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Two Logansport educators honored with inaugural Newby Awards

Last Updated on September 29, 2016 by cassnetwork

It was a day for honoring local educators in Logansport.

Shortly after Jitka Nelson was named Indiana’s 2017 Teacher of the Year at Logansport High School, Mayor Dave Kitchell and Deputy Mayor Mercedes Brugh held a luncheon at Silver Lake Restaurant to honor two more long-time Logansport educators.

Kitchell announced the creation of the city-sponsored Margaret Newby awards in April.

“We wanted to establish a teaching award from the community,” Kitchell said. “The Newby awards are a bit different in that they involve the community – students, parents, administrators and people who know the people and what they have contributed to education during their careers.”

The inaugural recipient of the Margaret Newby Award for Outstanding Retired Teacher is Marla Sellers, who retired after 34 years as an elementary teacher and now teaches adults at the LCSC Adult Learning Center. Kitchell says Sellers was a top 10 finalist for Indiana Teacher of the Year in 2007 and was nominated for the award by her former principal, Hayley LaDow.

Current Columbia Elementary Kathy Bahnaman was honored as the first recipient of the Margaret Newby Award for Outstanding Teacher.

“She was tabbed by former Supt. Ted Hughes to spearhead his Step-Up program to ensure students who had difficulty in kindergarten would catch up with their class in the first grade,” Kitchell said. “For a community then without any kind of Head Start program or Pre-K, it was a program ahead of its time and Kathy was the perfect person to take on the challenge.”

 

 

 

 

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