Staff Recognition

Osborn School District #8

2009-2010 School Year

The Osborn School District has had in place for the past 23 years a Citizen/ Employee Recognition Program to reward those individuals who have made outstanding contributions to our Osborn students.

The "You Make The Difference" Recognition Program again this spring recognizes these outstanding individuals. The criteria for recognition include the following:

  • Being a strong, positive supporter of the Osborn School District.
  • Demonstration of exemplary relationships with students, staff or citizens.
  • Participation in activities and accomplishments that have brought distinction to the employee, citizen or the Osborn School District.
  • Demonstration of continuous personal/professional growth.
  • Demonstration of excellence in position.

For a list of individuals recognized in past years click here.

  

 

 
This year we wish to recognize the following individuals who have been chosen:

  • George Couch,

    Community Member

  • Diane Less,

    certified staff, MCS

  • Maria Michel

    • support staff, ENC

  • Zemina Kurtic,

    Maintenance & Transportation

  • Corissa Quijada

    • certified staff, CLA

  • Andrea Rodriguez,

    certified staff, OMS

20-Year Employees:  Vicki Brand- OMS, Earl Cline- SOL, Marty Makar- OMS, Lynne Prose- MCS, Jill Shain- ENC, Donna Spano- CLA, and Rhonda Wilson- District

30-Year Employees:  Tamra Loff- OMS, and Mary Pistor- District

Retirees:  Cindy Bowling- District, Earl Cline- SOL, Dona Heath- SOL, Tamra Loff- OMS, Ken Wollert- Maintenance & Transportation, and Lori Sanders- ENC Librarian

Luis Valencia:

Congratulations to Encanto Third Grade Dual Language Teacher Luis Valencia! He was selected for the Esperanza Outstanding Latino Teacher’s Award. Chicanos Por La Causa, (CPLC) is in its 10th year of celebrating outstanding Hispanic teachers. Esperanza, which in Spanish means hope, is an attribute that teachers bring to students, and each year the recipients of this award are recognized for that gift of hope that they give their students every day. Luis Valencia originally helped to develop the Dual Language program at Osborn in 1998 while student teaching and has taught there since. He coordinates participation for Osborn students in state-wide Dual Language Essay contests and Spelling Bees– bringing home many trophies. His leadership the Osborn community is exemplary.

Principal Michael Robert and

Dual Language Teacher

Luis Valencia

Deborah Hodder:

Art teacher Deborah Hodder is having a show at the Five 15 Contemporary Art Space Gallery this month. Please stop in to see her work. She received her MFA in printmaking at Arizona State University in 1992. She has exhibited extensively throughout Arizona as well as nationally and is the recipient of numerous awards.
In addition to creating prints and mixed media drawings, Deborah has been working with clay for the past 8 years. She found similarities in both printmaking and ceramics; for example, when Hodder applies her glazes she wipes away much of the surface glaze in a similar way to wiping ink away from an intaglio plate. Texture is important and lines are either incised or are imprinted.
Clay becomes a metaphor for nature in the way it binds elements together. Animals, plants and the human form are often depicted within a type of container.
The container becomes a world of its own. Plus, it is human nature to hold onto things--keep things safe. Hodder's latest series is entitled, "Security/Insecurity". Figurative forms are support units to others less secure with life.

First Friday, November 7th 5-9pm

Artist’s Reception November 21st 5-9pm

Gallery Hours:

Fridays: 5-9pm  Saturdays: 1-5pm

or by appointment: 602-256-0150

   

five15: a contemporary art space

515 east Roosevelt

Phoenix Az. 84004

"Security/Insecurity VI"

More images are available to view:

http://artistsregister.com/artists/AZ999

Barbara Middleton:

Encanto and Clarendon Art Teacher Barbara Middleton has been teaching in the Osborn district for 19 years. Educated at the Kansas City Art Institute, she discovered that working with children was a natural and fulfilling occupation and entered ASU’s post-baccalaureate program to earn teaching credentials. Miss Middleton’s watercolor paintings will be on display, throughout the month of April at the Sweet Pea Bakery, 209 West Jackson in downtown Phoenix. Opening reception is on First Friday, April 4, 2008 from 7 to 10 pm.

Principal Skydives Because Class Met their Reading Goals! 

