Ceremony dedicates Eve Kaltz Academy 21 & Special Programs Center

CENTER LINE/WARREN — During her years as Center Line Public Schools superintendent from 2009 through June 2020, Eve Kaltz often met kids who were successful academically and socially.

She also got to know students who were having issues.

“Too often I would hear, ‘I’m not making it. It’s not working for me,’ or, ‘I’m tardy every day because I can’t get to school,’” Kaltz said. “Every time I heard something like that, it became imperative to me to figure out a way that we could make it work for that child.

“Some kids really flourish in the traditional brick and mortar. They do very well. They really like it. They’re very social. They like that kind of interaction. They like to work with different teachers,” Kaltz said. “There are kids that do not make it in that kind of environment, so I was always on a quest.”

After brainstorming ideas and holding many discussions with various staff members, the Academy 21 program, located in the former Ellis School, was created as a hybrid virtual learning environment for high school students. To date, it combines online learning with in-person instruction from teachers. The coursework is delivered online, and students work individually at their own pace.

The program eventually became open to middle school students. When the COVID-19 lockdowns began, elementary students could enroll. The program has continued, and now has its own building.

On the evening of Dec. 12, a ceremony was held to officially dedicate the Eve Kaltz Academy 21 & Special Programs Center, located in the former Peck Elementary School building at 11300 Engleman Road in Warren. Many of Kaltz’s family members attended the ceremony, including her husband, four children and grandchildren.

In January 2021, the school board voted to rename Peck in Kaltz’s honor. Under the district’s bond issue, a new Peck Elementary and Early Childhood Center located at 26201 Lorraine in Center Line was built. Jennifer Wickersham is the Academy 21 principal.

The Eve Kaltz Academy 21 & Special Programs Center will house Academy 21 and other programs including early childhood special education and the Great Start Readiness Program.

“I am very glad to be here tonight to honor Eve. Eve’s dedication to the Center Line community, to Center Line Schools cannot be measured,” district Superintendent Joseph Haynes said. “She has done tremendous things in the classroom and as an administrator. It seems very fitting that the program that she started is housed in this building and named after her.”

During the ceremony, school board President Gary Gasowski read a resolution “to make this recognition official.”

“Eve really is one of the kindest, most compassionate, empathetic persons I know,” Gasowski said. “I’ve found out numerous times that she’s actually dipped into her own resources and helped students. Every time Eve has found a student in need, she’s gone out of her way to find a course of action so that student can reach his or her full potential.”

Kaltz is a 1978 graduate of Center Line High School. After high school, she earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Oakland University, and then her master’s degree in educational administration from Saginaw Valley State University.

Kaltz began working for CLPS on Sept. 13, 1988 as an elementary school teacher. After 13 years in the classroom, Kaltz changed gears to become the district’s elementary learning consultant.

In Center Line, she served as the principal at Peck and Crothers elementary schools.  Kaltz also served as the district’s director of curriculum, instruction, and assessment.