Who is Mr. Kasten?

Story and Photo by Bailee Council – Staff Reporter

 

   Lee’s Summit North has had many amazing teachers throughout the building and the years. But for the past two years, Seth Kasten has been a common favorite among many students. There could be a few reasons why this history teacher has made such an impact on LSN.

   “My emphasis is relationships, I think my building relationships with students and building trust early makes for more challenging conversations,” Kasten said. 

   The interaction with students has been made a priority in Kasten’s class. Not only with teacher-to-student connection, but with student-to-student. Students are given many opportunities to interact with each other in class, while still keeping a solid structure.

   Along with building relationships and trust, Kasten has been able to relate on many occasions.

   “I’m a lot younger than most of the teachers at LSN, so I can relate more back to my high school experience,” Kasten said.

   With the common struggles high school students have, it is great to have a teacher that will be able to relate and understand where you are coming from in a situation. 

   But Kasten isn’t just a teacher, he also coaches for the girls’ basketball team and in the fall, he coaches football. With football,  it is of great interest to him. He loves football, indulging in any way he can including college football games, Chiefs games, and just any opportunity he has to watch a game. Other than football, Kasten has put a lot of interest in traveling. One of his favorite places is Gayaza, Uganda.

   “I loved learning about the culture, getting to meet people, like in my classroom, and learning how people live in other countries,” Kasten said.

   On the other hand, this history teacher is classified to also be an English teacher. He loves to read and thinks literature is really important. Not realizing he wanted to be a teacher eventually could have put him on a completely different path.

   “I actually started my degree as an engineer, but I always loved history so I changed in the second semester,” Kasten said.

   In the end, Seth Kasten made his way to LSN, making not only an impact on students but also creating a safe and fun environment for them to learn.