Byron Lewis IV had already had his work cut for him when, as a freshly minted Kansas State University education graduate, he took over a Highland Park Central first-grade classroom.
But Lewis had the misfortune of starting his teaching career in spring 2020, perhaps the worst semester for education in modern history.
Still, in the two short months Lewis had been with the classroom of first-graders, and in the ensuing year of back-and-forth in-person and remote teaching (Lewis asked and was allowed to loop with his class into second grade), he found a strong connection with his students, who tend to come from lower-income backgrounds.