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Service Award

Sandy Meyer– South Ripley Junior High School

The recipient of this award must be someone who gives exemplary service, plans or assists in innovative programs to benefit all students, and gives special consideration to those who work hard to improve the learning environment for students and staff, as well as the community.

Here are some comments written about Sandy:

“She has developed strategic partnerships with local businesses to raise money for our student incentives for staff to pass out to students. This initiative has gone a long way in creating a positive culture of inclusivity in our school She has also been instrumental in the development of our school hygiene closet. She, along with other staff members, have gone to local businesses to get donations to purchase personal hygiene products like toothbrushes, deodorant, floss, socks, feminine products, and other important items that our families are able to access. Students will submit anonymous requests to her through email, and she is able to organize their hygiene bags and send it home with them on the bus. Programs like these are

so important for our community as we serve an extraordinarily high level of impoverished families. We rely on the compassion of our staff to work diligently with these families and to ensure that our students have all the necessities that they need.”

 

Above & Beyond Award

Mallory Flowers– South Spencer High school

This is given to someone who works with teachers to implement and support programs focused on student learning.  The recipient must have displayed risk-taking to improve the school in some significant way.

Here are some comments written about Mallory:

“This year she set aside an official job description to selflessly step into the gap serving as our unofficial guidance counselor during a maternity leave in addition to her regular responsibilities including a new responsibility as our data specialist. Simply stated, school happened this year because she put students and staff first without hesitation. As August approached, student schedules still needed tweaking, the master schedule and course offerings still needed adjusting, enrollment checklists still needed completing. She created student schedules, added classes to the master schedule, ensured proper credentialing and coding, prepared for parent meetings, welcomed new students, facilitated 504 implementations and communications, AND tackled a new area of corporation-wide data reporting. When students and teachers returned to

campus, she facilitated every student schedule change and even worked to support our students’ social and emotional needs. She became our “everything guidance go-to” person. Undoubtedly, our year would not have been possible without her. She works as an hourly employee but accomplished every single task and more we ask of a certified guidance counselor at a fraction of the compensation and without the title. For her, student and teacher success were her guiding motivation above all else – including self.”

Compassion Award

Teri Hoffman– Maconaquah High School

This award recognizes an individual who has consistently displayed a caring and supportive attitude that contributes to a positive school atmosphere.  This is someone who truly reflects high standards and promotes staff morale.

Here are a few comments that were written about Teri:

“She has been a breath of fresh air to our front office. She has such a servant’s heart and truly cares about students and staff. I can think of no one more deserving than her!! She is a great co-worker and a better person. In 2009, a teacher lost his wife, and my wife and I experienced a stillbirth. She was there to help provide meals and was in constant contact with us to check on our well-being. She is wonderfully positive and always eager

to help. She is a tremendous asset to our school! Because the respect and understanding she gives each of us is so exemplary, my students have benefitted from it even indirectly. After talking with her, I am always in a better mood when I return to my classroom. What a gift to have that kind of influence. Time and again, she has helped me when I needed her, sometimes at the last minute. Even when it isn’t convenient for her, she is flexible and makes it work. Having the comfort of knowing you are looked after is a blessing at once both invaluable and overlooked; if ever I take that for granted, let it be a compliment to her of the high order. ”

 

Leadership Award

Kelly Parker- Brooklyn STEM Academy

Here, the committee searched for concrete evidence of the recipient’s ability to encourage community and parent involvement in the school.  This person should have been actively involved in training others, initiating new office procedures, and improving the overall office and school climate.

Here are some of the comments shared about Kelly:

“She is always willing to do whatever it takes for the betterment of the school, the staff, and the children. She works long hours (much longer than her clock-in and clock-out times) to make sure that she takes care of the many responsibilities of

her job with precision and passion. She jumps into many roles within the office to ensure that everything runs smoothly for all involved. She is meticulous and detail oriented, and her work is always professional. One example of her service and commitment to our school involves our STEM certification. To receive the certification of being a STEM school, the school must reapply every 5 years. This process is lengthy and very involved. It takes a team of people over a year to complete and submit the application. Not only did she take personal time to review and proofread information in the application (as her educational background is in HR), but she helped our STEM coordinator create a file with folders where teachers could drop photos and information about projects throughout the years leading up to recertification. She spent quite a bit of her own time to create the drive and files for the sole purpose of helping teachers and coordinators complete the application in a less time-consuming manner. This single act is one of the many ways that she demonstrates service and commitment while working well beyond expectations.”

 

 

Secretary of the Year Award

Samantha Walley– Rochester Middle School

For this award, the committee used a well-defined rubric to score all areas of leadership, compassion, service, and going above and beyond.

Here are a few comments shared about Samantha:

“She goes above and beyond daily. Our school has been down to 1 custodian for most of the year and she has been cleaning, setting up for athletic events, and fixing things without being asked. She has been supervising athletic events while we have been down an assistant principal due to the death of his wife. She has also coached both cheer and volleyball as well. She does all this “extra” stuff while also completely ROCKING her actual JOB! One time this year, when she went to the bank to make a deposit, an employee of the bank later emailed myself and my superintendent to let us know of a very kind act they witnessed from her. She said during the time we were completing her deposit, she happened to overhear one of my team members talking to a gentleman whom was short $30 on the money he needed to heat his home. She handed the gentleman $40 of her own cash and asked if she could help him.

he was visibly surprised and thanked her whole heartedly for the her gift. She simply said she was paying it forward.

She is a natural leader. These last two years has been extra difficult with not being able to get workers for subs, custodians, etc. She started doing these things on her own without being asked. She just saw a need and filled it. That is a true leader.

She does these extra things for no more pay, no kudos, no reward of any kind. She simply wants our building to look good and feel good. She has pride in where she works and it shows. Samantha also shows service through coaching. Not only did she coach cheer and volleyball for the school, but she then started 3 different teams of club volleyball and coached/helped coach them all!

This year has been especially hard for our office staff. Between the loss of a wife and a health issue with one of my kids, the admin has had to be out more than usual. She is always the first to tell us not to worry about it. She can handle it. Family first.

She does these things DAILY! She makes our special days even better by going above and beyond. She spends more time in the office than she ever needs to just to help out or make sure events run smoothly. She is simply amazing!”

 

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