Longtime Polk County educator Edwin Arthur Vetter, who established the county’s first International Baccalaureate School, died May 14, 2025, at Good Shepherd Hospice following a battle with cancer and Parkinson’s Disease.
He was 79.
Vetter was born on Dec. 3, 1945, to Arthur and Elizabeth Vetter in Elyria, Ohio.
He earned a bachelor’s degree from Florida Southern College in 1967, a master’s degree from Florida Atlantic University in 1969, and an education specialist degree from the University of South Florida.
While he was at Florida Southern College, he was set up on a blind date with Lana Albritton. During a science research trip to Lithia Springs, the stunning, petite blonde balked at crossing a shallow river, so Vetter picked her up and carried her across. They married in 1968 and have two children, Jennifer and Eric.
A tornado of activity in the classroom
Vetter distinguished himself as a passionate, science teacher at Kathleen Senior High School beginning in 1969, a tornadic ball of energy in and out of the classroom. As his students’ scores on the Advanced Placement tests began to soar, district leaders took notice and, in 1989, he was moved to a position in the district office in Bartow, becoming the supervisor for interdisciplinary programs, which included the gifted program.
While he worked at the district office, he received a doctoral degree from the University of Sarasota in 1994.
In 1995, Vetter established what is now his educational legacy ― the International Baccalaureate School at Bartow High School, an academically rigorous program for some of the county’s most gifted students.
Under his leadership, the school was consistently named the top-performing high school in Florida and one of the best schools in the United States. IB Bartow’s FCAT scores were often the highest in the state under Vetter. In 2007, U.S. News & World Report named it third on its list of “America’s Best High Schools” out of 18,700 schools. It was ranked the number two public high school in the U.S. by Newsweek magazine in 2013.
Vetter had a formula for his success: Teachers and administrators should have high expectations of students, knowing that students will rise to meet the challenge; provide students with great teachers who love what they do, are passionate about sharing their subject matter, and who genuinely love their students; and fill students’ days with engaging curriculum.
Love of students
Not only did he know his students’ names and courses, he checked their assignment schedules and made sure they were on track. He also had a way of making each student feel special, occasionally handing out roses to the girls in his classes, clipped from his backyard garden on Carleton Circle. He also bonded with students by using their teenage slang, including slipping into 1980s Valley Girl speak. Correct answers and laughter could often be heard coming from his classroom.
Vetter cared so much about his students, even after they graduated, he made sure they didn’t drink and drive by offering his home as a refuge.
He would take the Bartow High School yearbook and memorize all of the students’ names, not just the IB students. Those who had never met him were stunned that he knew their names.
Andrea Adkins, who graduated from Kathleen in 1982, called Vetter wonderful and caring as her teacher and her daughter’s principal at Bartow IB.
“But, more importantly, he and Beth Johnson were responsible for keeping me in school and keeping me motivated,” Adkins said. “Given the issues I had at home, I was thinking of quitting. He was just so caring!”
Adkins is now a nurse practitioner.
‘Epitome of the nicest gentleman’
His colleagues adored him.
Beth Johnson taught Advanced Placement English and shared many of the same students. He would grade his students’ research papers for content and she would go over them for grammar. As the language arts supervisor for the district, she helped him design the English department at Bartow IB.
“He was the epitome of the nicest gentleman, the smartest scientist, and a loyal friend,” Johnson said. “He will be remembered always and appreciated by everyone who had the privilege of knowing and working with him. He set the example for professionalism. Rest in Peace, my friend.”
Longtime family friend Diane Cavanaugh said Vetter was “a great principal and a wonderful friend! What a sense of humor! Loved him!”
Hiring the best
Teachers also clamored to work for him, saying he created a working environment in which they thrived by letting them control their classrooms and use teaching techniques that worked for them. Students’ grades and test scores proved this method worked.
Former School Board member Sarah Fortney said Vetter was instrumental in getting her to teach at BHS/IB.
