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 | April, 2012 Educator of the Month Karen Crooks from Carson Elementary will be recognized as the DISD May Educator of the Month. | |
 | May, 2012 Support Staff Employee of the Month Dainya Park from Decatur High School was recognized as the May DISD Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | April, 2012 Educator of the Month Kara Stone from Young Elementary was recognized as the April, 2012 Decatur ISD Educator of the Month. | |
 | April, 2012 Support Staff Employee of the Month David Jackson from the Technology Department was recognized as the April, 2012 Decatur ISD Support Staff of the Month. | |
 | March, 2012 Educator of the Month Suzanne Parker from Decatur High School was recognized and the DISD March Educator of the Month. | |
 | March, 2012 Support Staff of the Month Gene Ussery from the DISD Transportation Department was recognized as the March DISD Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | February, 2012 Educator of the Month Sonia Carrillo from Rann Elementary School was recognized as the Decatur ISD February Educator of the Month. | |
 | February, 2012 Support Staff of the Month Laura Davila from Young Elementary Child Nutrition was recognized at the Decatur ISD February Support Staff of the Month. | |
 | January, 2012 Educator of the Month Lorna Franke is a seventh grade Texas History teacher and head girls coach from McCarroll Middle School will be recognized as the January Educator of the Month. | |
 | January, 2012 Support Staff of the Month Dustyn Bible from Maintenance Department will be recognized as the January Support Staff of the Month. | |
 | December, 2011 Educator of the Month Carrie Greever, Carson Elementary First Grade Teacher, was honored as the December, 2011 Educator of the Month. | |
 | December, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Francie Coffee, Decatur ISD Department of Special Programs, was honored as the December, 2011 Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | November, 2011 Educator of the Month Jean Miller, teacher at Young Elementary, was honored as the November, 2011 Educator of the Month. | |
 | November, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Allie Fernandez, Rann Elementary School, was honored as the November, 2011 Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | October, 2011 Educator of the Month Lance Morse does much more than direct the finest theater department in Texas. He works with our classroom teachers to incorporate physical activities into their lessons to assist students understanding of difficult objectives. He builds relationships with students that are so strong often student’s work hard just so they don’t let him down.
Recently, Lance helped organize our TASA performance. Brad White, one of the highest regarded fine arts directors in the state said, “Lance, without your genius creativity, hard work, "sticktuitiveness" and passion for teaching, NONE of this would have happened. It was a real pleasure for me to get to see you work with students. You have a wonderful gift with kids. You have the fabulous ability to demand the very best of your students while maintaining relationships with them that is envious to many in teaching. DHS is grateful I was unsuccessful in stealing you a few years back to Birdville. Lord knows, I tried!” | |
 | October, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Melba Roberts from Carson Elementary will be recognized as the October Support Staff Employee of the Month. This is Melba's 9th year in DISD. She is the Title I aide at Carson and runs the literacy library, reads with students, as well as working with any of our students who need intervention in reading. Carson appreciates Melba for being such a valuable employee. | |
 | September, 2011 Educator of the Month Teri Vrba, Counselor, Rann Elementary School | |
 | September, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Donna Donaghey, Young Elementary School | |
 | July, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Nancy Pulse from Central Administration Office is the July Support Staff Employee of the Month. Nancy has worked 12 years with DISD. She is married to Bob and has one son, Cody | |
 | June, 2011 Educator of the Month Erin Griffith, McCarroll Middle School | |
 | June, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Tisha Holloway, McCarroll Middle School | |
 | May, 2011 Educator of the Month Darla Hakanson, Carson Elementary School is the DISD Educator of the Month for May. Ms. Hakanson has been with Decatur ISD for 8 years. She is married to Chip and has 2 children attending DISD. | |
 | May, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Dawn Downe from Decatur High School will be recognized as the May Support Staff Employee of the Month. Dawn has worked 12 years with DISD. She is married to Mark and has two kids, one has already graduated and one in the 9th grade at DHS. | |
 | April, 2011 Educator of the Month Tammy Rainey, Young Elementary School is the DISD Educator of the Month for April. Ms. Rainey has been with Decatur ISD for 4 years. She is married and has 3 children attending DISD. She is a very passionate person who always looks for ways to challenge her students and colleagues. She took a major roll in planning important pieces of opening our new campus and has recently become the driving force in creating the Outdoor Learning Center on the Young property. She has spent countless hours organizing the Science Committee and researching for grants that will make this Outdoor Learning Center an amazing experience for all ages. Her passion for Science is contagious and her students are always excited to see what the next day will bring in her classroom. I don’t know what Mrs. Rainey will be when she grows up, but I know that Mrs. Rainey will continue to make a difference in the lives of our children! | |
 | April, 2011 Support Staff of the Month The Decatur ISD Technology Department is very excited to have Donna McKee as Decatur ISD's April Support Staff Employee of the Month. We honor Donna this month for the great impact that she has had in the deployment and implementation of the Decatur High School 1 to 1 Laptop Program. In addition to the very hard work that she dedicated to the district in planning and deployment last summer, since August she has taken on managing the Mac Shack on the second floor of Decatur High School. She serves as onsite technical support for the entire DHS students and faculty and has developed a special relationship with students throughout the building. Her hard work has been critical to the technical success of the program. She is an invaluable resource and Decatur ISD is a better district because she is one of our employees. Donna began working for Decatur ISD in September, 2002. She is married to Shawn McKee and has 3 children, Candra, Cara, and Rory. | |
 | March, 2011 Educator of the Month Carrie Alano, Decatur High School is the DISD Educator of the Month for March. Mrs. Alano is a second year teacher who already is an exemplary faculty member. She is a leader in the use of technology, writes incredible lesson plans, and communicates frequently with parents. She attends to the students collectively, but also addresses their needs individually. Her flexibility, dedication, and long hours of commitment are greatly appreciated. We honor her excellence and "can do" attitude in and out of the classroom. Thank you, Mrs. Alano, for your heart and care for the teenagers of Decatur ISD. | |
 | March, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Flipper Love from DISD Transportation will be recognized as the March Support Staff Employee of the Month. Flipper started working for DISD in 2005. He is married and has three children, one of which attends Decatur ISD. Flipper has recently completed his Teaching Certification and earned his Masters in Education. He has been a very loyal and dependable employee for the Transportation Department. | |
 | February, 2011 Educator of the Month Jennie Fitzgerald from Rann Elementary will be recognized as the DISD Educator of the Month. Jennie has taught 4th grade math since joining Decatur ISD in 2004. | |
