RAVE Nominees 2012

Jeff Dixon, Wireless Network Engineer – Central Office

“Jeff works tirelessly on wireless evaluations and installations for all our schools. To date, he has installed and configured over 700 wireless APs across the District, and is currently leading the charge to advance our wireless initiatives and expand our offerings, despite incredibly limited funding and resources.” - Nominated 12/2012

Liz Torres, Parent Liaison – Fairmount Elementary School

“The work Liz does with our families is priceless. She works with families that are marginalized and do not have a voice. She helps them not only with assuring that their children do well in school, but she also helps find them housing, food, health services and helps them with their immigration challenges.” - Nominated 12/2012

Jaime Osorno, Academic Counselor – Downtown High School

“Jaime is a caring and dedicated counselor. He works above and beyond his job to make sure that Downtown High students stay focused and motivated to graduate.” - Nominated 12/2012

Sarah Fingado, Paraprofessional – Fort Funston Environmental Science Center

“Sarah is calm, flexible, a self-starter, and always makes sure the job gets done. Sarah NEVER complains about whatever programmatic issues pop up.” - Nominated 10/2012

Irene Fong, Kindergarten Teacher – McKinley Elementary

“Mrs. Fong is a very clear and structured thinker and she teachers this logical way of thinking. She loves her job and as parents, we feel her dedication.” - Nominated 10/2012

Jennifer Steiner, Principal – Buena Vista Horace Mann

“Ms. Steiner, her team and the teachers have made amazing changes in the school and for the community in the few short months of her tenure.” - Nominated 10/2012

Rocio Soto, Parent Liaison – James Denman Middle School

“Ms. Soto always has a smile on her face and she is consistently working to outreach to our underserved communities.” - Nominated 10/2012

Draven Lee, Teacher – Grattan Elementary School

“Mr. Lee treats all children in his classroom with equal respect and fairness.” - Nominated 10/2012

Ryan Moore, Teacher – Longfellow Elementary School

“Mr. Moore cares about every single student in his classroom. He is engaging and funny when delivering academic instruction. Ryan’s classroom management is seamless.” - Nominated 10/2012

Jakey Toor, VAPA Dance Instructor – John Muir and other Elementary School Sites

“Ms. Toor is a remarkable dance teacher. She is creative, hardworking, effective, professional and thoughtful.” - Nominated 10/2012

Jude Noyes, Special Education Teacher – Junipero Serra Elementary School

“Mr. Noyes goes above and beyond daily. He is an amazing advocate for the children in his class and works tirelessly with parents and staff to ensure the kids are getting what they need to succeed.” - Nominated 10/2012

Tia Amador, Office Manager – San Francisco International High School

“She is a mom of four young sons and she still makes time for the students of SFIHS. She is the go-to person at the school and will always make time for you or your problem.” - Nominated 10/2012

Shannon Tomayko, Special Education Teacher – Yick Wo Elementary School

“Shannon is passionate about teaching her students to communicate, to gain adaptive and daily living skills, and to progress academically.” - Nominated 10/2012

Sharon Richardson, Principal – San Francisco Public Montessori

“This principal is dedicated and exceptionally hard-working, humble and friendly.” - Nominated 10/2012

Cindy Pacini, Music Teacher – Frank McCoppin Elementary School

“Ms. Pacini is an amazing music teacher who has been working for this district for nearly 30 years. She services over 500 kids a week and everyone loves her!” - Nominated 10/2012

Gina Chow, Teacher – Alice Fong Yu

“Ms. Chow is a great teacher who loves teaching, she’s a leader within the school community, she is a pioneer in Chinese immersion education, and she’s always smiling and upbeat.” - Nominated 10/2012

Maya Russell-Nava, Teacher – Sunset Elementary School

“Maya spends countless hours of her own time working to ensure that our kids receive the education they need and deserve, and her pride in them is heartwarming.” - Nominated 10/2012

Allyson Base, Para-Professional - Dianne Feinstein Elementary School

“Allyson is very hard and dedicated. She takes no shortcuts; she is invested and always finding new ways to work one on one with students.” - Nominated 10/2012