When Longview was coming up with their SMART (Specific & Strategic, Measurable, Attainable, Results Oriented, and Time Bound) reading goals for the year, Sheltered English Immersion teacher Katy Lee approached Longview’s Principal, Leslie Beauchamp, with an idea. Beauchamp, thinking about how the reading goals are to be challenging and lofty, assented. Lee motivated her students with a video of herself skydiving and the students were instantly inspired not only to meet their reading goals, but to get their principal to jump out of a perfectly good airplane. Last week, the final student met his goal and the Principal jumped. Beauchamp had a wonderful time and is glad she returned to the earth safe and sound. Congratulations go to Lee’s class, as well as all of the other classes that met their reading goals. Longview had 28 teachers who created SMART goals this year. Each of them deserves congratulations for helping our students and families achieve lofty learning goals. 

Beauchamp and her tandem skydiver, Dean, over Eloy, AZ

Professional Development School Graduates:

Nine Osborn Professional Development School (PDS) students became full-fledged teachers in December 2007. They were: Alexandra Choy, Blanca Gonzales, Nicole Aguirre, Maritza Delgado, Kristi Wilhelms, Vianca Quintero, Jacob Gross, Claudia Ramirez-Vasquez, and Elizabeth Scala. Four of the graduates completed their student teaching in Dual Language classrooms at Encanto, Clarendon and Longview. The program grew out of a partnership between Osborn School District and Arizona State University West campus. Designed to recruit, prepare, place and retain high-quality new teachers in high-need urban and rural partner school districts, the PDS program has two major initiatives: 1) a district-based, immersion-style PDS teacher preparation program for initial certification; and 2) distance learning-based, graduate-level coursework in mathematics, reading, and science targeted to existing teachers in the partner districts. Ultimately, all of these efforts help increase the achievement of students in high-needs school districts. According to Patricia Tate, Assistant Superintendent, “Since Osborn partnered with the PDS program in 1999, student achievement has risen significantly and consistently… The PDS program has increased our 7th and 8th grade students’ test scores dramatically and has sustained the increase over a five-year period”. Osborn currently employs 34 teachers who attained their certification through the PDS program.

Blanca Gonzales, Elizabeth Scala, Claudia Ramirez-Vasquez, Alexandra Choy, Nicole Aguirre, and Jacob Gross

Theresa Hulihan:

Known to the Osborn community as the celebrated & fantastic Clarendon band teacher, Mrs. Hulihan has released her debut CD on the Emeritus label entitled "Colors". Duozona, the flute & guitar duo (Theresa and Chuck Hulihan), is now being heard around the world. Recently featured on KBAQ's CD of the Week, and on Classical Guitar Alive, their debut CD is getting a great deal of well deserved attention. Visit the Duozona website for a sampling of music.

Stacy Courtright

Fifth grade teacher at Longview, Ms. Courtright was one of 15 people selected nationally to participate in the Fulbright-Hays Summer Seminar 2007, "Getting to Know America’s Neighbors". This seminar, which examined the construction of national cultural identity, took her to Washington DC, Canada, and Mexico. She met with teachers, administrators, students, professors, authors and government officials to discuss cultural, educational and governmental topics. In addition to the discussions she also visited museums, government institutions, town centers, schools, economic institutions (Mexico-chocolate factory, weavers, potters, mineral plant, and Canadian oil sands). “I did have an experience of a lifetime. We covered many regions of both countries and explored a variety of areas.”

Fulbright Seminar Participants with American Ambassador Calgary 2007

Carmen Duran and Elodia (Lolie) Gomez

Two Solano School preschool teachers had the opportunity to travel to Europe as part of a 5 country study by the Bernard Van Leer Foundation and Fulton College at ASU. The study is looking at how preschools in different countries help parents take part in curricular decision-making process in settings with increased immigration. Europe, like the United States, finds that the traditional social-emotional focus of preschool is giving way to language learning and a focus on academic school readiness.

Another challenge schools face is that of communicating with parents. Oftentimes immigrant parents don’t speak the language of the country they have settled in. In a global economy, immigrants come from around the world. In the Osborn School District alone there are more than 30 different languages spoken. It can be difficult to find translators for parent-teacher conferences. Part of the study is to look at how different countries have addressed these challenges, and in bringing that experience back to Osborn, explore new ways to collaborate with parents to improve what is done locally.

“We have learned the challenges faced in Solano are global. Teachers and researchers across the globe recognize the importance of providing a nurturing environment for each child they serve.” They indicate, “We agree that providing children and parents with an environment they can relate to by surrounding them with a language they understand and the artifacts they are familiar with. We have a strong commitment to establishing relationships that are nurturing not only for children but parents as well. We will be collaborating with ASU students on developing a parent involvement program based on videos of classrooms in Italy, Germany and England. We are very excited about this opportunity.”

 

Carmen Duran pictured with children

at a Daycare Center in England