 | February, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Dana Henderson, manager at Multi Purpose Cafeteria will be recognized as the February Support Staff Employee of the Month. Dana joined Decatur ISD on February 6, 2008. She was employed in a cooking/prep position. On January 5th, Dana accepted the manager position at Multi Purpose Cafeteria when our previous manager left suddenly due to health reasons. | |
 | January, 2011 Educator of the Month Jessica Murphy from McCarroll Middle School will be recognized as the DISD Educator of the Month. Willing worker, ready to do what it takes. These phrases accurately describe Jessica Murphy, a 6th grade science teacher. She freely volunteered to tutor math students after school. She painted an inspiring mural on one of the walls on the campus. She identified a concern about Mrs. Bocanegra’s class (while Mrs. Boca was out with a broken foot) and created a plan to address the concern. She taught the combined classes for more than a month to ensure the students learned what they were supposed to. She loves her subject (science) and it shows in the classroom. Mrs. Murphy is married and has 2 sons, one at Young Elem. and one at DHS. She is a dedicated teacher who cares not only about her own students, but everyone else’s as well. McCarroll Middle School is very lucky, and proud to have a teacher like Jessica Murphy on its staff. | |
 | January, 2011 Support Staff of the Month Gary Skaggs from the Maintenance Department will be recognized as the January Support Staff Employee of the Month. Gary came to work for DISD in August 2009 and has been a dependable and excellent addition to our staff. He is married to Jane, a long- time employee at Central Administration and they have three daughters and one grandson. | |
 | December, 2010 Educator of the Month Curren Wicker from Carson Elementary will be recognized as the DISD Educator of the Month. Curren has been teaching 2nd grade at Carson Elementary for 9 years. She is married to Brandt and they have three children attending DISD: Cami, Carson and Caylen. | |
| NAN WILSON | December, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Nan Wilson from Special Education will be recognized as the December Support Staff Employee of the Month. She is in charge of PEIMS and has worked in the district for 8 years. Nan has been married to Jimmy for 37 years and they have two children and two grandchildren. | |
 | November, 2010 Educator of the Month Robyn Mahoney from Young Elementary will be recognized as the Educator of the Month. | |
 | November, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Lura Oates from Rann Elementary will be recognized as the November Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | October, 2010 Educator of the Month Over the past year, Rene’ Fuller has excelled beyond expectation in her new position as College & Career Readiness Specialist at DHS. She has an outstanding work ethic and is passionate about providing the best possible services to our students. She has been instrumental in getting people from our community involved in Real World Decatur. It is time consuming to keep in contact with so many volunteers, but this program has been invaluable to DHS. It is wonderful so see working people from our community coming into our classrooms and providing practical lessons to our students that will help them be successful after high school. Rene’ herself possesses a wealth of information on career skills, college admissions, and financial aid procedures that she is able to pass onto students. She has created a book for the counselors to provide to parents during upcoming sophomore meetings. She is currently coordinating two Senior Parent Nights, where parents can ask questions and learn more about college and career planning. She is also responsible for maintaining 4-year plans on every single high school student. This includes talking to students about their core classes and elective options, career pathway, and plan after high school. Each year, she must code every 4-year plan based on the student’s chosen electives, which is a momentous task. Rene’ also serves as the CTE department chair. CTE has undergone many changes in the past year, and Rene’ has kept up with all the new information and has helped us all get through this transition period. In the meantime, she has been instrumental in bringing the ACT/SAT prep course, Naviance, to our school and helping students get the most out of it. She is also in the process of making Decatur High School a testing center, which will be a huge benefit to our students. On top of everything else, Rene’ continues to provide technology support to our students and teachers. As you can see, she plays many vital roles at DHS, and there are probably several more that are not mentioned here. She should be commended for her positive attitude, attention to detail, hard work, and dedication that are evident in all her many tasks. We are proud to recognize Rene Fuller as the DISD Educator of the Month. | |
 | October, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Vicki Miller from Carson Elementary as the October Support Staff Employee of the Month. She has been with DISD since April 2003 and has been the secretary at Carson the entire 8 years. Ms. Miller is married to Terry and they have two children. | |
 | September, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Cindy Clayton as the September Educator of the Month from Rann Elementary. Cindy started working for Decatur ISD in August, 1997 and has been at Rann Elementary the entire time. She is married to Gary Clayton, board member and they have three children, two of which have already graduated from Decatur ISD. | |
 | September, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Dianna White from Young Elementary as the September Support Staff Employee of the Month. When deciding our first ever support staff of the month person for Young Elementary, Dianna White was the obvious choice for us. Each school must have a solid foundation and our school's main foundation is Dianna White, for she is the support that holds our school together. She spent countless hours before school started getting students enrolled, working on schedules and doing everything within her power to make sure Young was ready to open for our students. I know as principal that I would be lost without her and trust her implicitly. An excellent school secretary unfortunately tends to be like an excellent umpire or referee in that when they do their job well, they often go unnoticed. This is our chance to shine the light on excellence that may sometimes go unnoticed. | |
 | August, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Ginger Hinson as the August DAEP Educator of the Month. Ginger started working for Decatur ISD in 1982 and retired in June after working 30 years for the district. She was very instrumental in the success of DAEP during 2009- 2010 school year. | |
 | August, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Nancy Cobb from DAEP as the August Support Staff Employee of the Month. Nancy has worked 20 years for DISD, she has been married to Kenneth for 38 years and they have 4 children, 3 of whom graduated from Decatur. They also have 5 grandchildren, 3 of whom currently attend Decatur ISD. | |
 Sherrie Garner | July, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize two employees from the Administration Bldg. as the July Support Staff Employees of the Month. Sherrie Garner is our district payroll clerk. Her husband, Billy Garner is the Girls' Basketball Coach/Athletic Coordinator and they have two children in the district. Kelsey will be a senior this year and Holt will be in the 8th grade. Connie Sessions is our receptionist and purchasing assistant. Connie and her husband, Alan have two children that graduated from DISD. | |
 | June, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Mrs. Cathy Tally from Decatur Middle School as the June Educator of the Month. Mrs. Tally is a true educational leader on our campus and leads her team to provide exemplary lessons for our students. Mrs. Tally teaches 8th grade Language Arts. She provides a passion and love for teaching that helps engage her students on a daily basis. This passionate attitude for her subject and life shows each day. As a life long learner, Mrs. Tally imparts her love of education to her students, and is constantly looking for new and innovative ways to help her students be successful. Decatur Middle School salutes Mrs. Cathy Tally as our Educator of the Month! Thank you for being an integral part of the Decatur Middle School team. | |
