Celebrating our 2023 Annual Award recipients!

Please join us in celebrating our 2023 Annual Award recipients! Thank you to everyone who took the time to nominate our amazing staff and volunteers.

Community Builder Award

Roberto Santana, lead custodian, Meridian High School

Roberto Santana is not only well-known in Meridian, but he is also well loved. This year, Roberto was nominated by many students for the Community Builder Award. Our Community Builder Award recognizes someone who strives to make the school environment feel welcoming and build belonging. When nominating Roberto for this award, this is what students had to say:

• Roberto always helps students with whatever they need. 
• Roberto makes students feel welcomed and comfortable. 
• He’s always kind to those around him.
• He makes sure everyone has lunch during lunchtime and is always spreading positivity. 
• He brightens days and really looks out for the school. 
• If you ask anyone, they would say they love Roberto. 
• He always tries his best to be helpful any way he can. 
• Roberto always has a smile on his face to whoever walks past him. 
• He’s nice to all staff, students and families that walk onto the campus. 
• Roberto greets everyone he sees with a “Good morning Sunshine!” or a “How ya doin?” 
• He ensures all people at Meridian are heard and seen. 
• He can really help you if you’re having a bad day. 
• Roberto makes each student feel safe and at home. 
• WE LOVE ROBERTO!

Honorable mentions: Angie Brooks, student monitor at IRE; Tom Mallahan, custodian at IRE; and Larisa Shuvalova, multilingual learner specialist at MHS

Better Together Award 

Mike Holz, teacher, Meridian High School

Our Better Together Award recognizes an individual who makes connections with students and families inside and outside of school. This year Mike Holz is the recipient of this award. 

Mr. Holz is a strong supporter of our students and can often be seen attending various school and athletic events. He is a supportive teacher who promotes the success of students and spends his own personal time cheering on and celebrating students. 

Mr. Holz is a committed and dedicated educator. During class, he is patient and works with students to promote their creativity and help them achieve their own personal success.

Beyond the school day, Mr. Holz is a coach for cross country and track. As a coach, he expects students to do their best and works with them to help them excel and meet their goals. He works closely with other coaches and community members during athletic events. 

While he tries to do so discreetly, Mr. Holz often spends time working on custom gifts to recognize and celebrate others during appreciation events. In fact, this year he designed and created the plaques for the other recipients of Annual Awards.

A student who nominated Mr. Holz said: “He intentionally uses his time in the homeroom to further his connections with his students. He is a professional and caring staff member, this school is glad to have him.”

Honorable mentions: Daisy Valladares, bilingual secretary at IRE; Robert Kratzig, assistant principal at MMS; and Larisa Shuvalova, multilingual learner specialist and Adriana Van Duisen, paraeducator at MHS

Innovative and Inspiring Educator Award 

Fred Wiley, teacher, Meridian High School

Our Innovative and Inspiring Educator Award goes to one teacher each year in Meridian. This year, Fred Wiley received several nominations for this award and all of the awards were submitted by students. 

Students describe Mr. Wiley as an educator who inspires them to think outside of the box and he gives students time to grow in their learning. They say he always has a smile on his face. He makes learning fun and keeps students engaged in their learning. He applies what students are learning to real life examples. One student said, “He is just so fun and makes science fun which is hard sometimes.”

Students describe Mr. Wiley as an overall outstanding teacher who truly wants the best for his students and makes sure everyone feels included. Mr. Wiley works hard to make sure every student understands what they are learning before moving on to the next concept. He is always available to support students who may need extra help. 

Students say Mr. Wiley values safety and creates a positive learning environment. He sets a great example of how to treat and respect others. He shows respect to his students and their parents, and he really tries to make school a welcoming place to be.

Honorable mentions: Janet Giesen, teacher at MP3; Karen Nielsen, Special Education teacher at IRE; and Sandy Rogers, music teacher at MMS

Outstanding Service Award 

Dennis Mallahan, maintenance and grounds

Our Outstanding Service Award recognizes an individual who models superior service and exceeds expectations daily. This person works hard to make students, families and staff feel important and respected. This year the recipient of this award is Dennis Mallahan. 

