Middletown, Ohio is wedged between Cincinnati and Dayton. It’s known for being the hometown of author J.D. Vance. It’s the hometown of Chicago Cubs player Kyle Schwarber.

But Middletown has also churned out one other notable figure: Elk Grove High School’s own Mecca Sadler.

Sadler is starting her 21st year of teaching, and her first as the English and ELL division head at EGHS.

Going into teaching was something that seemed right to Sadler, whose siblings went into the medical field.

“My sisters both went into nursing and medicine, but blood and the smell of a hospital was not appealing to me,” Sadler said.

But Sadler also knew she didn’t want to be confined to one space the rest of her life.

“The worst job I ever had for one day was filing and it was in an office,” she said. “I couldn’t sit behind a cubicle. I wanted to be up and moving around where everyday it was something different, and it just pulled me into the world of education.”

Sadler’s teaching career began in Chicago, where she went straight out of Marquette after receiving an undergraduate degree.

Sadler began her teaching career at Fenger Academy on the South Side of Chicago, where she was a member of the Teachers of Chicago Program for four and a half years.

“I was part of the Teachers for Chicago Program, so I didn’t actually student-teach,” Sadler said. “They threw me right in, and then I received my teaching certification and my master’s degree in education during those first two years.”

She then spent 16 years at Maine East High School in Park Ridge, where she occupied a number of positions as an instructor.

She then became a part of Grenation this school year.

“I think there’s just a wonderful staff here,” Sadler said.

Outside of teaching, Sadler can be found in Wisconsin at a Marquette basketball game or in her tiny house, reading a book outside.