Math teacher Jeff Luce, who teaches Calculus AB, BC and Support Algebra 1, is retiring this year after 35 years of teaching.

Luce grew up in Northeast Ohio and attended Northwestern University to major in civil engineering before deciding to become a teacher. After graduating, Luce stayed in Illinois and had two teaching jobs before moving back to Ohio. 

Luce then taught three years at Norton and 18 years in Brecksville-Broadview Heights before coming to Beachwood. 

Luce has always been a math teacher, and has taught every math class from 7th grade all the way up to Calculus BC. 

One aspect of Beachwood that Luce has always liked is its diversity, especially coming from districts that had less. Additionally, he appreciates that the community values education.

“Here at Beachwood you didn’t need to explain why they were learning this,” he said. “No one asked that because people were invested in education here. That’s not always typical, and I didn’t need to sell my program as much.”

Luce leaves behind two messages for his students and his colleagues.

“Don’t sweat the little things in life, a lot of times what seems to be a big nightmare today you won’t remember in a year or five years,” he said. “Also, you are never as good or as bad as you imagine.”

Luce says his favorite memory is going to the gym to play basketball every once in a while, and getting to see a different side of kids.