Carson City School District honors Educators, Employees of the Year

Lieutenant Commander Dan Meyer, NJROTC instructor at Carson High School, was honored last night as the Carson City School District’s Educator of the Year, at the Tuesday, April 25, School Board Meeting and annual event.

Additionally, Leticia Servin, bilingual parent engagement coordinator, was recognized as the Education Support Professional (ESP) Employee of the Year, and Cheryl Richetta, Principal at Bordewich Bray Elementary School, was recognized as the district’s Administrator of the Year.

Meyer and Servin were selected from 25 site winners including 11 teachers and 14 ESP employees who were selected from peers and administrators from various sites and schools within the district. The Administrator of the Year was selected from nominations from 27 school administrators.

Each candidate endured a series of strenuous interview questions from a panel of comprehensive judges. Upon conclusion of those interviews, the panel then made the difficult decision of selecting “one” ESP employee of the year, “one” educator of the year and “one” administrator of the year.

All Educators of the Year winners recognized and honored last night include (by their last name alphabetically):

Jacqueline Bennett, 3rd Grade Teacher
Lauren Cimino, 6th-8th Grade Science Teacher
Alyssa Herrera, Kindergarten Teacher
Gail Hewett, Physical Education Teacher
Cary Jordan, Counselor
Bonnie Madieros, 2nd Grade Teacher
Lieutenant Commander Dan Meyer, NJROTC Instructor
Jennifer Munk, 3rd Grade Teacher
Candi Robles, TOSA/Implementation Specialist - CTE
Jill Schwartz, 1st Grade Teacher
Nicole Witkowski, Music Teacher

All ESP Employees of the Year winners recognized and honored last night include (by their last name alphabetically):
Julie Ammerman, Administrative Assistant III
Djibril Fall, Custodian
Beverly Heath, Cafeteria Manager
Melissa Hoffman, Paraprofessional
Robert Ligon, Custodian
Janice Mandoki, Cafeteria Manager
Lanae Mitchell, Administrative Assistant I
Dan Owen, Groundskeeper
Naomi Redwine, IT Support Technician II at Carson High
Robert Ruiz, Custodian
Leticia Servin, BilingualParent Engagement Coordinator
Gabriela Sulikova, Special Ed Paraprofessional II (1:1)
Maria Tavera, English Language Paraprofessional
Jessica Weisser, Bus Driver, Substitute

“Our district has so many exceptional employees and educators. These individuals tonight represent nearly 900 other outstanding individuals who exhibit unwavering dedication, passion and commitment to the success of our students and the betterment of our community,” said Andrew Feuling, superintendent for the Carson City School District. “They are truly inspiring. They have shown that excellence is not just a goal, but a way of life, and their tireless efforts in shaping young minds have made a lasting impact."

Lieutenant Commander Dan Meyer served 15 years enlisted in the United States Navy. He later served 15 years as an officer. Upon honorable discharge, he has been a teacher for nearly 20 years, with the last nine years teaching NJROTC at Carson High.

Mr. Josh Billings, vice principal at Carson High over CTE and Fine Arts, summarized things nicely in a letter of recommendation. He described Commander Meyer as “A natural and gifted instructor. He not only teaches students about the military, but he also prepares them to become effective leaders within the program. He uses real-world examples of serving in the Navy to instruct, lead and inspire; and his caring nature has resulted in a great respect from his cadets.”

Commander Meyer has been a pillar of integrity in all interactions with students, families, colleagues and the community. But what really sealed it for the judges this year was the national attention and presence Commander Meyer has drawn to Carson High School.

In the past 9 years he has been at Carson High, Commander Meyer’s unit was selected as a “Distinguished Unit” for the last six consecutive years. Of the 568 units in the nation, Carson High’s unit was twice selected as one of the Top 10 units of the year (including last school year). When you think of being ranking in the Top 10 nationwide, that really settled with the judges.

Commander Meyer is driven to help our schools, community and those in need. This year, his cadets raised more than $6,000 in support of the Angel Tree Program. Additionally, his cadets purchased pink cords to wear on their uniforms during Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Through their efforts, they proudly presented a $1,000 check to the Carson Tahoe Cancer Center. This particular fundraiser struck a personal chord with Commander Meyer. He was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. Through the whole diagnosis and recovery process, he began to lose his motivation. But he did share with the judging panel that he then thought about his students. He said “I thought, I can’t let them down. They were my motivation to push through.”

In addition to last night’s award, as the District Educator of the Year, Commander Meyer will also have the opportunity to compete statewide for Nevada Educator of the Year.

Mrs. Leticia Servin has worked for the Carson City School District for more than 24 years. She has been a Hispanic parent liaison districtwide, an ESL paraprofessional at Mark Twain Elementary School, assistant ESL coordinator and a Migrant Parent Home Advocate at Empire Elementary School. In 2006, Servin founded the Latino Parent Committee, and she has served as the Hispanic Outreach Coordinator and Community-based Instructor for the University of Nevada, Reno. It can easily be said that she has been serving the Carson City community with passion for more than 30 years.

The thing that really stood out the most to the judges during her interview was she said her job was to empower parents so they can empower themselves. Sometimes, as a parent, all it takes is a little self-confidence, and Servin has been just that spark for so many families here in Carson City. Without her, so many students and families would not be properly served and supported. Carson High School’s population is easily more than half Latino students, and many of these students and families are Spanish speaking only. Because of this, teachers, counselors and administrators regularly need an interpreter, and Servin never shies away from making tough phone calls or to help with translating documents or attending parent meetings.

Servin is always compassionate, kind and warm to these families. And her thorough understanding of both the school system and the various unique cultures of the families helps to seamlessly build a connection for guardians and students alike. More than just translating and language, she also works hard to build bridges for parents who often feel disconnected from the American education system. Servin has created programming, parent education and student club opportunities that allow student and guardians to learn and grow in a way that feels culturally relevant and less isolating than traditional programing. Above all, without her, half of the high school’s families would still struggle to feel welcome within the halls.

In addition to last night’s award, as the District Educator of the Year, Mrs. Servin will also have the opportunity to compete statewide for Nevada ESP Employee of the Year.

Prior to her appointment as the new Principal of Bordewich Bray Elementary School, Mrs. Cheryl Richetta previously served as vice principal at Fremont Elementary. Prior to that she served the district as the lead literacy specialist where she oversaw the district’s rollout of the Read By Grade 3 Initiative. She also simultaneously served as the summer school administrator for six elementary schools and as the ELA implementation specialist at Mark Twain Elementary. In addition, Richetta served as an administrative intern under Principal Ruthlee Caloiaro at Mark Twain, and her teaching experience includes sixth and seventh grade math at Carson Middle and kindergarten, first, third and fifth grade at Mark Twain. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Education from Arizona State University (1997), a Teaching English as a Second Language (TESL) endorsement from Southern Utah University (2014) and a master’s in Educational Administration from Grand Canyon University (2015).

Mrs. Richetta, is a leader who fosters an educational environment where students can learn and succeed. Speakers mentioned previously during the awards ceremony that some students don’t always learn on the same day nor in the same way. She has worked tirelessly to ensure her teachers and employees are helping reach those students and learn in their best way they can.