Linda Plachy is the family and consumer science teacher at Waltham High School.  She teaches the “Chefs” class to freshmen and sophomores.  She’s been working at Waltham High School for eight years, but was a teacher beforehand too.  When Mrs. Plachy graduated high school, she took a year off before college.  She didn’t love her senior year and wasn’t ready to go back to school.  In fact, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to go to college at all.  Working full time at a department store, she realized she was passionate about something else.  One of her coworkers at the time was a family and consumer science teacher.  Her love for the subject and helping people inspired her to continue with school, and a new career path.  When Mrs. Plachy was in high school, the family and consumer science classes were always her favorite.  She went to college and studied to become a teacher.  She worked at one other school as a family and consumer science teacher before she ended up at Waltham.  Now that she’s at Waltham, she teaches hundreds of students about cooking and other life skills.  Where some of the cooking teachers have a background in food and are trained chefs, Mrs. Plachy was trained as a teacher.  She sees food critically and more like a lesson, whereas other teachers may see it as just another meal.  Her love for teaching and food have helped her to become the great educator she is now. 

When school went online in March of 2020, it greatly affected the family and consumer science classes, especially the cooking classes.  Teachers couldn’t  send ingredients home to students, and they couldn’t make students cook for assignments.  Most of the lessons became videos of teachers cooking, or learning how to cook something without actually cooking it.  Students in those online classes did not get the normal chefs class experience.  When asked about cooking during COVID, Mrs. Plachy told us, “Because I have like 250 students, I couldn’t send ingredients home for students to use.  They could cook on their own but that was up to them.”  Part of the reason why Chefs is so popular is because it’s incredibly interactive.  That aspect of the class was taken away during quarantine.  Even though students are back, COVID is still affecting each class and Waltham High School as a whole.  There are still some lessons that have to be modified to keep the cooking classes safe.  Teachers also go through extra precautions to make sure their students are being safe.  Things like cleaning your phone every class, making sure no phones or other dirty electronics go in the kitchen, and making sure students are washing their hands frequently.  Along with new safety measures, classes were also extended to eighty minutes.  This allows students to make things that past classes did not have the time for.  Mrs. Plachy has utilized this time to give her students more choices and new recipes.  Longer periods allow for more difficult recipes and more time to learn about the food being cooked.  With so many students it can be difficult to get to know each one personally, but Mrs. Plachy makes it her business to try.  With longer classes, and more time with her students, it’s easier to learn more about all of them.  

Mrs. Plachy has a husband and two daughters.  One of her daughters lives in France with her fiance.  The two are getting married soon.  Her other daughter got married recently.  She enjoys reading, cooking, traveling, and of course teaching.  She loves visiting her daughter in France and seeing all the sights along with trying out the local food.   

Mrs. Plachy has been a huge asset to Waltham High School over the past decade.  She has given students a creative outlet and a different way to express themselves.  Students love her class and it’s a huge hit every year.