CLEVELAND — A northeast Ohio elementary school teacher is being recognized for making an impact beyond her classroom’s walls. 

Melissa Kmetz is a third-grade language arts instructor for Lakeview Elementary in Cortland and now she’s the 2023 Ohio Teacher of the Year. 

What You Need To Know

  • Melissa Kmetz, a third-grade teacher at Lakeview Elementary in Cortland, is the 2023 Ohio Teacher of the Year

  • A parent of one of her former students nominated her for the honor and referenced her efforts to educate the students on making a difference in the community

  • Kmetz will represent Ohio in the 2023 National Teacher of the Year selection process

“It was such a shock,” she said, about finding out she received the honor. “I had a parent last year that nominated me and when I got the email I thought, ‘Is this even real? Is this spam?’ But it was (real), and she was so nice.”

Kmetz said a focus for her lesson plans is encouraging her students to work together for the common good. 

“It’s just really getting them to see that their hard work can reach out into the community and also other countries, as well,” she said. “That there’s a reason they’re doing everything. Not just that ‘A’ on a paper, but that they can use what they know to make the world a better place.”

She said she incorporates diverse texts in her teaching and encourages her students to have a global mindset, leading the kids on a community project each year. 

Kmetz started out as a kindergarten teacher for a different district 20 years ago. 

“My little kindergarten kids from my first year are now older than I was when I had them,” she said. 

But the past 17 years of her career have been at the head of a third-grade classroom at Lakeview Elementary. 

“I had so many incredible teachers and they really went out of their way to make sure kids didn’t slip through the cracks,” she said. “And I thought I could make the biggest difference by being a teacher.”

To her students, she’s making a big difference.

“She’s really nice," Gemma Van Valien, one of Kmetz' students said. "She never yells at us and she gives us ice cream."

Another student, Max Williams, said when the class struggles their teacher helps them practice with extra work to get better. 

Now, with her title as Teacher of the Year, Kmetz said she’s looking forward to representing all teachers across the state. 

“There are so many wonderful things going on in education and the communities don’t always get to see that,” she said. “So hopefully I can just kind of shine a light on that.”

Kmetz will represent Ohio in the 2023 National Teacher of the Year selection process. Another Ohioan, Kurt Russell from Oberlin, was named last year’s National Teacher of the Year.