Larkmoor Elementary principal will be recognized by Ohio Alliance of Black School Educators

LORAIN — A Lorain elementary school principal earned recognition from the Ohio Alliance of Black School Educators. Larkmoor Elementary Principal Chantelle Lewis will be honored as an outstanding principal and administrator at the OABSE conference later this month. For Lewis, who's worked more than 20 years in education — the past 10 of those leading the eastside elementary building — the recognition from her peers, in a way, means more than the awards her building has received during her time as principal. "It is very hard for your peers to recognize you," she said. "It's always the collective of Larkmoor, but this is an individual award that I'm very humbled (to receive)." Larkmoor has about 450 students, Lewis said, and has been recognized as a "Cool School" by FOX 8 News, and received recognition for its improvements on the state report card from the district. Lewis views education as a civil right, she said, and something no one should be able to take away from a child — regardless of their race or socioeconomic standing. "It's so important," she said. "Our children across the country have lost so much from this pandemic. They've lost a lot, we've lost a lot mentally, physically, and I'm going to say emotionally because we all wanted to come back to something that wasn't there." Coming back from the pandemic it's going to take a while to move forward, but there are now talks of equity — what her doctoral dissertation is on, she said. But Larkmoor, under her watch, is child-centered through it all. "You may have all these outside things going on in the world. I try to make sure that when you're here, you're a child," she said. "You don't have a responsibility but to come in and get the best education. I'm here to make sure you're safe, then academically sound, and then we can just have fun." Lewis was nominated by Lorain Schools for the award. She joined Lorain Schools in 2013 as Larkmoor's principal. Prior to that, she worked in Cleveland Municipal Schools. She also ran for lieutenant governor in 2018 alongside Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill O'Neill. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.