“He always supported my classroom and extracurricular spirit activities. He would deliver me extra Xerox paper,” Fortney said about a much-coveted item for teachers. “He was always able to turn any issue with all people into a teaching moment, no matter the players. I used that teaching philosophy moving forward with peers, parents and students. If he told me to jump, I said, ‘How’s that? I’ll do it again and better.’ I have immense respect or him.”
Polk County Public Schools Superintendent Fred Heid recognized Vetter’s accomplishments.
“Dr. Ed Vetter dedicated his life to supporting public education and serving the children of Polk County,” Heid said. “As a teacher and administrator, he was known for his boundless energy and tireless commitment to helping our community’s youth discover knowledge. Through his efforts, he helped build the International Baccalaureate School at Bartow High. The IB program has since continued to expand to other schools throughout our county, and it’s a shining example of how rigorous academic studies can ignite students’ intellectual curiosity and help prepare them for future success.”
Vetter wasn’t always destined for the classroom. When he was a biology graduate student at Florida Atlantic University, he accidentally walked into an education class. He walked out with a new career path: He would teach.
“From the very first course I took, I knew this was what I wanted to do,” he told a Ledger reporter in 2015. “I’ve thought about that and I’ve thought about that, and I don’t have a good idea why I switched. Something just told me, ‘This is for you.'”
The awards were plenty
He spent 46 years as a Polk County educator. During that time, he racked up awards, including Polk County Teacher of the Year in 1980.
In 1978, Vetter’s students were recognized in The White House Rose Garden by President Jimmy Carter and the Environmental Protection Agency for their environmental work.
In 2004, the International Baccalaureate School in Bartow received one of the nation’s top honors when it was named a Blue Ribbon School.
In 2014, he garnered one of his final awards –– he was named the Secondary Administrator of the Year by the Florida Music Educators’ Association, chosen because of his support for the students and the school’s music program, as well as his efforts to make sure IB students’ schedules could accommodate music classes.
Jon Eckman, the director of bands at Bartow High School and also a music teacher at the IB School, worked with Vetter to start the IB music program. Eckman said Vetter always went to rehearsals.
“One day I started rehearsal before he got in there and, while I was conducting, I heard someone slapping on the stage behind me. I turned around and said, ‘Yes, Doc. Is everything ok?’ Eckman recalled Friday. “He said in a rather serious tone, ‘Why did you start without me?’ I said we have a concert coming up with a smile on my face. He said, ‘Don’t do it again’ and I said, ‘Yes sir.’ In that moment all of us on stage knew how much he loved what we were doing. He got so excited about teaching, which motivated all of us who worked for him. He loved music, his students, his teachers and learning.”
His appreciation for music came from his own trumpet playing in high school and his daughter’s dedication to the oboe. Jennifer Vetter Stahl teaches music in Polk County schools and also plays for the Lakeland Symphony Orchestra.
‘Don’t be afraid to push yourself’
When he retired, he had advice for students and teachers.
To Students: “Don’t be afraid to push yourself.” There are so many doors; don’t be afraid to knock on them.”
To Teachers: “Love what you do. And let the kids know you love your subject and are seriously interested in letting them know all that you know about the subject. Also let them know you care about them and their success.”
Vetter was predeceased by his parents. He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Lana; his daughter Jennifer, her husband Keith Stahl and their daughter Hannon; his son Eric and daughter-in-law Brittany and Eric’s children: Kaleb, Ethan, Blake, and Kennedy.
A service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Lakeland in the next month. His ashes will be scattered in the Gulf off the coast of Little Gasparilla Island in a private ceremony at a later time.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the Polk Education Foundation for student scholarships.
Kimberly C. Moore is a former student of Ed Vetter and a longtime family friend.
This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Ed Vetter, longtime educator who established Polk’s first IB school, dies at 79
Reporting by Kimberly C. Moore / The Ledger
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