Jay Jones, Staff of the Year, Mt. Vernon Middle School
Submitted Photo
FORTVILLE — A few outstanding teachers and staff members were recently named Teacher of the Year and Staff of the Year in each building at the Mt. Vernon Community School Corporation.
The honorees were selected by their peers based on a list of criteria, including a staff member’s dedication, innovation and the ability to be a team player and lifelong learner.
The winners were announced this week.
Each year, the Mt. Vernon Education Foundation partners with the school corporation to recognize an outstanding teacher and staff member in each building. The district’s overall Teacher of the Year and Staff of the Year will be announced at the foundation’s Black and Gold Gala on April 23.
“We are thankful for all of our amazing teachers and staff members and appreciate the opportunity to be able to recognize some outstandingly dedicated staff,” said Maria Bond, the school corporation’s director of community relations.
“Mt. Vernon is fortunate to have such a dedicated and loyal faculty who are the foundation of our family. However, these individuals have risen above and beyond in their efforts with our students, and we couldn’t be more proud of them.”
The honorees will receive more than spoken accolades. Each teacher and staff honoree will receive $500 while each overall district winner will receive an additional $2,000, which will be presented at next month’s gala.
The cash awards are funded by the Ryan Fry Excellence in Education Award. The award was created by Jill Prefontaine and her husband, Kevin, to honor Prefontaine’s brother, Ryan.
“Without the support of donors like Kevin and Jill Prefontaine, we wouldn’t be able to bring this unique program to our community, which celebrates the value of teachers and recognizes all the good that is happening in our schools thanks to our exceptional teachers and extraordinary staff,” said Renee Oldham, president of the Mt. Vernon Education Foundation.
Oldham said the foundation has a lot to celebrate this year, in addition to an outstanding staff.
“We’re celebrating our 15th anniversary, and the fact that during that time we’ve raised over a $1,000,000 to support students, teachers, all six schools, programs, initiatives and grants for the classroom,” she said. “It would not have been possible to create this level of impact on education at Mt. Vernon without the generosity of our donors, sponsors and our Mt. Vernon community.”
This year’s Teacher of the Year and Staff of the Year honorees at Mt. Vernon include:
Mt. Comfort Elementary School:
Teacher of the Year — Dianne Grannan
Staff of the Year — Brittany Lenk
McCordsville Elementary School:
Teacher of the Year — Michelle Anderson
Staff of the Year — Diane Rafert
Fortville Elementary School:
Teacher of the Year — Brittany Webber
Staff of the Year — Shanda Jouppi
Mt. Vernon Middle School:
Teacher of the Year — D’Lee Rush
Staff of the Year — Jay Jones
Mt. Vernon High School:
Teacher of the Year — Jordan Gerbsch
Staff of the Year — Kelly Fleming
Administration/Preschool:
Teacher of the Year — Lindsay Sall
Staff of the Year — Tracy Furnas
