New teacher luncheon welcomes educators to Lorain County schools

ELYRIA — More than 100 new teachers from public schools throughout Lorain County gathered Friday for a luncheon welcoming them into their districts. The annual new teacher luncheon at Lorain County Community College's Spitzer Conference Center saw the 2025 State District 2 Teacher of the Year Kim Haney give her new countywide colleagues advice for the upcoming school year. Haney was chosen as the Ohio State Board of Education District 2 teacher of the year earlier this year after being nominated for the honor by a colleague. District 2 represents Lorain, Huron, Lucas, Ottawa, Erie, Lucas, Wood and a portion of Hancock counties. Haney, a longtime medical health technology instructor at Amherst's Marion L. Steele High School, gave new teachers myriad suggestions for the upcoming year, ranging from creating a signature lesson students will remember every year to never taking themselves too seriously and treating their classroom like a small business. "I look at my classroom like a business sometimes with the marketing concept and branding yourself," Haney said. "I'm really proud of what I've developed, but it couldn't have happened without my community. I cannot stress enough, my community is fantastic." Haney's course load includes Marion L. Steele's two-year college-level medical health technology program, which prepares students for careers in health fields and provides them more than 30 Lorain County Community College credit hours in first aid, nutrition, anatomy, patient care, sports medicine, community health and other topics. Teachers must be ready to adapt, she said, and remain positive — as optimism, and negativity, are contagious. She implored new teachers to prioritize their own health, as they cannot effectively teach or take care of their family without taking care of themselves. "It's OK to feel overwhelmed," she said. "Just push that reset." The annual luncheon is hosted by the Lorain County Chamber of Commerce. Chamber President and CEO Tony Gallo welcomed the nearly 130 new hires who attended the luncheon, noting when the county's schools thrive, so do its communities. "Teachers and students are essential to any school, but they only represent a small portion of a larger ecosystem," he said. "Often overlooked are the families, parents, administrators and community members who significantly influences a school's success or its failure. A strong sense of community is critical to show how supportive, fulfilled and motivated we want our educators to feel — this room is filled with individuals who are here to let you know you're not alone." He also thanked the Lorain County Commissioners for providing space for the chamber within the county administration building for the past 19 years. "We moved there purposely to improve communication and partnership to focus on making Lorain County a great place to live, work and open a business," Gallo said. "... One of the things we do really, really well here in Lorain County is we work together and that's the most important thing." Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.