Nomination deadline set for Hopkins awards
By Nancy Horst Special to the Gazette
Friday, January 23, 2009
Nominations are being accepted for annual Star Performer and WOW! awards for teachers and support staff in the Emporia school district. The awards were established by the E.L. and Z. Irene Hopkins Foundation to recognize the outstanding performance of Emporia teachers and school support staff. This is the seventh year the awards will be given.
The purpose of the awards is to recognize the importance of the teaching profession and the positive impact educators have on the community. The Foundation gave $30,500 in cash awards to the 14 winners last year. A total of 81 teachers and support staff have now received Hopkins Awards and $179,000 over the past six years. Recipients are allowed to use the prize money any way they choose.
The deadline for entries is March 11, and nominations are limited to current staff in the Emporia Public Schools. Nominations should include a completed form and a statement of how the employee has made a difference for students. Star Performer nominations for teachers also must include supporting materials, such as letters, newspaper clippings or other documentation of the nominee's work. No CDs or DVDs will be accepted. Nominations can be submitted by students, parents and co-workers.
Nomination forms are available at all Emporia public schools and Mary Herbert Education Center, 1700 W. Seventh Ave., and on the district’s website at www.usd253.org. For further information, contact Kristy Turner at 341-2201 or kturner@usd253.org.
The Hopkins Star Performer and WOW! Awards will be presented in May, according to Michelle Molinaro, secretary-manager of the foundation. She said the awards program was a dream of her grandfather, E.L. Hopkins.
Star Performer Awards will be presented to teachers who are innovative, put students ahead of themselves, are caring, inspirational, have a record of student achievement and go above and beyond the call of duty to make a difference for children. Cash awards of $5,000, $2,500, and $1,000 will be presented to teachers in preschool-grade 4, grades 5-8, and grades 9-12.
Three school support staff members “who consistently go above and beyond the call of duty to make a difference for students” will receive WOW! awards. Each will receive a $1,000 cash award.
A selection committee will include representatives of the Hopkins Foundation, Emporia Board of Education, the community, retired teachers and an educator with state or national work experience.