Lakeland Academy leader emphasizes balance, family and kindness

Kim Simons has worked in education for four years and now serves behind the scenes at Lakeland Academy as co-superintendent alongside Jenn Bardall. Simons is also the Title I coordinator and special education director.

Bardall manages the administrative duties, while Simons oversees the student- and parent-centered responsibilities.

“I can’t stand the paperwork,” Simons said. “I handle the kids, the parents, the meetings, the educational part, because I have the education for it.”

Simons said she knew very little about Lakeland Academy when she first interviewed.

“I didn’t even know this place existed when I interviewed,” she said. “Now I’ve taught every grade but fifth, plus reading and special ed.”

Simons holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University in elementary education and psychology. She once thought she would become a school psychologist. She later earned her reading certification from Muskingum and, years afterward, completed a master’s degree in special education. She also holds a standard teaching certificate for grades one through eight.

Simons began taking college courses at night while still in high school. After graduating, she taught and substituted in more than a dozen school districts. She later accepted a teaching job in Florida, where she stayed for more than a decade.

She encourages young educators to pursue advanced degrees early.

“I wish I would have done that earlier,” she said. “Once you’re not in the flow, you have kids and a mortgage, it’s much harder.”

Before joining Lakeland Academy, Simons taught in Canton, St. Marys and Claymont, among other schools. She learned about Lakeland, shadowed Bardall for a day and quickly felt connected to the school’s atmosphere.

“Lakeland means family to me,” Simons said. “The kids, the adults — outside my daughter, who is my biggest accomplishment — this place means family and community.”

Her biggest challenge is finding balance, particularly as Lakeland’s only special education coordinator. She is responsible for scheduling, meetings and writing individualized education programs, in addition to her broader work with students, parents and staff.

Her advice to teachers entering the profession is simple.

“Kindness,” she said. “Teach students to become good citizens. It’s so much more than getting good grades but trying to prepare them for the real world. There are more important things than going to college. You can still be productive and a kind and good person.”