Dennis has a reputation for being incredibly dedicated to the district and works hard to make sure that all schools look amazing. Dennis takes extra time and care to make sure all athletic fields and facilities are in great shape and takes great pride in his work.

Coaches remark that the work he does on keeping the fields up, lined, and in usable condition is very much appreciated. They say Dennis is willing to help with moving equipment or going above and beyond just because he cares. 

A colleague said: “As a staff member and coach, Dennis is easy to approach and he is always accommodating. More than anything he will always help if he can. He continually goes above and beyond to keep up the school grounds, fields and buildings. Dennis makes sure that everything is done correctly and to an exceeding standard.”

Honorable mentions:  Lori Moore, secretary at MP3; John Picht, lead custodian at IRE; and Maria Aguilera-Suarez, custodian at MP3, MHS and District Office

Community Partner of the Year 

CTK Food Share and Farm

Christ the King’s Food Share & Farm program is part of the Meridian community and Faith Whaley, the farm’s director, is always looking for ways to fight food insecurity for our families and community. 

During the pandemic, they created food boxes so our family services coordinator could deliver food to families when there was a need. Since we’ve been back in person they have provided snacks for teachers to have in their classrooms, to make sure kids who forget a snack and are hungry have something to eat. They also make sure that the counselors and nurses at the secondary level have snacks for the bigger kids who seem to be hungry all the time! Recently CTK shared a large donation of non-perishable food with our Family Support Center to have at our Wednesday Food Pantry. CTK has been an invaluable partner in the fight against food insecurity here in the Meridian community.

Honorable mentions: Jake Pederson, volunteer at IRE and Melissa Noste, volunteer at IRE

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Honorable Mentions

We received many amazing nominations for staff throughout Meridian School District. Below are excerpts from nominations for honorable mentions in each category. 

Better Together Award Honorable Mentions:

Robert Kratzig, assistant principal,  MMS
“Robert Kratzig invests in connections between MMS and IRE. It’s extremely important for our 5th grade students to have a smooth transition going into 6th grade. Mr. Kratzig really invests in the IRE 5th grade students to get them ready to move on to 6th grade. The smooth and clear presentations the MMS staff held at IRE were wonderful and extremely important for a smooth transition for our current 5th graders.”

Larisa Shuvalova, multilingual learner specialist and Adriana Van Duisen, paraeducator,  MHS:
“Larisa and Adriana intentionally build trusting relationships with our multilingual learners (ML) supporting them in the general education classrooms and providing one-on-one and group-specific support. Larisa has presented a workshop for teachers and support staff at our in-service learning day, providing valuable strategies to help our ML students feel welcome, supported and capable. Adriana provides support to ML students who are in the general education classrooms, helping them understand the lessons through translation services as needed, as well as implementing the necessary accommodations for students to be successful.”

Daisy Valladares, bilingual secretary, IRE
“Daisy arrived at our school and immediately became a pillar of the IRE community. Having a Spanish-speaking secretary has made a huge difference in the engagement I have been able to have with many of my multilingual families. Families have shared what an enormous difference having a fluent Spanish speaker answer the school phone makes to them (“What a relief!”). Her friendliness, warmth, and willingness to engage in conversations about supporting students make her an indispensable member of the office, not to mention community at large. She makes a difference in my students’ life every day that she is here.”

Community Builder Award Honorable Mentions:

Angie Brooks, student monitor, IRE
“Angie’s work supporting students allows teachers to be able to do our jobs. When students enter the building regulated, validated, and with a sense of being in charge of themselves, they are able to confidently engage with their teacher and peers in a classroom. She has a wealth of knowledge regarding students and how to support them, and is always willing to discuss solutions during her break time.”

Tom Mallahan, custodian, IRE
“Tom takes the initiative every day to connect with students. He goes above and beyond what is expected of him. Each day that I walk my students down to parent pick up or the bus, Tom is there giving kiddos high fives or fist bumps. He takes the time to build connections and his relationship-building skills allow for him to be a trusted adult for students in our building.”