 | June, 2010 Support Staff of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Roger Egle as the Decatur ISD June Support Staff Employee of the Month. Mr. Egle works in the Decatur ISD Technology Department as Network Administrator. His responsibilities include administering operations and administration of the network infrastructure across the district. This infrastructure includes e-mail, internet access, file sharing, telephone service, and network connectivity providing services to over 3,300 users. Since joining the District nearly 10 years ago, network services have become critical to daily operations. As the District increases access to technology, the network only grows in importance. This Spring, Mr. Egle coordinated the technical requirements of required online state testing at all campuses. Over 550 online tests were administered this year alone. His performance on this project was excellent and helped to alleviate the stress of test administrators across the district. This is why Roger Egle is our June Support Staff Employee of the Month. | |
 | May, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Ashley Smith as the May Educator of the Month. This is Ashley's second year at Carson working on the 2nd grade team. She graduated from Texas Tech in 2003 with a degree in Early Childhood Education. She taught in Plano ISD before getting married and moving "out west" to Decatur. While on staff at Carson, Ashley has been instrumental in creating a positive environment and working diligently to do what's best for her students. Recently a parent shared with me that her student has had an incredible year because of Mrs. Smith. The parent was crying tears of joy because her student has had a great 2nd grade year after a tough first grade year. Mrs. Smith's teammates shared that she cares deeply for the people she works with. She would do anything to help - both professionally and personally. I am excited to share that Mrs. Smith is not only our Educator of the Month, but also Carson's Teacher of the Year for 2009-2010. | |
 | May, 2010 Support Staff Employee of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Jamelyn Williams from Decatur Middle School as the May Support Staff Employee of the Month. Mrs. Williams is our Read Right teacher for the Middle School. She provides a positive, structured atmosphere and safe learning environment for her students. Providing this type of environment allows her students to excel in their reading skills and become more confident. Mrs. Williams uses the Read Right program to assist her students in improving their reading skills, but it is the person that makes this program so successful. Mrs. Williams has shown year after year improvement for her students. This is why Mrs. Jamelyn Williams is our Support Staff Employee of the Month, and a valued member of the Middle School Team. | |
 | April, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Mary Crenshaw as the April Educator of the Month. Mrs. Crenshaw joined our faculty a few days before school started last year after teaching in Louisiana. She had to learn everything about Texas schooling without the benefit of training that most teachers receive. Mrs. Crenshaw’s natural teaching ability and dedication to learning everything about our curriculum culminated into excellent results for our students. She treats each student in her class with care and has worked especially well with some behaviorally challenged students. Mary is super organized, very diligent in her work, and cares greatly about her profession. It is because of all these qualities and many more, that we are proud to name Mary Crenshaw as educator of the month. | |
 | April, 2010 Support Staff Employee of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Virginia Caraway as the Support Staff Employee of the Month. Virginia Caraway has been the welcoming face of Decatur I.S.D. for decades. She has served in many capacities including executive assistant for the Decatur High School Principal, executive assistant for the Decatur I.S.D. Superintendent, and presently as the executive assistant for the Decatur I.S.D. Athletic Director. She knows everything that anyone needs to know about the operation of Decatur I.S.D. and she can answer any question or send anyone to the correct destination if an individual is wise enough to ask Mrs. Caraway first. She is always willing to volunteer her services to anyone or anything in need, although she is officially a “part-time” employee. She truly runs the Athletic Department and takes care of all of our coaches’ needs. She handles all of the eligibility paperwork, budget processes, scheduling of other teams using our facilities, acquiring workers for games that we host, and the list could go on and on. Virginia is also responsible for keeping everyone in line with her cordial but stern “motherly” personality. The professional example and work ethic that Virginia displays daily makes her an invaluable asset to the Decatur Independent School District. | |
 | March, 2010 Educator of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Audrey Micinski as the March Educator of the Month. Mrs. Micinski has worked for Decatur High School for 10 years. Ashton Hacker, junior at DHS has this to say about Mrs. Micinski: "Teachers have the very important responsibility of shaping the lives of young, impressionable youth such as myself. With this responsibility comes great pride and joy. Therefore all teachers should strive for what can be considered to be a “good teacher.” A good teacher can be defined as someone who always pushes students to want to do their best while at the same time trying to make learning interesting as well as creative. Although many names pop to my head, there is one that sticks apart from the crowd and that's Mrs. Micinski. For she goes above and beyond by doing wild and crazy thinks to make class fun and relatable. For instance, when we were learning about electricity last week she demonstrated it by sending electricity threw her body and honestly what kid doesn't want to see there teacher get shocked. On a more serious note it's things like that that make so many kids look forward to going to her class. When you hear about the awesome things you get to do in physics you get excited years before you are even eligible to take the class. Wow, who gets excited about physics?... WE DO and that is because of Mrs. Micinski." | |
 | March, 2010 Support Staff Employee of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize John Polhemus from Transportation as the Support Staff Employee of the Month. John has been serving Decatur ISD for approximately 25 years. He has been here through Durham School Services, Stock Transportation, and now back to Decatur ISD Transportation. In the ever changing world of transportation, it is best to have employees that are very versatile. John has proven himself very versatile. He drives a special needs route but does not mind occasionally helping out on the other special needs routes. Not only will he drive different routes, he will take the occasional last minute field trip or you might even see him answering a phone in dispatch. This all happens in one day. The next day may be a whole different situation. I believe he enjoys the challenge as we all do sometimes. He has good rapport with the children on his bus and their parents. He is always willing to help out in any situation. | |
