Blake Kibler

Position: Cross Categorical TeacherSchool: Hillsboro Elementary SchoolSchool District: Hillsboro City SchoolsCity, State: Hillsboro, Ohio
About the Nominee: Blake Kibler was nominated by a member of his community, Tyler Inman.Mr. Kibler is a father of two young boys, with another on the way. He has made his career his passion and puts every bit of energy he has into bettering the lives of his students and his community. He has been teaching students with handicaps in grades 3-5 for the past six years. Over that period of time, everyone has been able to see that he loves what he does. His students adore him for many reasons; for example, he has shown up to school in a full-size Iron Man costume to surprise his students. Mr. Kibler learns what his students' interests are and decorates his entire room just to see their eyes light up. Additionally, he spends time with each student to really learn what they need to maximize their true potential.Even though teaching comes with many struggles, Mr. Kibler never complains. He is a young professional that only sees the best in people. It's rare to see someone his age care so deeply about his students' development and growth. His co-workers and aides are inspired by the extra effort that he puts into each day to make life better for his students. He pushes them everyday to be better than the day before and doesn't let them settle for the minimum requirements. Mr. Kibler sets high morals and standards for his students and aides, and he cares about what is best for the students and schools. He goes out of his way to make sure he changes at least one life every day. His classroom adds fun and excitement to the school's atmosphere, and his outgoing personality and ability to understand how to customize learning for each student is well-known in the Hillsboro community.Mr. Kibler has shown strong leadership with helping run the special needs program and becoming active in the school and community. In addition to teaching, he was the eighth grade basketball coach for several years before he moved on to be the head basketball coach for a local community college. The schedules and travel for these positions are rigorous and make for many long days when combined with his teaching schedule. He has also coached pee wee baseball for his son's team. Throughout all of his coaching experiences, there was one common theme. The players and their parents all loved him and always wanted him to coach the following year. He has a way of making the kids laugh, have fun, learn, listen and improve. When Mr. Kibler and his wife had their second child, they had many complications and it was a very scary situation for them to go through. The community rallied behind the family and showed how much of a difference they have made in the lives of many in a small town.Through his teaching, coaching, leadership, talent with kids and community involvement, there is no doubt that Mr. Kibler is certainly a major LifeChanger![nominee_videos nominee_email="bkibler@hcs-k12.org"]