Sutter County Superintendent of Schools held its third annual Educators of the Year Awards on Thursday, celebrating teachers and staff members for their outstanding commitment to their schools.
According to Senior Director of Educational Services Kristi Johnson, each staff and faculty member was selected for awards through varying review processes in their district.
Superintendents from Sutter County school districts presented awards to over 50 educators ranging from custodial staff to teachers and administrators. Sutter County Superintendent of Schools Tom Reusser thanked all the educators for their continued support and dedication to their schools, districts and students.
“It’s truly what we do best for kids. That’s why we’re here,” Reusser said.
Counselors, speech and paraprofessionals
Live Oak Unified School District Superintendent Mat Gulbrandsen presented awards to classified staff members.
The following educators were honored under this category:
– Stevie Crisosto-Wheeler, counselor at Pathways Charter Academy
– Amber Smith, speech pathologist at Brittan Elementary School
– Becky Cardenas, paraprofessional for Live Oak Unified School District
Custodians and maintenance
Superintendent and Principal for Pleasant Grove Joint Union School District Dave Tarr presented awards to custodians and maintenance staff throughout Sutter County schools.
“(Custodians) are very important to our kids and the success of our kids because they keep our facilities clean, well maintained and safe. They do many jobs that others don’t want to do,” Tarr said.
The following staff members were honored under this category:
– Will Ricket, maintenance director at Meridian Elementary School
– Roy Miller, maintenance lead at Yuba City Unified School District
– Adrian Borrayo, custodian at Twin Rivers Charter School
– Steve Cobbold, grounds staff at East Nicolaus High School
– Robbie Casselberry, custodian at Franklin Elementary School
Secretary and administrative assistants
Co-director and Principal for Twin Rivers Charter School Chrissy Jolly delivered awards to assistant administrative staff members, including payroll employees, office managers and school secretaries.
“Let’s take a moment to appreciate our school secretaries: the real MVPs, the GOATs, and unsung heroes of our educational chaos. While their day-to-day consists of handling more drama than any daytime soap opera, their unwavering commitment and genuine care for both students and staff make them the true champions of our schools’ culture and success,” Jolly said.
The following staff members were honored under this category:
– Stacy Calonder, confidential office manager at Winship-Robbins Elementary School District
– Christina Martinez, office assistant at Meridian Elementary School
– Jen Kendrix, fiscal secretary at Pleasant Grove Joint Union School District
– Jacqueline Cortez, office specialist at Bridge Street Elementary School
– Heather Prasad, administrative secretary at Lincoln Elementary School
– Narinder Kaur Roye, office specialist at Yuba City Unified School District
– Brooke Summers, office specialist at Yuba City Unified School District
Athletic trainer
This award was presented to Sutter Union High School Assistant Athletic Director Marc Giampaoli at the recommendation of Jack Kirchner, a student of Giampaoli. According to Reusser, Kirchner reached out to him directly to highlight Giampaoli’s connection to his students and ability to spark curiosity.
“From a student perspective, there are many traits that make a great teacher. Among them are the ability to be calm and navigate any situation as well as the ability to act like an adult, but think like a kid. This allows them to communicate effectively and humor the curiosity of any ideas and questions that may be reaching beyond a textbook such as more personal questions about a specific sport, injury or even player,” Kirchner said. “It is these very traits that I see in Mr. Giampaoli. He has demonstrated in and out of the classroom that he is exceptional in his field, but also able to communicate concepts in meaningful ways to students and athletes.”
High school teachers and adult education
Director of Shady Creek Outdoor School Chris Little honored teachers for grades 9-12 and adult education teachers. He thanked all faculty members for their commitment to students’ education.
“You’re incredible. High school is brutal. Back in our day, it wasn’t anything like it is now. These people are leaders in our high schools,” Little said.