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 | February, 2010 Support Staff Employee of the Month Decatur ISD is proud to recognize Patty Tolbert, Carson Cafeteria Manager as the Support Staff Employee of the Month. Patty has been married to Frank Tolbert for 21 years and has two children. Trisha is a senior at DHS and Rusty is a 7th grader at DMS. Her hobbies include reading, camping, traveling and just spending quiet time with her family and friends. Patty has been employed with the district since August of 2003. She is respected by her co-workers and is always willing to go the extra mile. She is loyal, dependable, kind and compassionate and ready to lend a hand where needed. Patty loves her job and is always quick to point out that her success as a manager is due to the wonderful ladies who work with her. Patty feels blessed to have a wonderful faculty and staff at Carson to work with each day. | |
 | January, 2010 Educator of the Month Teresa Mattison is nothing short of a Decatur Middle School legend where she has worked for 18 years. She spends her days at Decatur Middle School regaling students with the facts and stories surrounding some of U.S. History’s most important and exciting moments. Mrs. Mattison sets very high expectations for her students, and they strive to meet them each and every day. Mrs. Mattison is the department chair for the Social Studies department at Decatur Middle School. Her 8th grade History department has always done extremely well on the Social Studies TAKS test with 90+ percent of their students passing. Decatur Middle School had 96% of its 8th grade students pass the 2009 Social Studies TAKS test. Mrs. Mattison and Tony Grimes will be recognized for these impressive scores by The National Center for Educational Achievement group (previously known as Just for Kids) in Dallas on January 21, 2010. Mrs. Mattison runs a very tight ship and her students love her for it. Come join Mrs. Mattison’s class to see and hear History come alive. | |
 | January, 2010 Support Staff Employee of the Month The Decatur ISD Maintenance Department is very excited to recognize Glen Ray Mosley as the January DISD Support Staff Employee of the Month. Ray has been employed in the Decatur ISD Maintenance Department for 9 years. He is married and has one son and a daughter. His daughter, Rayanna Terrell, teaches at Carson Elementary. He also has grandchildren who attend Decatur ISD. Ray's knowledge of carpentry, electrical, plumbing, hvac and appliance repairs make him an invaluable asset to our district. He is a very conscientious worker that gives nothing but quality workmanship in every job he performs. In the past month, Ray has been asked to come in early each morning to check every building to help with heating issues. He is always willing to do whatever needs to be done and always goes over the call of duty to ensure that our students and teachers have a good and safe environment to learn and work. Although he is one of the department's veteran employees, he runs circles around the younger employees. We are proud to have him as part of the DISD Maintenance Department. | |
 | November, 2009 Educator of the Month DISD Educator of the Month for December is Jackie Patrick, music teacher at Carson Elementary. Jackie has been a member of the Carson Staff for 7 years. She has been a teacher in the regular classroom as well as specializing in music. Each year, every grade level on campus performs a musical program for the parents and community of Carson. Many of these programs, Jackie writes herself. Her colleagues describe her as dedicated and flexible – ready to do whatever it takes for the students. Most recently, Jackie earned some fame for her Veteran’s Day program where over 20 Veterans were honored as the students sang patriotic songs. Her program made such an impact one local Veteran wrote a letter to the editor in the Messenger highlighting the day. We are proud to have Jackie Patrick as our music teacher! | |
 | December, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month DISD would like to honor Francie Coffee from Support Services Building as the December Support Staff Employee of the Month. Francie has been an employee of DISD for the past 19 years. She has served the district as a Secretary at Decatur Elementary, Carson Elementary and Special Programs. Francie and her vast knowledge of the community, people and resources have served many people over the past 19 years. She is always positive and loves to work with children. It has been rumored that she sometimes dresses as a Christmas tree in order to bring a smile to the faces of her coworkers and children. Whenever the staff of the Special Programs department needs to locate materials, find out where a child should attend school or just need to know who to call for information Francie is the one to ask. In fact, people from all over the district call Francie for information. Francie’s positive attitude, experience and knowledge are what keeps our programs running. The employees of the Support Services building are honored to work with Francie Coffee. | |
 | November, 2009 Educator of the Month Sharon Montcalm, Decatur Intermediate School has been chosen for DISD Educator of the Month because she has gone above and beyond her regular duties as school counselor. She wears many hats throughout the day and wears them well. She has spearheaded our Rachel’s Challenge initiative this year, which has taken many extra hours of work. Because of Sharon Montcalm’s efforts with this program, we believe that our students will experience more success and become more productive at school. It is because of this dedication and willingness to go above and beyond the norm that we present Mrs. Sharon Montcalm as our Educator of the Month. | |
 | November, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Vickie Atkins, Rann Elementary has been chosen as the DISD Support Staff Employee of the Month. Vickie has served our district in many capacities for many years. From cafeteria worker to attendance secretary, she has proven herself efficient, effective, and consistent. Ready and willing to do anything she is asked, Vickie can be counted on to do her part in helping our students succeed in their learning. She builds relationships with students to encourage their attendance and learning. She’s the bright smile they see when they enter the office and leave every afternoon. Thanks, Vickie, for all you do for our staff and our students! | |
 | October, 2009 Educator of the Month Decatur High School is pleased to recommend Glenn Vrba as Decatur ISD Educator of the Month. Coach Vrba has been an employee at Decatur High School for ten years, and is regularly seen out on the field coaching during football season. Coach Vrba is a man of integrity and honor and he models these values everyday both on the field and in the classroom. While he is certainly a strong influence out on the field, his greatest influence occurs in the classroom. Coach Vrba always goes above and beyond to assist students in being successful. At the beginning of the school year, Glenn agreed to teach a leadership class to a group of 18 incoming freshman in order to help them be successful in high school. At the end of six weeks, 14 of these 18 students were passing nearly all classes! Coach Vrba cares about all the students at DHS and the students know this. He is highly respected by both the students and his peers and is someone that Decatur High School feels very fortunate to have as a teacher. | |
 | October, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Hilary Rios has worked for DISD since the fall of 2008. She is the bilingual office aide for Carson Elementary. In any given day, Hilary translates documents to send home, speaks with parents and assists any way possible. She always greets the parents and students with a smile. Hilary is so dedicated to her job, she once rode in an ambulance with a student to translate for the parent. Her coworkers enjoy working with her because she is a positive presence and never complains about anything. We love Hilary!! | |
 | September, 2009 Educator of the Month Passionate, tenacious, cooperative. Just a few words that define our Decatur ISD Educator of the Month, Giselle Gutierrez from Rann Elementary. Walk by her room any time and you will find her working with kids on their level. They might be sitting in a circle or at their desks with her right beside them. She consistently provides the extra support that our English Language Learners need. In addition to accelerating student learning, Giselle can be counted on as a team player. She works with her grade level team in many ways to improve student achievement and volunteers to help anyone who needs it. We can always count on Giselle to jump in and start seeking solutions to problems before we even hear about them. Thank you, Giselle, for all of your time, devotion, and love for our kids. | |