Larisa Shuvalova, multilingual learner specialist, MHS
“She constantly strives to improve student experience and ease them into American culture. My daughter is starting to be more interested in Russian culture and shows more interest in learning Russian. She made sure everyone felt welcome and heard during the orientation meeting. She is a very valuable addition to Meridian School District.”

Inspiring and Innovative Educator Award Honorable Mentions:

Janet Giesen, teacher, MP3
“She is excellent at figuring out each student’s strengths. Even things I don’t pick up on. Like letting a student doodle so she would remember history lessons. It worked! If Janet doesn’t have an answer, she will research and ask colleagues. She has such a wide knowledge base on strategies to help students with various challenges. I have had four very different students go through MP3 and Janet was excellent and tailored to the needs of each one.”

Karen Nielsen, Special Education teacher, IRE
“She’s just very supportive and also pushes my son past what he believes he can do and when he succeeds she celebrates it and when he struggles she just has a way to redirect the frustration. And I feel like those skills are going to be essential in him being able to be successful.”

Sandy Rogers, music teacher, MMS
“Sandy Rogers is the foundation of our middle school music department. Students would not have amazing opportunities to learn and grow in music without her. Sandy holds all students to high expectations. She pushes them to do their best and supports them along the way. She helps all students believe that they can be successful, but also pushes them to put in the work that they need to do to succeed. This helps students understand that they need to work for the things that they want to do. Students have said that they appreciate the specific feedback she gives them to help them grow.”

Outstanding Service Award Honorable Mentions:

Maria Aguilera-Suarez, custodian, MP3/MHS/DO
“Maria joined our staff in February and is really doing an outstanding job! She has gone above and beyond for our building making sure our classrooms, bathrooms, lunch room, and workspaces are thoroughly cleaned and ready for kids! She took extra time in March to wash our windows inside and out, which were previously covered in dirt from winter weather, and fills our paper towel dispensers and spray bottles without our needing to ask. What a difference her presence has made here! Whenever our paths cross, she is friendly and kind. Maria is a wonderful addition to our staff and we appreciate her very much!”

Lori Moore, secretary, MP3
“Lori goes above and beyond in providing outstanding service to the families of MP3. Lori manages all the curriculum and learning materials ordering, processing, and tracking for the families enrolled in MP3. The beginning of the school year is especially busy with all of our families submitting orders and requests at the same time. Lori processes these requests efficiently, professionally, and timely so that our students are able to get up and running for the school year. Lori also assists the MP3 teachers and staff with their classroom and office supply orders and makes sure everyone has what they need to be organized and successful to make our campus run smoothly.”

John Picht, lead custodian, IRE
“From my first day at IRE John has made me feel welcome and fully supported. He goes above and beyond to support teachers by making sure we have the needed furniture and supplies for students (and he even moves this furniture around our rooms countless times as requested, as we try to find the just right environment for our students!). John also does a great job onboarding new custodial staff and helping them emulate his phenomenal work ethic and positive spirit. This benefits everyone at IRE, from staff to students to families. We all are so appreciative of a clean, happy school to come to everyday!”

Volunteer/Community Partner of the Year Award Honorable Mentions: 

Jake Pederson, volunteer, IRE
“Jake is always in our building supporting educators. Laminating for them, printing, pulling small groups and more. He goes above and beyond to make sure that our staff is supported. He also helps me on community events/PTA events and is always there with his clipboard ready to support the children. He makes all students he comes across feel loved and supported. By keeping our teachers well supported as well, he is making sure that the children of IRE are getting the best possible education.”

Melissa Noste, volunteer, IRE
“Melissa took time out of her summer vacation, as well as numerous hours this school year, to help me set up my third grade class for success. She goes above and beyond with students, making them feel cared for and listened to. She not only volunteers her time to read with students and help with projects here at school, she also brings things home with her to complete in her free time. She is amazing!”