News

Congratulations to Izanec '25, Katharine Northrop '25, and Ella Witalec '25 who have all advanced to Finalist standing in the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Competition! 

Congratulations to Fifth Grade teaching team member and science teacher Ann Gasser who, along with only 14 other teachers from the Great Lakes states, were accepted into the Shipboard Science Workshop, a partnership with the EPA, NOAA, and the Center for Great Lakes Literacy.  

Congratulations to Avery Cooper ‘30, Sophia Nguyen-Huynh ‘29, Sophia Tsuang ‘29, and Finley Blackann ‘29 who have all qualified for the Power of the Pen State Tournament in May!

Congratulations to Fiona Thackaberry Stevens ‘30 who competed in the Great Lakes Regional NATS Auditions. NATS is the National Association of Teachers of Singing and is the largest professional organization for voice teachers that promotes excellence in singing. 

Congratulations to Kendall E. ‘30, Alaine H. '30, Eloise F. ‘30, Aven A. '31, Annie C. ‘31, and Olivia K. ‘31, members of Laurel’s Middle School math teams from Grades Six and Seven, who competed in March in the Greater Cleveland Council of Teachers of Math annual Problem-Solving tournament.

Congratulations to the Middle School Science Sisters robotics team on their Founders Award win at the Ohio State First LEGO League Championship! 

Congratulations to Serene Hameed '25, who had multiple photographs selected for inclusion in the 2025 Ohio Governor's Youth Art Exhibition. Her piece "My Fro" and a series of photographs titled "In the Chair" will be on view at the Department of Education and Workforce Governor's Office in Columbus, OH from May 2-15. In addition, one of Serene's "In the Chair" photographs was selected as a runner-up in the New York Times photo essay contest for teens.

 

Head of School Ann V. Klotz penned a recent blog titled “Hugging the Whole Experience,” where she reflected on some of the big moments that took place this Spring at Laurel and the changes that lie ahead as she retires at the end of June. 

Gators basketball had an amazing season, making it all the way to the OHSAA State Semifinal game against Bellvue. While the win was not in their favor, the team had an extraordinary season and are the Regional Champions!

 

Congratulations to Laurel’s Track and Field team who competed at the State Meet at SPIRE. Competing for the Gators were Ahnai Welchans '28, Aubrey Welchans '25, Skylar Mitchell '28 and Emnet Gebreyes '27. Well done!

Hillary Teague, Associate Director of College Guidance and Dean of Upper School Students, was included in this Cleveland Jewish News story about the importance of essays in the college admissions process. 

 

The Gators basketball team has shone in the postseason! The team took on Akron Buchtel at the Sectional Finals where they won 87-18. That win sent them to the District Semifinals on February 18 where the team beat Trinity High School 69-33. 

Natalia Navarro ‘25 was featured in a Chagrin Valley Times story titled “Breaking the Stigma: Young Entrepreneur Tackles Period Poverty One Action Step at a Time” about her non-profit For the Flow, which she launched through her Capstone project. 

Claire Leland '26 has been named a finalist in the Teen Accelerate Pitch Contest, which is focused on civic engagement in Northeast Ohio. Claire pitched her non-profit, the Celiac Support Collective, and placed in the top 10. This is the third consecutive year Laurel has had a finalist. 

Congratulations to Nora Kelly '25 and Kate Allen '28 for their stellar performance at the Cleveland branch of the English Speaking Union for the National Shakespeare Competition! 

The Gators had a great day at the OHSAA Sectional Meet on February 7. The team placed 8th and qualified nine individuals and three relays to the District Meet. 

Congratulations to Fiona Thackaberry Stevens ‘30 who participated in a statewide voice competition for the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS). Fiona placed 3rd in Ohio for the Children and Youth Musical Theater 2A category! 

Director of the Upper School Leighann DeLorenzo is directing Dobama Theater’s production of The Wolves, the story of a girls soccer team that navigates big questions all while discovering things about themselves and each other along the way. Madeline Adler ‘25 will be making her professional debut with Dobama where she will take on the role of Swing. 

Congratulations to Ella Witalec '25, who had an incredible finish as a Semifinalist at the Harvard National Speech and Debate Tournament, one of the most competitive tournaments of the year nationwide! 

Laurel's Model UN team had a fantastic performance at the Cleveland International Model United Nations Conference (CLEIMUN) last week. Congratulations to Kate Allen '28, who won Honorable Mention representing Kenya in the World Health Organization committee, and Rana Abdehadi '28, who won Best Delegate representing Cuba in the World Health Organization committee! 

Andrea DiSalvo, Director of Summer at Laurel, was featured in a Cleveland Magazine story that highlights how the value of Cleveland-area summer camps goes beyond dollar amounts.

The Laurel Figure Skating Team competed in the 2025 Ohio High School Figure Skating Competition in February and scored some amazing results with several first-, second-, and third-place finishes for individual skaters. 

Laurel’s Upper School students recently authored a blog post on InspirED—a Website dedicated to student empowerment, positive school climate, and social and emotional learning—about Laurel’s belonging initiative.

Laurel Head of School Ann V. Klotz recently published a piece titled, “Oedipus Wrecked: A Reflection on a Champion Teacher” in The Educators Room. In it, she fondly recalls a favorite teacher—stern but effective, who impacted not only Ms. Klotz's early learning but her long teaching career as an English teacher. 

Laurel is proud to announce a total of 36 students in Grades 8-12 have received a total of 53 honors in the 2024 Scholastic Art and Writing Competition. 

Congratulations to Lori Kella, Visual Arts Department Chair, who received a 2025 Individual Excellence Award from the Ohio Arts Council this month for her photography. More than 600 Ohio artists submitted their work and Lori was one of only 75 to be selected to receive an Excellence Award. 

Holly Gleason ‘81 has been named the National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Association's Independent Journalist of the Year in December. She started the new year receiving an Audie nomination given to recognize the year's achievements in spoken word, especially audio books and dramas.  

Laurel’s Middle School Power of the Pen team had a great performance at a February competition. Congratulations to Sophia N. ‘29, who got 7th place, and Finley B ‘29, who won the individual Eighth Grade competition.

Crain’s Cleveland Business announced in January that Megan Mehalko ‘83, an attorney with Benesch and Laurel’s Chair of the Board of Trustees, has been recognized by the Association of Corporate Growth (ACG) Cleveland as a winner of the 28th Annual Deal Maker Awards. 

Laurel’s Middle and Upper School Speech and Debate team kicked off 2025 with a Laurel-hosted tournament on January 4 that garnered some amazing results, including 1st place in Dramatic Interpretation and a bid to the State Tournament for McKenna Caver ‘26, 1st place in Program Oral Interpretation and a bid to States for Julia Duong ‘26, and 1st place in United States Extemporaneous Speaking and a bid to States for Ella Witalec ‘25.

Congratulations to the Middle School Science Sisters Robotics team on their Second Place Champions Award at the Northeast Ohio First LEGO League District Tournament this past weekend! This small but mighty team is now headed to States!