 | September, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month When thinking of Dianna White, one can come up with many adjectives to describe her.She is compassionate, hardworking, and extremely dependable. Her follow through is one hundred percent. Not only does she do the work, but it is done to the highest standard. She serves others before she serves herself. Dianna takes pride in all she does, and enjoys making a contribution to the team effort. She is a model employee and highly respected by everyone she serves at DIS. On any given month, Dianna White could easily be honored as Decatur ISD employee of the month. We love her, and we’re thrilled to honor her tonight. | |
 | August, 2009 Educator of the Month Coach Billy Garner wears numerous hats for DISD, and for DAEP, last year he was a welcome addition. The students thrived under his math instruction. Over and over students who arrived at DAEP with huge gaps in their mathematics bag found his hands-on teaching style coupled with his personal self-respect and integrity infectious. Students who felt they might never understand mathematics concepts were somehow, transformed into tutors themselves. Coach Garner is respected and appreciated by staff and students alike. He is the consummate professional educator. Not only will the staff at DAEP miss him but also all students who miss out on his academic and social guidance. | |
 | August, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Nancy Cobb has worked 19 years for DISD. She has been married to Kenneth for 37 years and they have 4 children, 3 of whom graduated from Decatur. They also have 5 grandchildren, 3 of whom currently attend Decatur ISD. Nancy is a wonderful asset to the DAEP campus. She performs a plethora of duties to name only a few; administrative assistant, secretary, classroom monitor, and lunch lady. She is knowledgeable, efficient, and commands appropriate, respectful, behavior from all students through the simple act of modeling such expectations. Nancy tells each new student they are required to leave all of their old baggage on the front step; they are starting over ... clean slate both academically and socially. At DAEP we are pleased to say she makes believers out of most. | |
 | July, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Central Administration is proud to recognize Terrie Pryor as Decatur ISD July Support Staff Employee of the Month. Terrie, a Decatur native, is a fourteen year veteran with Decatur ISD. She began her career as a resource aide at Rann Elementary, later serving as an office aide, and eventually secretary to the principal at Rann. In 2004, she moved to Central Administration as anadministrative assistant with Personnel Services. She adapted to the new position quickly and has been instrumental in making sure that our personnel records are in top shape. During her tenure, she has been instrumental in implementing and facilitating the AESOP substitute/abse, ntee tracking system in Decatur ISD. She is the expert in answering all of the campus and employee questions. One of our substitute teachers that works in several Districts in our area constantly reminds me that Terrie is the best contact person that he can call. With, the advent of the standard five year renewable certificate, Terrie now tracks all of those expiring certificates and reminds employees of the requirement to renew. She is much more efficient than SBEC. This summer she is heavily involved in the state mandated fingerprinting blitz of certified employees and substitutes. That process begins July 14th and due to her hard work, I expect the process to go smoothly. Most importantly, she makes sure that I don’t miss deadlines and that I have completed the reports that are required of me. That alone is almost a full time job. If that wasn't enough, her husband Merl now works for the district and she has taken on the task of making sure that he stays on top of his personnel paperwork as well. In the position that she holds, loyalty and trust are keys. I have never had reason to question those traits. In addition, she is a good ambassador for Decatur ISD as she is one of the first contacts for new employees to Decatur ISD. We are fortunate to have Terrie. | |
 | June, 2009 Educator of the Month Decatur Middle School would like to recognize Ms. Mollie Furrh as June DISD Educator of the Month. Ms. Furrh has dedicated her life to teaching for 30 plus years. As her supervisor I get to experience this dedication every day and what a positive experience. As a fellow educator watching Ms. Furrh in the classroom with her students is a life changing experience. She is a quiet force, but a force that swings a mighty sword when she steps into the classroom with her students. The strategies she uses are not only relevant but they are current. She returned from a conference recently with excitement explaining that she would begin using twitter and blogging with her students to extend their writing. I could only wish that my level of teaching could reach the level Ms. Furrh brings to her students each day. It is my extreme pleasure to recognize Ms. Furrh as an outstanding educator, leader, and positive role model for our staff and students. | |
 | June, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Decatur Middle School would like to recognize Ms. Martha Benitez as DISD June Support Staff Employee of the Month. Ms. Benitez is new to our campus office, but she has been a great addition. She has helped all our staff, students and parents feel welcome. She is a reliable, self-driven young lady. We can always count on her to help with any job that needs to be done, from office work to translating with parents. She always has a positive attitude and will bring a smile to your day. | |
 | May, 2009 Educator of the Month Terri started her teaching career in 1986 as a 3 and 4 year old preschool teacher at First Baptist Church Early Education Center. During that time she also substituted for Decatur ISD and began working on her Bachelor’s Degree. , She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Early Education and General Education with a Kindergarten Endorsement from TWU in Denton. She began her public school teaching career in Paradise where she taught 2nd grade and Kindergarten fro, m 1994-1996. While in Paradise, she served on the site based committee, social committee and hiring committee. Terri then moved to Decatur Elementary where she taught Developmental First grade and then first grade for 9 years. During that time she served on the Campus Improvement committee, UIL, Social committee and judged UIL storytelling. Soon, Decatur Elementary became Rann Elementary and Terri taught first grade an additional 3 years – serving as Team leader and teaching GT students. Her team was the first to have the Pill Bug Races. Terri along with colleague, Lisa Hale co-wrote a unit on Madeline and presented it at the Accelerated Schools Conference in Austin in the spring of 2002. In 2004, Terri moved to Carson Elementary and has been teaching 2nd grade. At Carson she had headed up the BOB committee (Battle of the Books). In addition, she has been an active member of many other committees and always supports the teachers during TAKS testing by making goodie bags of treats. She plans to retire at the end of this school year. Her team and fellow faculty will miss her greatly! | |
