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ORCHID: To Brandi North of Cortland for receiving the prestigious Elementary School Teacher of the Year for Ohio award from ACCEL Schools, a network of more than 85 PreK-Grade 12 charter schools in the state. North, who has worked as a first grade teacher for four years at the STEAM Academy in Warren, has distinguished herself for her excellence in academics, teaching, student success and overall school operations. North, reflecting on the award, said, " As a teacher, it is my goal to make a difference in my students' lives." Clearly, she has done that and so much more. Kudos, too, to other staff at the school for their role in garnishing 13 awards from ACCEL this year for operational excellence, academic growth and achievement, educator excellence and others.
ORCHID: To Warren Township resident Darryl Parker and others who organized an appropriate honorary recognition of the township's Browner family by overseeing the dedication of a large historic marker on the street of their family homestead. Sixth Street SW off Tod Avenue SW has been renamed Browner Way. Out of eight siblings, all six sons were high school football All-Americans, with five of them playing professionally. Warren Mayor Doug Franklin rightly called the Browners "the first family of football in Ohio." And as Warren Township Trustee Chairman Ed Anthony aptly put it, "This family has touched so many lives, not only through athletics but in so many other ways. Very few families have had such an impact and influence as the Browner family has had over the years in the township and surrounding communities."
ONION: To the Newton Falls Board of Education majority for approving a three-year superintendent contract extension at a rescheduled meeting after the public notice for it indicated only a private executive session regarding employment and compensation with no action to follow. Board members last week had to correct that flub by voting again on all actions from the June 29 meeting in public session, including the rehiring of Superintendent Andreas Johansson. A decision of that magnitude deserved clear notice, meaningful transparency and an opportunity for the community to attend and voice its opinions. Public trust is built through openness -- not surprise.
ORCHID: To KO Consulting, a community service and economic development company, for its success in securing a handsome $2.1 million in grant dollars for the city of Girard over the past three years. The Youngstown-based company attracted major public and private funding for the city for a variety of projects, most notably for the Ohio Leatherworks property and city cemetery. At a time when municipal budgets face tight constraints, such outside funding permits services and projects to flourish that otherwise would have been impossible. We do agree, however, with some city leaders who have urged greater openness with the city on the types of grants and potential matching city costs necessary for the opportunities KO pursues.
ORCHID: To the seven former Mahoning Valley Scrappers players who recently upped their game considerably by being selected for professional Major League Baseball franchises in the recent 2026 draft. This strong showing from our Valley's boys of summer reflects the team's and the Draft League's depth and the high-profile talents of their players. Congrats to each of them: Nick Williams (Washington Nationals), Carlos Sanchez ( Baltimore Orioles), Ethan Stade (Atlanta Braves), Ryan Nelson ( Cincinnati Reds), Luke Guth (Chicago Cubs), Chase Frey (Boston Red Sox) and Colton Coates (Boston Red Sox).
ONION: To Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine for recently signing into law a misguided bill that will now require all public school teachers in the state to add yet another burdensome nonacademic task to their list of state-mandated duties. The bill in question here is Senate Bill 276, which requires that students also be told they should — in this order -- obtain a high school degree, find a full-time job, get married and only then have children. In doing so, according to the bill, they will be following a "success sequence" that makes them "overwhelmingly less likely to live in poverty in adulthood." Sadly, such a sequence, while fitting for many, is not one-size-fits-all. As we editorialized in strongly urging a veto earlier this month, the new law stands to stigmatize many nontraditional family structures, ignores a range of differences that have led to inequity and tarnishes "success" achieved by a different path.
ORCHID: To Ultium Cells for keeping its commitment to its workforce by recalling about 850 workers laid off in January back to their jobs beginning later this month. Ultium Cells, a joint venture between General Motors Co. and LG Energy Solution, laid off about 1,300 workers this year due to a downturn in the EV market. Now that the markets for EVs and the batteries that Ultium produces to power them is rebounding, we hope the remainder of the Valley workforce at the Lordstown plant also can be recalled as soon as possible. The impact of the recalls will be formidable. As Guy Coviello, president and CEO of the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber, put it, "The return of these employees will provide a boost to our regional economy, supporting local businesses, families and communities across the Mahoning Valley."