New Pleasanton staff brings variety of skills to district
- Roger Sims, Journal Staff
- 12 minutes ago
- 4 min read
By Roger Sims, Journal staff
The Pleasanton school district has four new teachers this year plus a couple of new paraprofessionals.
One of the hires was a swap of math teachers with Prairie View, but in the bargain, the Blu-Jays will have the beginnings of a wrestling program. Over the past few years, Pleasanton students who wanted to wrestle did so as part of the program at Jayhawk-Linn High School.
This year, however, boys and girls both will have an experienced coach who has sent several wrestlers to state.
Also new this year is an art teacher who will replace long-time art teacher Julie Laver, who retired at the end of the 2025-26 school year.
Joey Ewalt
High school math
Junior high activities director
Senior/ junior high boys and girls wrestling coach
A Prairie View graduate, Joey Ewalt taught middle school math and coached boys wresting at his alma mater for three years before accepting an offer from Pleasanton he couldn’t refuse: the opportunity to move up into the administrative ranks and build a wrestling program for the Blu-Jays.
He said he looks forward to working with his new students and their families as well as building a wrestling program from the ground up. In addition to coaching wrestling, he is an international wrestling official.
Ewalt earned a bachelor’s degree in Mathematic education in 2023 and last year received a master’s degree in Education – both from Baker University.
He and his wife, Brooke, have been married for two years, and the couple has a 1-year-old daughter. In addition to being with his family and playing with his toy Australian Shepherd named Autumn, he enjoys watching wrestling, the Chiefs, the Royals and K-State football.
Jenni Wilcoxen
Sixth grade teacher
“I have worked in public schools for the last decade,” said Jenni Wilcoxen, the new sixth grade teacher at Pleasanton Elementary School. That includes several years teaching in the Fort Scott district.
A graduate of Fort Scott High School who earned her bachelor’s degree at Ozark Christian College in Joplin, Mo., she is now working on her master’s degree in education at Kansas State University and plans to graduate in May 2027.
Wilcoxen said she is looking forward to building a relationship with her students and their families, getting to know her colleagues and becoming more involved in the Pleasanton community.
Her husband, Travis, is a teacher in Fort Scott and the couple has two children, an 8-year-old boy and a girl who is 6.
“We are big sports fans,” she said. “We spend a lot of time watch our son enjoy playing all kinds of youth sports, and we love the KC Chiefs. We love to spend a lot of time together as a family.”
Kari Brandt
Special education, behavior specialist
“I am looking forward to a new group of kids and staff,” said Kari Brandt, who will be a district special education teacher this year. A Prairie View graduate who is also the council president of the Parker City Council, Brandt said wanted to work at the Pleasanton district because it is a rural community.
With a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Ottawa University, and a master’s degree in Special Education, Brandt comes to the Pleasanton school district from a private day school that specializes in children who have behavior disorders.
She said she got into teaching to help this generation of students learn the skills they need to be the best version of themselves.
During her free time, she and her husband seek out consignment and estate sales. A K-State fan, she has three dogs.
Lea Johnson
K-12 art teacher
An Ossing, N.Y. native, Lea Johnson moved with her family to Johnson County in the middle of her senior year. After picking up her diploma at Shawnee Mission North High School, she attended Kansas State University from 1989 through 1992 and took a break before graduating from the University of Missouri – Kansas City in 2022.
She comes to Pleasanton after teaching in the Kansas City public schools on both the Kansas and Missiouri sides of the state line.
Johnson said she looks forward to the opportunity as district art teacher to both watch students grow and make better connections with the Pleasanton community. A Pleasanton resident, she said she hopes to encourage students to try new things and learn to express themselves through their art.
Her favorite things include her Boxer named Archie, cooking, gardening, traveling, history and all things art. She has two grown sons.
Amber Nuzum
PHS paraprofessional
After being a stay-at-home mom for the last 11 years, Amber Nuzum is grateful to be on the same schedule as her three children. The Pleasanton High School grad said she will enjoy being a paraprofessional this year.
“I’m looking forward to working with all the kids and watching then grow and excel,” she said.
Married for 17 years, Nuzum, her husband and their children love to go camping and exploring new places.
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