 | May, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month DHS recommends Mrs. Cynthia Grove as paraprofessional employee of the month for Decatur ISD, both for her current level of work quality and for her many years of service in various capacities with Decatur ISD. Mrs. Grove has been a delightful addition to the st, aff of various campuses over the years, always dedicating herself to the highest expectations for her own work performance, and to every aspect of serving the whole child as a member of the Decatur educational team. Her current role at Decatur High School has her facilitating the smooth transition to our new APEX curriculum in support of various teachers in the Accelerated Learning Center. She also provides clerical support for our ESL and Read-Right programs and contributes above and beyond the call in various aspects of support for our campus's state-mandated assessments. The phrase "couldn't have been accomplished without her help" is applied to Mrs. Grove so frequently by so many fellow-staffers that it almost goes without saying now, but she deserves to hear it over and over again. From her award-winning State-Fair baking to her "Oh no you're not" talks with at-risk students who just thought they were going to drop-out, Mrs. Grove continually represents the life-long learner we educators aspire to be. | |
 | April, 2009 Educator of the Month A good teacher is like a candle - it consumes itself to light the way for others. (This quote perfectly describes Joan Hawkins!) Joan Hawkins atten, ded Decatur Baptist College where she met Sid, the love of her life. Sidney Wayne and Joan have 3 children and 8 grandchildren. Joan’s favorite pastime is spending time with her family. After her children became school-aged, she continued her education and earned her teaching degree. In 1977, Joan began her teaching career at Decatur Intermediate School, the one and only campus she has served. She continued her education and received her Masters of Education. Joan’s teaching style is positively unique! Hawkins can be described as zany, matter of fact, hilarious, and passionate. Mrs. Hawkins loves all of her students and they adore her. Her students have always been taught with the highest expectations of success in the classroom and beyond. Many current and former teachers at DIS have had the privilege of being mentored by Joan. For many, her class is one that you can’t easily walk by without peeking in to see what neat things are going on that day. Joan Hawkins is all about the kids! She loves them, and they know it. She gives her whole heart to make 5th grade a year for her students to remember. Countless former students return to visit her. They know she saw something great in them, and her students do not forget this feeling of genuine love. Mrs. Hawkins is one of the most giving people ever to walk the halls of DIS. Many do not know of the many extra (anonymous) selfless gifts Mrs. Hawkins contributes as a matter of course. Something not to be forgotten is the sense of humor Mrs. Hawkins possesses. Her quick wit is like no other. Her laughter is heart warming. For the last couple of years, DIS students have read the novel Flipped. In this book, a young man receives the following words of wisdom from his grandfather: “Some of us get dipped in flat, some in satin, some in gloss...but every once in a while you find someone who’s iridescent, and when you do, nothing will ever compare.” Mrs. Hawkins is iridescent. Joan Hawkins is a legend in our hearts as well as to multitudes of students and parents. She is a shining light that will never burn out at Decatur Intermediate School. After 32 extraordinary years on our campus, we can all agree: Joan – here is to a job well done!!! We love you, Decatur Intermediate School Staff | |
 | April, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month The Decatur ISD Technology Department is proud to have Andrew Sherwood, Technology Support Specialist, as April’s Support Staff Employee of the Month. Andrew began working in the Technology Department in September. He is the son of Lori Sherwood of Decatur and Donald Sherwood of Alvord. He has two sisters, Abigail, currently attending Dallas Baptist University and a DHS graduate, and a younger sister, Ana, who is in fifth grade at Decatur Intermediate School. He is currently attending Weatherford College and plans to move to Denton to attend the University of North Texas this fall. He plans to become a secondary Language Arts teacher. Andrew has been working very hard during the evenings to coordinate the crews installing projectors at all the campuses. He has done an excellent job working with the crews and visiting classrooms to make sure projectors are working properly. Andrew can be described as a gentleman with a high degree of honor and integrity, a hard worker with the ideal work ethic, and intelligent and very professional in anything he does. He lives his life with kindness and a good heart. He is one of those special people that can easily make other people want to be a be, tter person. One day Andrew will be a teacher and he will be excellent. It will be a great day when he steps into his first classroom, wherever that may be. | |
 | March, 2009 Educator of the Month Decatur High School has selected Jason Jordan as DISD's Educator of the Month. Commitment is number one with Jason. He even makes his wife help out!!! He is often up here with his team after hours, working late into the evening, preparing for the next debate meet. One of his commitments is to fairness and ethics. The sense of integrity that he instills in his debate students is extraordinary. Another of his commitments is to show friendliness toward all teams – including his strongest competition. He is concerned that not only are the debate students fully prepared for the debate, but also that they exhibit no unsportsman, like conduct. He wants polite, well-mannered students representing Decatur. But most importantly, Mr. Jordan is committed to his students. He comes up with totally off-the-wall arguments for his students. He allows those who want to test the waters to do so. In fact, because of one of his unique approaches to debate, a , new rule will be added next year to the UIL Debate rules. He allows his students to think, explore, and research to their limits. Then, with his talent, he helps them bring it all together. He has a great relationship with his team. We have seen firsthand how he jokes with the students and listens to them. His kids will do anything for him because they realize he not only knows what he is doing, but he truly cares for them - not just as debate students, but as people. | |
 | March, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month DISD Transportation is proud to select Al Richard as March Support Staff Employee of the Month. Al joined the DISD transportation team in August of 2006. When he hired on with us, he had been retired for seven years from Poco Graphite. Al drives Route Eleven which runs southwest of town. He also shuttles many of our teachers' children to their campuses in the afternoon. In May of 2007, we named him our Employee of the Year. Al comes in every morning around 6:00 am with a smile on his face. He is always in good spirit as long as we don’t interrupt T time. He can’t wait to get back after his morning route to hit the golf course. He is always in uniform and ready for any task we have for him. Al has been accident free for all three years and more impressively, he has not missed a day of work since he started in 2006. We are very grateful for having a fine gentleman of his character working for our department. He can always bring a smile even when the day seems to be rough. | |
 | February, 2009 Educator of the Month Our staff chose a very deserving person for the February Decatur ISD Educator of the Month. Kay Martinek, third grade teacher, is a great team player and has earned the respect of the staff through her endless compassion and support she displays to her students and the Rann staff. She is one of those people that has the ability to make you feel as though you're the most important person in the world when talking to her because she gives you her full attention and lends an ear. She steps up to the plate and tries new innovative ideas to ensure student success. She goes above and beyond in the classroom. Rann Elementary is so lucky to have her with us! | |
