Melissa Kmetz is a third-grade English language arts teacher and grade-level chairperson at Lakeview Elementary School in Cortland, Ohio. She was raised in Campbell, Ohio, graduated from Campbell Memorial High School and obtained a full academic scholarship to Youngstown State University, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in education (early childhood P-3).

Kmetz began her career teaching kindergarten and then first grade in Salem, Ohio. There, she secured a Martha Holden Jennings Grant to Educators, which she used to open a literacy lending library. She moved to Lakeview Local Schools, where she has been teaching third grade ever since. She obtained a master’s degree as a reading specialist from Youngstown State University in 2007, graduating with a 4.0 GPA and ranking in the top 1% of her class. That same year, she was awarded the ETS Recognition of Excellence for scoring within the top 15% in the history of her licensure exam, the PLT K-6 Assessment.

Kmetz is a fierce advocate for culturally diverse curriculum, global education and student leadership/activism. She furthered her knowledge in these areas through professional development at Harvard Graduate School of Education, taking the courses “Advancing Culturally Responsive Literature Instruction” and “Educating Global Citizens.” In 2010, Kmetz developed a Change the World Project in her school district, where for the past 12 years, Lakeview students have been activists, spearheading charity projects to benefit those in need near and abroad.