Adriana Esquer, Special Education Placement Counselor - Education Placement Center

“Adriana is professional, empathetic and kind. She was very helpful in guiding me through the decision process for choosing a new high school during the August placement period.” - Nominated 09/2012

Ralph Hampton, Warehouse Worker - Finance

“Ralph is communicative, flexible and friendly. He came to our rescue and was flexible about our needs .” - Nominated 08/2012

Dave Pankenier, Desktop Support Manager - Information Technology

“Dave has an amazing level of grace, kindness and a large depth and breadth of technical knowledge. He works tirelessly and is a leader to his team.” - Nominated 05/2012

Andrew Wong, Senior Admin Analyst - Budget Services

“Andrew is patient, has superior knowledge regarding budget matters and is willing to help even if the request does not fall under his area of responsibility.” - Nominated 05/2012

Leah Ballentyne, Teacher - Daniel Webster Elementary School

“Leah cares deeply about her students and is a true role model in every sense of the word. She is able to provide encouragement to kids that are struggling in a way that keeps them from getting discouraged.” - Nominated 05/2012

Margaret Chiu, Assistant Superintendent - Superintendents Office

“Her commitment and devotion to the support and guidance of site-based leadership, equity, and joyful learning has been a great contribution to the support and growth of principals and assistant principals as educators and leaders.” - Nominated 04/2012

Leslie Schoneberg, Teacher - James Denman Middle School

“She is a professional who spends endless hours looking at each unit in the math and science core content. Beyond the classroom, Mrs. Schoenberg has reached out to the community to bring professional scientists to her classroom..” - Nominated 03/2012

Cindy Pacini, Music Teacher - Jean Parker, Ulloa, Frank McCoppin and Sunset Elementary School

“She has touched the lives of literally thousands of young musicians for nearly 30 years. Her passion for music education is contagious!.” - Nominated 03/2012

Keith Carames, English Teacher - Ruth Asawa School of the Arts

“Mr. Carames has a contagious passion for all he does. His daily enthusiasm for education is seen in every aspect of his work.” - Nominated 03/2012

Olivia Johnson, Custodial Supervisor - Various School Sites

“Olivia makes sure that our students have a clean, functional and attractive school environment she is a highly effective custodial supervisor.” - Nominated 03/2012

Zach Rollins, Security Guard – Buena Vista Horace Mann K-8 School

“Mr. Rollins always has a positive attitude in the way he interacts with the students and adults. He is a complete asset to the school community.” - Nominated 03/2012

Dolores Harris, Sped Ia Sh -All Impair - Phillip & Sala Burton High School

“Miss Harris has been with the school district for over 30 years. She is positive, caring, and goes above and beyond for her students.” - Nominated 03/2012

Deborah Allen, School Secretary - New Traditions Elementary School

“Ms. Allen is a dedicated secretary who cares and supports our students, families, and staff. She does an outstanding job at the myriad of tasks that she performs on a daily basis.” - Nominated 02/2012

Sara Liebert, 5th Grade Teacher - John Muir Elementary School

“Ms. Liebert is a fantastic teacher. She leads her students in engaging and meaningful literacy activities, and her students have made significant growth on the CLA and other assessments.” - Nominated 02/2012

Laura Palacio, Kindergarten Teacher - Lakeshore Elementary School

“Laura is caring, responsible, accountable, constantly strives to be a better teacher every day! She is a committed and caring teacher who always sees the positive in every situation.” - Nominated 02/2012

Edna Kwan, 3rd Grade Teacher - Ulloa Elementary School

“Ms. Kwan is a dedicated teacher who has served students in the SFUSD for over 23 years. In addition to being an effective and caring classroom teacher, Ms. Kwan serves as the grade level team leader, School Site Council Member, as well as on the Leadership Team at Ulloa.” - Nominated 02/2012

Robert Broecker, Principal - Alvarado Elementary School

“Impossibly hardworking, committed to fairness and social justice. Gives far more of himself than is required or expected, and does so in a way that does not draw attention to himself.” - Nominated 01/2012