 | February, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Child Nutrition is proud to recognize Nona Torres as the February DISD Support Staff Employee of the Month. Nona works at Carson cafeteria and has been employed by the district since August of 1991 for a total of 17 years. She is married to Eliazar Torres and they have 6 daughters and 2 sons. They also have 10 grandchildren and one great granddaughter. Nona is a committed, loyal, dependable worker who always has a positive attitude. She is quick-witted and her co-workers enjoy working around her. Nona goes the extra mile to help others and is willing to work extra duty when needed to get the job done. It is evident from her attitude that she loves her job. In her spare time, she likes to travel, spend time with the family and play with her grandchildren. She also loves to attend family reunions and spend time with her extended family. Nona loves working with the children of DISD. | |
 | January, 2009 Educator of the Month Ms. Dee Dee Diaczenko is the Decatur Middle School selection for Decatur ISD Educator of the Month. This is Ms. Diaczenko’s 4th year with the district where she teaches 7th grade English, Journalism, and is also our cheerleading sponsor. If you have the chance to happen by Ms. Diaczenko’s room you will experience a positive, uplifting class and exciting discussions. Ms. Diaczenko never misses an opportunity to interject humor into a situation and keeps her students and fellow teachers in good spirits. Ms. Diaczenko does an ou, tstanding job with her students and also plans/organizes our pep rallies. If you were in attendance at the Middle School football games this fall, the announcer was Ms. Diaczenko. I believe she might be the next Howard Cosell! | |
 | January, 2009 Support Staff Employee of the Month Maintenance department is proud to select Rusty Berg as the DISD January Support Staff Employee of the Month. Rusty is a 1995 graduate of Decatur ISD. He and his wife Susann have two children, Colby and Chase. Rusty is starting his 4th year with DISD. He began as a custodian at Rann Elem in 2005, changed to field maintenance in 2006, and in 2007 began working with the maintenance department. Rusty is a very devoted and valuable employee to the district. He is a very quick learner and willing to do anything asked of him. He is responsible for the energy management controls and the HVAC systems for the district and responds to our after-hour problems. Rusty is very dedicated to the students and staff of DISD and takes pride in his job. We look forward to watching him grow with the district and are very fortunate to have him as an employee for DISD. | |
 | December, 2008 Carson is proud to select Rhonda Whiteaker as the December DISD Employee of the Month. She is also Carson’s Teacher of the Year. Ms. Whiteaker has been employed with DISD for 25 years. In addition to teaching, she has worked as a janitor, football and basketball gate attendant, traffic guard, entertainer and her personal favorite, tennis coach. At Carson, she touches students’ lives from kindergarten through fourth grade on a daily basis. At DHS she has created and developed a successful tennis program. She coaches the boys and girls teams and has had numerous students advance to the regional tournament. She has devoted time, humor, talent and a love of teaching to the students of Decatur. | |
 | November 20, 2008 Decatur Intermediate School is proud to select Mr. Craig Jordan as our Employee of the Month. Mr. Jordan has taught 6th grade math at Decatur Intermediate since the fall of 2002. Many students have referred to him as Coach Jordan because he has taught math and coached at Decatur High School for three years, along with a four year stint at the middle school, before leaving the district for three years. We at Decatur Intermediate are glad he returned to our district and joined our school. Mr. Jordan has been instrumental to the success Decatur Intermediate has experienced in our 6th grade math department. The students in Mr. Jordan’s class are always on task and working on enriched lessons. He not only teaches his students how to do math, but he has also continually showed them how to be better citizens. Mr. Jordan always steps up when needed and has supported every new initiative at Decatur Intermediate this year. Decatur Intermediate is very fortunate to be able to call on Mr. Jordan whenever needed, and he always answers the bell. | |
 | October 16, 2008 DHS Principal Jason Cochran nominates the Student Council Dynamic Duo of Michelle Somerhalder and Jennifer Smith for Employees of the Month in recognition of their exemplary efforts to make this extra-curricular leadership learning experience available to our student body. In the interim change of both campus administration and Student Council sponsorship last summer, Mrs. Smith jumped in on a moment’s notice and took our Student Council officers to a week-long summer camp, skillfully handling all related issues of planning, registering, funding, transportation, etc. so our kids would not miss out on this critical piece of their training as student-leaders for our campus. Those student-leaders and Mrs. Smith went on to help our new Head Student Council sponsor, Michelle Somerhalder, in her valiant effort to learn the ropes on the job as she spear- headed planning, funding, and implementation of the time-honored school and community traditions of the Homecoming Dance, Homecoming Parade, and Homecoming King, Queen, and Princess elections, all part of the expectations for an acti, ve Student Council to be in charge of for a high school campus. These ladies accomplished these phenomenal feats along with maintaining expectations of a rigorous curriculum with commendable levels of effective student engage- ment in their content areas, Mrs. Smith with four different levels of English Language Arts and Mrs. Somerhalder with both regular and Pre-AP Spanish II. These ladies have earned the respect and gratitude of all of us at DHS for continually setting the example of putting kids first, making learning fun and meaningful, and fostering morale and unity among staff and students alike. | |
 | September 18, 2008 Rann is proud to have Kim Kirk represent our school as Employee of the Month. Kim is a vital piece to the success of Rann Elementary. She has a grasp on the workings of the campus, and knows who to go to if she doesn't. Kim is always smiling and loves to wear "Her Crown" on days that might be a little rough. She drops whatever she's doing to take care of things that need immediate attention. Her attention to detail and pride for her job is evident to us all. Kim is continually striving to ensure the best for students and staff at Rann Elementary. | |
 | August 21, 2008 Karen Currin has been serving DISD for the past 7 years. She is in her 5th year as the receptionist at Carson Elementary. Prior to greeting the Carson guests with a friendly smile, she was a substitute teacher with DISD for 2 years. Karen brings a warm feeling to the building and is an excellent team member of the office staff. Her fellow colleagues feel that “Karen is a great co-worker. Always willing to help out wherever and with whatever you need. She has such a pleasant way with all the office staff and the public. We are very fortunate to have found her. She is a great asset to Carson Elementary!” Karen and her husband have 4 children. Their oldest, Emery, is a DHS graduate attending UNT. Erica and Ciara currently attend DHS and Ethan is a student at DMS. I know I speak for everyone at Carson when I say she is truly a wonderful person and exceptional staff member. | |
 | July 2008 Click HERE to See Rose's Acceptance Video The Decatur ISD Technology Department is very excited to have Rose Ramsey as Decatur ISD's July Employee of the Month. Rose had bee, n a substitute teacher for Decatur ISD for 10 years before being hired as the Computer Lab Manager for Decatur Intermediate School. After workin, g at DIS for three years, she became the Technology Department's Help Desk Secretary where she has done a fantastic job for the last two years. As Help Desk Secretary, Rose's typical day includes taking phone calls from teachers and staff, processing and tracking work orders, processing and tracking technology purchases, interfacing with vendors regarding purchases, maintaining records, network account administration, and telephone system adds, moves and changes. Along with her husband Ronnie and her two daughters, she has been a part of the Decatur community for over 23 years. Ronnie is currently a Production Supervisor at Poco Graphite. Amber, her eldest daughter, is a TCU Graduate and currently a fourth grade teacher at Rann Elementary School. Amanda, the youngest, lives in Denton where she works and will attend classes this fall at the University of North Texas. Rose Ramsey is a wonderful person, a hard worker, and a trusted collegue. To just say that she is all of those things is not enough. When you walk into a building, and the first thing you see is a smile, that is when you know you are someplace where you will be treated with friendship and courtesy. She comes to work each day and leaves work each day with a smile on her face. Rose is a true asset to Decatur ISD and can be considered a model employee. We are very appreciative of the work she does for not just the Technology Department but for the entire district as well. | |
