Department: Social Studies

Mr. Nicholas Pleines

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LuHi Role: Teacher (9th Grade Social Studies), joined the LuHi faculty in 2024

Education: B.A in History, M.A Adolescent Education Social Studies (2021) (Adelphi University)

Other professional experience: Brooklyn College Additional Certificated in Students with Disabilities (2022)

What I love about my role: I enjoy meeting new students, buildings relationships and creating a space where students look forward to coming to class each day.

Hobbies: Sports, Travel, and Exercise

What I love about LuHi: LuHi’s small class sizes help facilitate a more personal experience, making it easier to get to know your students. In addition, the faculty/staff are incredibly friendly and are always helping to make everyone feel welcomed and prepared.

Mr. Mark Sarnel

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LuHi Role: Teacher (Social Studies), joined the faculty in 2024

Education: Sacred Heart University (2019), BA History; Masters in Secondary Education (2020) (Summa Cum Laude)

What I love about my role: I love having the opportunity to be a role model for my students and provide them with the skillsets they need to be successful citizens. History allows me to teach them about important topics and major events that have had a major effect on the world we live in.

Hobbies: I enjoy playing and coaching lacrosse and golf. I also enjoy going to concerts and sporting events.

Family: I have one brother who went to UConn and is now a nurse. I have a dog named Lily. I am getting married next fall to my fiancé, who is also a teacher.

What I love about LuHi: I love working at LuHi because it is a welcoming community of passionate educators who strive each and every day to motivate their students to be their best selves inside and outside of the classroom.

 

Mr. Brian Abrams

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LuHi Role: Teacher (Social Studies), joined the LuHi faculty in 2022

Education: Stony Brook University B.A. in History and Social Science; Hofstra University M.S. in ED

What I love about my role: I love teaching history because it allows us to better understand how and why decisions are made today. Events from our past influence our choices and hopefully lead us to better ourselves for the future.

Previous professional experience:Prior to working at LuHi, I was the middles school Social Studies teacher at St. Anne’s School in Garden City for 4 years. And prior to that, I worked at Imagine Schools in Arizona as the middle school Social Studies teacher for 8 years.

Hobbies: I enjoy reading (historical fiction), playing golf, and doing puzzles with my family.

Family:I have been married for 17 years to my lovely wife Erin. She is also an educator, she teaches forensics and Biology. I have two wonderful children, my son is 13 and my daughter is 9. We have a dog named Lilah, she is a beagle jack Russell mix.

What I love most about LuHi:What I love most about teaching at LuHi is the people. Everyone is friendly, kind and welcoming.

Ms. Alex Calimopulos ’09

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LuHi Role: Teacher (English, Social Studies, World Language); Director of Transportation for LuHi Summer Programs;  joined the LuHi faculty in 2016

Education: Bachelor of Arts in French literature & language/English literature & language, Minor in European Studies (Summa Cum Laude)

What I love about my role: I teach in many different departments which gives me the ability to connect with students across a multitude of grade levels. I truly enjoy sharing literature with my students. I love when they can connect stories read in class to real world issues or relate to them on a personal level.

Hobbies: I enjoy traveling and exploring new cultures, cooking, and reading.

Family: My sister and many cousins attended LuHi from 6th-12th grade. My sister and I currently live together in Queens with our dog Winnie.

What I love about LuHi: What I love most about teaching at LuHi is the community of students that I am lucky to connect with each day. I value all of the relationships that I have built with my students and the family that we have built in the classroom. They truly inspire me to be my best every single day.

Mrs. Denise Merkle

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LuHi Role: Teacher and Department Chair (Social Studies), joined the LuHi faculty in 2000

Education: Dowling College, Bachelors of Arts – History; Dowling College, Masters of Science – Adolescent Education

What I love about my role: I love that when I organize a lesson that it can teach young students about different cultures from all over the world. I also enjoy that as a veteran teacher I can help mentor new teachers as they begin their careers.

Hobbies: Exercise, reading, travel

What I love most about LuHi: I love that I have the flexibility to organize authentic lessons and assessments which can help students to navigate life in the future.

 

Mr. Denis Scannell

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LuHi Role: Teacher (Government, Freshman Seminar), Girls Varsity Lacrosse coach, Middle School Flag Football coach; joined the LuHi Faculty in 2004

Education: Stony Brook University, BA in Social Sciences; Dowling College, Master of Science in Secondary Education; Xavier University, Master of Science in Coaching and Athlete Development; Long Island University, School Leadership

What I love about my role: I love the opportunity to delve into the learning process with our freshman and how it can help them achieve in their other courses. Teaching government to seniors is an opportunity to dive deep into topics and issues that they will help solve in their post-LuHi lives

Other professional experience: Public school teacher, Associate Head Men’s Lacrosse Coach at Suffolk Community College

Hobbies: Lacrosse, Surfing, Reading and Writing

Family: I am the proud husband to Colleen, and dad to Liam (13) and Mia (11) as well as Sherlock the dog, campus cats turned pets Blake and Everest, Gecko-Bruce, Snail-Snaily, and probably another animal procured after publication.

What I love most about LuHi: The mission of LuHi is about more than grades, awards, subjects, and transcripts. It is about the development of the whole person and their relationship to God, the world, their country, their community, and their family.

Rev. Adam Schoepflin ’05

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LuHi Role: Campus Pastor, Teacher (Religion/Social Studies); joined the LuHi faculty in 2011.

Education: Adelphi University, BS Mathematics, (Summa Cum Laude, Honors Diploma); Adelphi University, MA Adolescent Education (Summa Cum Laude, Pi Mu Epsilon, Kappa Delta Pi); Concordia Seminary, SMP Pastor

Other professional experience: Teacher, Mepham High School; Currently serve as Assistant Pastor at The Life Lutheran Church.

Hobbies: Reading, fishing, soccer

Awards: NCMTA Outstanding Achievement in Mathematics Education Award

What I love most LuHi: Mission/service work

Mr. Daniel Kielbasa

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LuHi Role: Teacher (Social Studies), Social Studies Department Co-Chair, joined the LuHi faculty in 2011

Education: St. Joseph’s College (2008), BA History and Secondary Ed. (Salutatorian); University of Maryland Baltimore County (2010), MA History

What I love about my role: I love teaching Social Studies at LuHi because we can dig deep into areas of student interests to create strong connections between past events and students’ understandings of the current world around them.

Hobbies: Skateboarding, fly fishing, and hiking

Awards and other professional experience: Lutheran Schools Association Rookie of the Year, Lutheran Schools Association Teacher of the Year, have spent four summers working as a Park Ranger at Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park

What I love about LuHi: I love the strong bonds we forge with our colleagues and our students. I also love the freedom teachers have in deciding how to approach their curriculum and methodologies.