{"id":303020,"date":"2026-05-06T19:45:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T19:45:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/303020\/"},"modified":"2026-05-06T19:45:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T19:45:33","slug":"oakland-county-teacher-erik-meerschaert-is-the-new-michigan-teacher-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/303020\/","title":{"rendered":"Oakland County teacher Erik Meerschaert is the new Michigan Teacher of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sign up for Chalkbeat Detroit\u2019s free newsletter<\/a> to keep up with the city\u2019s public school system and Michigan education policy.<\/p>\n

A Lake Orion teacher is Michigan\u2019s newest top classroom leader.<\/p>\n

Erik Meerschaert, a special education teacher at Lake Orion High School in Oakland County, was surprised Wednesday by state education officials with the announcement that he is the Michigan Teacher of the Year for 2026-27.<\/p>\n

\"\"Lake Orion High School special education teacher Erik Meerschaert is the 2026-27 Michigan Teacher of the Year. (Courtesy photo) <\/p>\n

\u201cI am really without words,\u201d said Meerschaert, according to a news release from the Michigan Department of Education. \u201cI am lucky enough to teach here at Lake Orion … and be a part of this community where we can have impact that has been truly incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n

State Superintendent Glenn Maleyko and several members of the State Board of Education were on hand to make the announcement.<\/p>\n

Meerschaert will go on to be Michigan\u2019s candidate for the National Teacher of the Year award for 2027.<\/p>\n

\u201cTeachers like Erik Meerschaert care about the foundation of our education system and the heart of our schools,\u201d Maleyko said in a statement. \u201cHe ignites curiosity, builds confidence and opens doors of opportunity for every child. His influence goes far beyond the classroom \u2014 he helps shape the students to become innovators and leaders who define our future.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cTeachers like Erik Meerschaert care about the foundation of our education system and the heart of our schools,\u201d Maleyko said in a statement. \u201cHe ignites curiosity, builds confidence and opens doors of opportunity for every child. His influence goes far beyond the classroom \u2014 he helps shape the students to become innovators and leaders who define our future.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michigan each year recognizes a top teacher who then goes on to become an advocate for teachers across the state. Meerschaert will do that in part by participating in regular meetings of the State Board of Education, sharing a report each time on issues that are of concern to teachers. He will join the governor\u2019s Educator Advisory Council, a group that advises Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and provides recommendations on education legislation, the MDE news release says. <\/p>\n

Ten finalists were selected for the state honor earlier this year. Here are the nine finalists, who represent different regions of the state, according to a February press release.<\/p>\n

Sarah Juday, an elementary teacher at Superior Hills Elementary School in Marquette Area Public Schools.Krista Loeffler, an elementary teacher at Clara B. Bolen Elementary School in Tawas Area Schools.Erica Gorzen, a visual arts teacher at Portland High School in Portland Public Schools.Luke Kanine, a Spanish and physical education teacher at E.F. Rittmueller Middle School in Frankenmuth School District.Angela Jackson, an elementary teacher at Woodland Developmental Center in the St. Clair County Regional Educational Service Agency.Amanda Bush, an elementary teacher at Dansville Elementary in Dansville Schools.Julie Herwick, an English teacher at Cassopolis High School in Cassopolis Public Schools.Carrie Barden, a math and science teacher at Tecumseh Middle School in Tecumseh Public Schools.Brandis Bean, an elementary teacher at University Preparatory Academy in Detroit.<\/p>\n

Lori Higgins is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Detroit. You can reach her at lhiggins@chalkbeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sign up for Chalkbeat Detroit\u2019s free newsletter to keep up with the city\u2019s public school system and Michigan…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":303021,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[127893,127894,143,145,144],"class_list":["post-303020","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-2026-27-michigan-teacher-of-the-year","tag-lake-orion-high-school-special-education-teacher-erik-meerschaer","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303020","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=303020"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/303020\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/303021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=303020"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=303020"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=303020"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}