 | June, 2008 Decatur Middle School would like to nominate Mrs. Karen Woodruff as the June 2008 Employee of the Month for DISD. Mrs. Woodruff has completed her seventh year at Decatur Middle School as the Librarian. In her role as Librarian she has been responsive to meeting the support needs of teachers and students. Aside from serving as the DMS Librari, an, she has also been available and willing to serve students in other capacities. She has taught advanced Math classes when needed in the past and has been willing to represent the Middle School on the DEIC Committee and the Sick Leave Bank Committee. This academic year she has taken a leadership role in setting up TAKS acceleration schedules for interventions and filled in on the administrative team when our counselor was out for family leave. It can be said of Mrs. Woodruff that she is in every way a team player and we are appreciative of her service to our students, staff, and others. | |
 | May, 2008 DAEP is proud to have two Employees of the Month for May. Mark Neese has dubbed them "Employees of the Millennium". Nancy Cobb is a great asset to DAEP. She is the one consistent that students know as they spend time there. She is extremely committed and does an excellent job of communicating with students, teachers, and parents. She shows students that they are really able to start fresh every day. She does an excellent job at assisting the teachers and working with at-risk students. Her efforts are greatly appreciated. Nancy has worked in education for 18 years, all at Decatur ISD. A special educational moment was several years ago when an ex-student who lives out of state called her on Mother's Day to say "hello" because she was thinking about her. Nancy encourages her students by letting them know that just because they have made a mistake, that tomorrow is a new day and it can be full of good choices. Nancy is married to Kenneth and they have 4 grown children, two lovely daughters in-law, one son-in-law and 5 wonderful grandkids. Kristi Hankins is an excellent employee dedicated to assisting students who are not only in a DAEP setting but throughout all the district campuses. At DAEP, Kristi assists students in goal setting, anger management, peer mediation, individual and group counseling in addition to academic needs. She is encouraging and always looks for the positive in students. We are fortunate to have someone in our district that follows student progress at such great lengths. Kristi has worked in education for 7 years, 6 of those years in Decatur. Kristi states that the Lord led her to the field of education. She encourages her students to succeed by trying to meet them where they are at academically, emotionally, psychologically and try to give them some perspective and vision. Kristi totally enjoys seeing students realize that they can overcome challenges in their lives. Kristi is married to Steve and has two children in Decatur ISD, Landon 10th and Lacy 7th. | |
 | April, 2008 Decatur Intermediate is proud to name Julie Britt as DISD April Employee of the Month. Julie has taught for 18 years and has been with DISD the past 10 years. Julie has always made a major contribution to our campus, but this past year, she has stepped up to the challenge of being our 6th grade Language Arts Lead Teacher, which in itself, can prove challenging. We thought we’d make it even more fun for Julie, so we hired tw, o brand new teachers for her department. Julie has trained, mentored, and mothered these two new teachers into becoming successful contributors to our students’ learning. Julie leads our highly successful balanced literacy program like a fine violinist with a precious Stradivarius in her hands. In 2007, Julie helped our 6th grade students achieve a 98% passing rate on the Reading TAKS. Julie delights in taking on new tasks. This year she participated in JUMP, our three day technology immersion project, set up a new blog for her students so that her kids can have 24/7 access to her and learn new ways to collaborate with classmates and their teacher on academic issues. This year Julie was selected to become a trainer for Region XI’s Texas Adolescent Literacy Academy, where she will train teachers from across the state in the balanced literacy approach we use at Decatur Intermediate School. Julie is the wife of Buck Britt and proud mother of Matthew, 10th grade, David, 7th grade, and Ty, Kindergarten. Join us in saluting one of DISD’s finest. | |
 Robin Phariss, Decatur High School | March, 2008 Robin Phariss is the DHS Teacher of the Year and our recommendation for District Employee of the Month. Nominated and elected by her peers, Mrs. Phariss embodies all that we hope for in the teacher who will have our own children in class. She is a leader in her department, serving as a well-organized department chairman who organizes labs, materials, budgets, and long-term planning activities for our science teachers. She is a leader in the field of differentiated instruction, often providing learning opportunities for multiple groups at a time in her classroom when we need a place for students to go for extra help in science at the same time that Mrs. Phariss is teaching her Biology or Anatomy classes. She is a leader in the use of varied instructional strategies, making a practice of providing her students from five to ten different perspectives, activities, approaches, demonstrations, sensory experiences, and opportunities to understand the content in each day’s lesson. Her students consistently score extremely well on challenging Science TAKS and benchmark tests, and her advanced students are consistently well-prepared to go on to Pre-AP and AP classes. She models bell-to-bell instruction, and can never be accused of being “boring” to her students. Her calm, gentle sense of humor sets the tone for students being positive about their own ability to be successful in learning science, and opens a world of wonder to her students who, under her direction, learn to see the significance of all that is science in their day-to-day lives. | |
 Katie Stevens, Rann Elementary School | February, 2008 It is a privilege for Rann Elementary to recommend Katie Stevens as the DISD February Employee of the Month. Katie has had a challenging year and a half but at every moment she has “turned lemons into lemonade.” Two summers ago Katie was diagnosed with Cancer for the second time. While she spent the fall semester of 2006 dealing with surgery, chemo, and many, many treatments, her thoughts were always with Rann and her students. Katie is always one that takes any situation and turns it into an opportunity for success. During that semester she continued to communicate with administration and staff on her progress and how she couldn’t wait to get back to the students. She would call her principal and let him know how she was working on math materials and ideas for when she returned. Since her return from Cancer treatments, Katie has done an amazing job working with our intervention program in math. She recently piloted a math computer program called FASTT Math with Mrs. Slimp and the students love it. She is dedicated to working with all students and supporting academic growth. She is one of the reasons why our campus was recognized last year for improved math scores and increased accountability rating. Katie Stevens makes a huge impact on all students everyday. |