LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Jacquelyn Berchtold was nominated by a colleague who wishes to remain anonymous.

Jacquelyn, known affectionately to her colleagues as Jacqui, is a veteran teacher who took some time off to take care of her children and recently returned to work.

This year, she was in a looping situation from Grade 2 to Grade 3. She had a young student in her second grade classroom who was struggling due to autism and ADHD. Ms. Berchtold volunteered to loop them in with her inclusion classroom (meaning she had a group of other students with individual education plans) because she felt she was making a difference in this student's life. 

Ms. Berchtold understood how stressful the situation was, yet she felt she needed to place her student(s) first. No other staff member had to take on such a steep learning curve in dealing with a challenging student. 

In spite of challenges outside the classroom, Ms. Berchtold continued to make a difference in this young student's life and in the lives of all the other students with whom she worked. Her growth measures for her students all reflected at least a year's growth on her school's universal iReady assessments.

"Jacqui is a breath of fresh air and humor during our difficult times here in Ohio," the nominator said. "She smiles and finds the humor in all of it. This certainly keeps her colleagues happier knowing they have someone who is there for help and support."

"Jacqui's students all elected to follow her from one level to the next. They knew that their class would be filled with her love and care. They knew that all their needs will be met, even if she had to provide the snacks or the materials needed for them," her nominator said. "The parents all respect Jacqui and laud her for being such a dedicated educator. She was truly born to do this."

Ms. Berchtold is a leader in her district's Professional Learning Communities. She always provides extra resources for everyone to analyze, resources that help her enrich her colleague's lessons. She tries to memorialize needs and wants during staff meetings so everyone remains on the same page.

"I am in awe of her abilities as an educator who is so soft spoken but who has such a powerful presence in the lives of her students," her nominator said.