As Jim Witt watched a tornado whip past his Lake Township home in June, 2010, he was mildly worried about the path and possible damage it could do to Lake High School.

A couple of hours later, the Lake Local Schools superintendent made the slow slog over to the high school, past the blinking flashers of first responders in total darkness, as the tornado had cut power lines.

“At the time, I thought, maybe a few shingles, a broken window,” said Mr. Witt, who is retiring after 17 years leading Lake.

The high school resembled a shelled building in a war-torn foreign country, he recalled. The tornado had raced down State Rt. 795 into Millbury, killing seven people and bulldozing the high school and Lake Township Administration Building.

Mr. Witt gathered his administrative team a few hours later over a 6 a.m. breakfast at Bob Evans in Northwood.

They had to find a spot for graduation, which was the next day, and a place to hold classes the next school year. Owens Community College ended up filling both those needs.

Longtime Lake Board of Education member Tim Krugh said Mr. Witt didn’t falter in that difficult time.

“He brought in all the administrators, and he said ‘I don’t want any crying. I don’t want any complaining. Just get to work and do what we’ve got to do,’” Mr. Krugh said.

Mr. Witt agreed it went down that way — but there is some Monday morning quarterbacking.

“I told our administrative team, if you are going to be emotional, you go sit in your car or go home for the day. We’re not going to cry. We’re going to be the face of this and we’re going to handle this in a way that sets a good example for our community,” Mr. Witt said.

“Looking back now, with what I know about mental health, maybe that wasn’t the best way to handle it,” he said.

They adopted the slogan — which is stenciled on his office wall — “tough times don’t last, tough people do.”

Jodi Takats, director of curriculum and special education at Lake, said Mr. Witt got the administrative staff “tornado rings” from Jostens with the “tough” slogan engraved in them.

“With Jim, you know what you get. He does not hold back,” Ms. Takats said, adding that he would always welcome different viewpoints and — on occasion — heated discussion.

“We would have it out sometimes, but when we walked out of the office, we were a united front,” she said.

In the immediate days after the EF-4 tornado with winds estimated at between 135 and 165 mph, despair was quickly replaced with positivity, Mr. Witt said. He recalled watching his own three sons and other Lake students helping with the tornado cleanup in Millbury.

“I knew things were going to be OK. I drew strength from our student body,” he said.

During the rebuilding process, Mr. Witt, the board and the staff embraced the idea of a new high school. Along with the building, the campus got Lake Community Stadium and a spectacular gym, which both host regional tournaments, out of the rebuild.

“I knew that this would probably define us because it’s probably something they’ll be talking about in this township for 100 years,” he said.

Led Lake out of financial crisis

Mr. Witt was hired in 2006, after six operating levy requests had failed and the board was desperate for new leadership, Mr. Krugh recalled.

“We were in a financial crisis, and the state was about to take over. It was a complete mess. The community had lost all confidence and trust,” Mr. Krugh said. “He breathed new life into our leadership.”

The next funding request, a 6.75-mill, five-year operating levy, passed in August.

Mr. Witt, who has two business degrees from the University of Toledo and a master’s degree from Bowling Green State University, had worked for Lake before, serving seven years as a building administrator. He was athletic director at Sylvania Northview High School when he was approached about applying for the superintendent position at Lake.

When asked by board member Eric Hirzel, who is one of his best friends, he initially said no. Four phone calls later, Mr. Witt said he would.

“Once I agreed to apply, it became a real competitive thing for me. I wanted to win,” Mr. Witt said. “The other thing was, I felt a sense of community. We live in the community, my boys went here, and I felt like I could make a positive difference.”

In class during pandemic, bellies to fill

The roles of teachers, staff, and administration at Lake have stretched to become a lot more than educating students, Mr. Witt said.

“One of the things that has changed about my job over the years is that we’re at a stage where we spend as much time trying to keep kids fed and clothed, as much as teaching them,” he said.

When there is the possibility of bad weather canceling classes on a Friday or Monday, Mr. Witt said he waits until the last minute to make the call.

“That’s maybe three days kids won’t be in heated conditions, or they haven’t had hot meals,” he said.

That weighed on the decision to have in-person classes five days a week in the pandemic school year of 2020-21.

After Gov. Mike DeWine shut down schools in March, 2020, the Lake staff got to work on an opening plan for the fall. It was one of the few school districts in Ohio that had in-person classes five days a week starting in late summer and through the 2020-21 school year.

“We just felt it was right by kids. And the other thing is, we knew that if they came to school they’d get two hot meals,” Mr. Witt said. “Credit goes to both our unions for that decision. They were part of the group that helped make that decision.”

Ms. Takats said they took a lot of their coronavirus relief money and put it toward cleaning supplies.

“We just rolled with it. Again, he said we’re going to keep it as normal as possible,” she said.

Mr. Krugh said he admires Mr. Witt’s compassion and interest in the students.

“He knew almost all the kids,” Mr. Krugh said. “He had a real deep passion for all the students and their health and safety.”

“It’s a kid business. ... I’m in the hallways a lot,” Mr. Witt said, adding that someone once asked if he was paid to walk around the schools all day.

Will probably continue working

Mr. Witt’s retirement was approved at the Dec. 20 board of education meeting.

His last day will be sometime in late spring — just before he takes a trip of a lifetime with his youngest son, Aaron, to Paris for the Olympics. They’ll also visit Normandy and London.

Retirement will probably include more activities than spoiling the two grandsons, hunting, and hanging out with his wife, Diane, who is also retiring this spring as a Wood County Educational Service Center supervisor.

“I want to do something, and I’d like to do something full-time, but I don’t know what that is,” said Mr. Witt, who is 59.

He’ll miss the opening of the new $36 million Lake Elementary School, which is set to have its first classes in fall 2024.

“This will be a modern facility, and I think it’s something that people are going to be proud of for decades to come,” Mr. Witt said.

Mr. Krugh said the search for a new superintendent will start in earnest next month and the board hopes to have a new hire by March.

“He’s been a tremendous leader,” Mr. Krugh said of Mr. Witt. “It’s going to be a huge loss for us. It’s going to be difficult to fill his shoes.”

First Published December 31, 2023, 12:00 p.m.