Our next Award recipient is Teacher of the Year, Luisa Gunther from Lake Local Schools.
Born in Uruguay, Luisa has had the desire to teach since she was a child, and she believes that God has blessed her with the opportunity to fulfill this lifelong desire. After graduating with a teacher certification in ESL, Luisa taught in her homeland for seven years before coming to the United States through an exchange program. While in the program she was offered a TA position and a scholarship at the University of Akron, where she graduated with a Masters in Spanish. She remained and worked in the states for 13 years as an adjunct instructor. She was hired at Lake High Schools in 1999 and has since been teaching Spanish 1, 2, 3, 4, and AP there.
She met her husband, a gifted artist, in the United States. He introduced her to the great outdoors and has taken her on unforgettable adventures. They both enjoy art and music, have two wonderful daughters who are Lake graduates, and four grandchildren whom they adore (and do their best to spoil!)
In Luisa’s words “Lake Local Schools has been my home away from home, and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to be a Blue Streak. It is a place to work, learn, grow, and form friendships that last a lifetime.” She has served the school as a teacher, mentor teacher, and Spanish Club Advisor. Under her advisory, the club helped students reach out to the community, adopting families for Christmas, volunteering at the Migrant Center, raking leaves for our senior citizens, and providing scholarships for Lake graduates.
Luisa continued, “Being an only child, I used to sit my dolls in a row, put books in front of them, and teach them. I thought the fun thing about being a teacher was teaching. But my favorite thing is the interactions with our kids… Sharing time and life with them, laughing and crying, chatting and listening, loving them, and making memories.”
“My first year of teaching, a student who dropped out of school gave me a necklace before she left with a little tiny mug that said, “I love my teacher.” It helped Luisa see that even when a child may feel that the whole world has failed them, there is still a chance to make a difference. She has worn it every Friday since, so she won’t forget.
Another favorite memory was a few years ago, in the AP class, during a heated debate in Spanish, a student said “I love to be in this class, I can say anything, we are a family.” She believes that kids have a way of showing us that in the midst of success and difficulties, love always brings joy and hope— just like the Lord teaches in 1 Corinthians 13:13, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
In a letter nominating Luisa, Principal Daniel Harold wrote “After teaching Spanish at Lake for 25 years and teaching several additional years elsewhere to students who have ranged from novices to the advanced, it would be extremely difficult to calculate how many young people have gained a knowledge of and appreciation for a new language and culture because of Luisa Gunther. However, it would be even more challenging to somehow determine the impact that this talented and gifted teacher has had on countless people.”
He continued, “Just as there is no job description that could capture what Luisa Gunther does on a daily basis, it would likewise not be possible to find a university, program, workshop, professional development or training to… teach someone how to display her work ethic, integrity, compassion, and sincere desire to make people's lives better and easier.”
The Lake Township Chamber is proud to present the 2024 Educator of the Year award to Luisa Gunther!