and he provided me with the opportunity through math workshops. I started teaching workshops locally and then expanded to other locations around the country. Through connections with my church’s Belize trips, I also started training teachers in Belize,” Briggs said.

When Briggs teaches, he tries to create a fun environment for his students. He wants his students to be comfortable to answer questions and not be afraid of making mistakes. The environment he creates in his classroom also leads to special connections between Briggs and his students. 

“I want them to know that someone believes in them. I want them to develop a growth mindset, understanding that we can learn from our mistakes. I want them to learn how to manage their time, and I want them to find joy in the learning process. I want them to develop perseverance that will benefit them throughout their lives,” Briggs said.

Briggs is passionate about teaching, and he has been since he started. He is always striving to make a positive impact on his students’ lives, even though he only has nine months out of the year to do so. He is unsure how long he wants to continue teaching, and he is just taking it one year at a time.

“My financial advisor has begun calling me ‘Tom Brady’ because I keep saying just one more year,” Briggs said. 

In Briggs’ free time, he enjoys biking, running, and kayaking. He also plays keyboard in my church’s worship team, and he loves landscaping. 

The winner for Indiana Teacher of the Year will be announced in early October.

“I think he deserves to win Indiana Teacher of the Year because he comes up with really creative ways to make learning in the classroom fun and keep kids engaged in what he’s teaching,” Anna Beck, former student, said. 

It was once said that, “A good education can change anyone. A good teacher can change everything.”

Johnna Krause has been changing everything for her students since she started teaching at LPHS in 1998. She has now been teaching for 27 years, and she’s been able to learn a great deal from those years. 

Krause went to Warsaw High School and then went on to Spanish Education in college. Krause chose to teach Spanish because she loves teaching the grammar that it involves and her love for the language. She also debated teaching English, but she would’ve only liked teaching grammar. Her passion is undeniable.

“I wanted to share my love of languages with others,” Krause said. 

Krause is a dedicated teacher, and she does her best to make sure that her students can learn the language as best they can. 

“I want for the students to be able to understand and speak the language. You never know where life will take you, and it may be a foreign country where Spanish is spoken,” Krause said. 

Krause puts time and effort into her teaching. It’s apparent that she cares about what her students get out of her class and about them as people.

“I try to get to know each of my students, but it's difficult when you have 125-150 students. I am lucky enough to get to know some of them really well.  I enjoy going to events outside of school where I get to see them perform their sport/talent.  I feel lucky that I do get to know some of my students well, and I look forward to hearing about their sports/teams/clubs,” Krause said.  

In Krause’s years of teaching, she’s been able to make connections with her students and coworkers. She has many fond memories with the friendships she’s formed, and she says that this has been one of the most rewarding parts of teaching. 

Outside of teaching, Krause enjoys spending time with her family and her dogs. Her dogs are her babies since both of her children are adults now. 

Krause has made countless impacts in her 27 years of teaching, and she’s been able to grow and improve as a person and teacher. Her undeniable mark on LPHS cannot be measured.