For millions of individuals living in the U.S., entering the month of March also means entering into a March Madness basketball bracket competition. For teachers at LHS, this March came with the opportunity of entering one of the first ever March Madness bracket competitions at LHS.

The winner of the LHS teacher NCAA Division 1 basketball tournament bracket competition will receive $200. The only requirements upon entry into the competition were that contestants had to be teachers and that contestants turn their form in before the due date. LHS Principal Robert Grimm has agreed to reward the teacher with the most accurate NCAA basketball tournament bracket with $200 worth of cash that they can then put towards their classroom. Every department at LHS has its own group of teachers participating.

The $200 could go to excellent use for many teachers around the school and all of the teachers involved would love to receive the extra cash. From cameras to markers, to chargers and more, teachers have been brainstorming different equipment and materials their classroom could use.

“I chose Duke to win, but I will be actively rooting against them because Duke is the worst,” said Economics teacher Steve Blankenship. “However, the potential marginal benefit of $200 outweighed the marginal cost of picking another team.”

Blankenship is one of the many teachers who filled out a bracket, and one of the many teachers who knows the importance of putting research before their preferred winner. When Blankenship was a kid, the Michigan “Fab 5” was a huge deal, so he usually roots for Michigan; however, for the sake of his bracket, he decided to go with his gut and trust in Duke to get the job done.

“I would probably spend my money on $200 worth of dry erase markers,” said Blankenship.

Another teacher who would love to win the $200 is Sara Klawonn. Klawonn is the English department chair holder at LHS. Klawonn rallied up around 10 brackets from her department and is impressed with how Martha Stai and Rebecca Peters are currently doing. If Klawonn were to win, she would love to spend her winnings on a document camera.

As the NCAA tournament games slowly come to a conclusion, it will be exciting to see how the outcome of the games determines which teachers will pull ahead and have the chance to win the final prize. Who knows, maybe one of your classrooms will be receiving some new equipment this March.