By Brenda Ortega
MEA Voice Editor

A diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) explained why MEA member Erik Meerschaert couldn’t read in second grade. Now the Lake Orion special education teacher points to his neurological difference as a power that has shaped his success.

Known for his shining positivity and leadership in providing inclusive opportunities for all students, Meerschaert is the 2026-27 Michigan Teacher of the Year (MTOY).

“As you can see, I’m always moving,” he said of his high energy while sitting for an interview. “How it was described to me back then is that I didn’t have engine coolant, so my engine was always running but I was thinking about everything other than what I was supposed to be focusing on.”

His teacher recognized the problem, alerted his parents, and helped him overcome reading challenges along with an outside tutor. Now that experience helps him understand and relate to his students, who are cognitively impaired.

“I’ve been in that spot that so many of our students are in, where you’re expected to know how to do something, and you just don’t know how, and then you end up trying to find different ways to hide,” he said.

“It allows me to be as positive as possible with all of the students, no matter what kind of situation we’re in. And taking the time to focus on those positives — rather than the hardships — really helps.”

A 17-year special educator who joined Lake Orion Community Schools seven years ago, Meerschaert is known and loved building-wide for bringing different groups of people together in numerous ways across the school year, Principal Daniel Haas said.

“He’s a culture maker; he’s magic. I want to underscore how many phenomenal educators are out there in the state of Michigan, and Mr. M is just a no-brainer for this (MTOY) honor. He’s one of these beautiful people that, for him, the reward is the work.”

Meerschaert teaches the school’s highest-need students, most of whom are severely autistic. He also coaches Unified Sports teams in varsity basketball and soccer, plus a Unified Robotics team, all of which bring together students with and without disabilities for league competition.

Last fall he launched a girls’ varsity flag football team, which he coaches, plus he helps to advise the peer-to-peer Sources of Strength student mental health program. In his classroom, he also hosts general education students who sign up to work with his students in adapted electives.

“Out of that group, we’re able to see many who have decided they want to pursue a job in special education,” he said.

His greatest joy is bringing people together for opportunities that might not otherwise be available because it builds understanding, connection and community when students of different backgrounds and abilities interact.

Unified athletes not only come together in practices and games but in the school’s hallways and lunchroom, he said. “Being able to socialize and communicate and understand people who are different than yourself is one of those true life skills for all of our students.”

Since launching the basketball program in his first year in the district, the number of Unified partner athletes has grown from eight to 45.

“Our students here have really bought into the idea behind Unified sports, which is to practice inclusion in a way that is not always tied to academics but goes more importantly to the social piece of the equation, which is so meaningful to everyone involved.”

He loves creating conditions to spur growth, independence and well-being in his students, and witnessing that change over time “fuels my fire and is kind of my passion here,” he added.

Meerschaert comes from a family of educators. His grandfather was a science teacher in Berkley for almost 30 years, and his mother worked in a center-based program at the Macomb Intermediate School District as an occupational therapist.

After graduating from high school, he worked as a substitute paraeducator at the ISD, which he enjoyed. In his first year at Western Michigan University, Meerschaert pursued secondary English Language Arts, influenced by a beloved Troy high school teacher.

He changed his focus after realizing, “Special education was still calling my name, and it is an area that needs more people.”

Indeed, having a special education teacher selected as Michigan Teacher of the Year is significant as severe shortages persist in classrooms across the state and nation, Superintendent Heidi Mercer said.

“The work that they do — not only during the school day but beyond, and not only with our students but with families — is incredible,” Mercer said. “There is such a shortage, and we need people like Erik. His passion, his dedication, his love for students is amazing.”

He advises aspiring and early career educators to spend lots of time in classrooms and develop ways to stay connected with the passion that originally brought them to the profession, even on the hard days or during hard times.

Meerschaert is admired by students throughout the high school because they see his commitment in action every day, said Lake Orion Education Association President Lucy Logsdon, a math teacher at the high school.

“One example is in March every year, we have a Unified basketball game that’s played at a pep assembly and all the students watch it, and kids from the other school district come and cheer on their team,” Logsdon said. “It’s one of the most positive events that we have here.”

Positivity is the cornerstone of his teaching approach, Meerschaert said. He believes in celebrating all sorts of successes — large and small, inside and outside the classroom — and approaching challenges with a sense of calm and patience.

“I’m a firm believer that the use of positivity can go a long way in helping motivate a student or an athlete to do things that they didn’t think were possible before.”

He looks forward to bringing that philosophy to his tenure as Michigan Teacher of the Year, highlighting the wonderful work and success stories of special educators across the state that too often go overlooked, he said.

As teacher of the year, Meerschaert will represent Michigan and sit as a non-voting member of the State Board of Education, acting as a liaison between educators and policymakers.

Now his own son is talking about joining the family profession. “If there’s anything that I can do to help further the field of education over my time as the Michigan Teacher of the Year, then I’m going to try my best,” he said.

“Teaching is a hard job, but it is the most rewarding thing that anybody can do. It’s definitely one of the most rewarding things that I’ve done in my life.”