The following teachers were honored under this category:
– Josh Adriano, career technical education teacher at AeroSTEM Academy
– Sandra Jopson, paraeducator at Sutter County Superintendent of Schools
– Stefanie Danna, English teacher at Sutter Union High School
– Stacy Runyen, teacher at South Sutter Charter School
– Dan Johnson, ag teacher at Live Oak High School
– Ricardo Galicia, special education specialist at Live Oak Alternative School
– Sullivan Wall, weight training teacher at East Nicolaus High School
– Tammie Rymer, medical assistant instructor for Sutter County Superintendent of Schools
Administrators, librarian and naturalist
Yuba City Unified School District Superintendent Doreen Osumi presented awards to administrators along with a librarian and a naturalist for Shady Creek Outdoor School.
“This room is full of administrators from different districts. Our administrators quietly do their jobs. Everyone knows public education has changed in the last few years, and being a site administrator or an administrator for a program, I think, is one of the toughest jobs right now,” Osumi said.
The following faculty members were honored under this category:
– Cindy Bohmann, librarian at Nuestro Elementary School
– Michael Shanahan, naturalist at Shady Creek Elementary
– Bethany Thomas, program coordinator at Shady Creek Outdoor School
– Esperanza Arellano, vice principal at Yuba City High School
Food service and technology
Co-director and Principal for Twin Rivers Charter School Obie Leff delivered awards to food service and IT staff members in Sutter County schools, highlighting their importance to school culture and functionality.
The following staff members were honored under this category:
– Chris Ramey, director of information technology at Yuba City Unified School District
– Andrea Raya, computer technician at Yuba City Unified School District
– Ann Waid, food service staff member at Yuba City Unified School District
– Cyndee Lou Mergler, nutrition services coordinator at AeroSTEM Academy
Specialists
Superintendent and Principal of Sutter Union High School Ryan Robison honored staff members affiliated with specialty supports, including attendance and resource specialists and parent liaisons.
“What do all these people have in common? I think this category can be renamed ‘It’s not the job you do at your school. It’s how you do it,’” Robison said.
The following staff members were honored under this category:
– Ron Fagan, attendance outreach and recovery officer at Feather River Academy
– Selene Munoz, parent liaison at Bridge Street Elementary School
– Mike Ayotte, resource specialist at Sutter Union High School
– Tamara Macy, business workforce specialist at Sutter County One Stop
– Jennifer McCullough, business workforce specialist at Sutter County One Stop
– Susan Odegard, navigator and transition specialist at Sutter County Superintendent of Schools
Elementary school teachers
Superintendent and Principal for Franklin Elementary School District Lisa Shelton presented awards to teachers for kindergarten through eighth grade.
The following teachers were honored under this category:
– Pamela Jensen, fifth and sixth grade teacher at Browns Elementary School
– Terri Butler, teacher at Nuestro Elementary School
– Ragan Clemens, special education teacher at Sutter County Superintendent of Schools
– Debbie Barbaccia, second grade teacher at Franklin Elementary School
– Sarah Lee, fourth grade teacher at Winship-Robbins Elementary School District
– Anne Hill, second grade teacher at Marcum-Illinois Union Elementary School District
– Patti Renfree, math teacher at Brittan Elementary School
– Nathan Beilby, science teacher at Pleasant Grove Joint Union School District
– Bethany Van Pelt, teacher at Luther Elementary School
– Amanda Rose, second grade teacher at Twin Rivers Charter School
– Ginder Chima, first grade teacher at Park Avenue Elementary School
– Katherine Blase, third grade teacher at Tierra Buena Elementary School
– Kara Lemus, fourth grade teacher at Bridge Street Elementary School
– Trisha Navarrot, kindergarten teacher at Andros Karperos School
– Chelsea Accursi-Thornton, English teacher at Tierra Buena Elementary School
– Ryan Leichter, English teacher at Live Oak Middle School
– Karen Dahlen, science teacher at Andros Karperos School
– Nicholas Monroe, teacher at Andros Karperos School
