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The Dublin Unified School District has announced the recipients of coveted awards this year recognizing certificated and classified staff members.
At the top of the list for the 2021-22 academic year are districtwide Teacher of the Year Ramany Kaplan of Dublin High School and Classified Employee of the Year Hepzibah John of Dublin Elementary School.
The full group, including winners at the individual school site and department levels, will be further recognized during a ceremony taking place at the regular DUSD Board of Trustees meeting in May.
Superintendent Chris Funk said he appreciates the dedication of the incredible and talented staff in Dublin’s public schools.
“The work they do every day not only helps to shape the lives of our students but also the future of the world we live in,” Funk said in a statement.
The entire staff deserves recognition for their ability to function so well during the challenging pandemic times and it is a testament to their character, according to Funk.
“It’s an honor to highlight some of these incredible people who were nominated by their peers. To all our award winners, and to our entire staff, thank you for all you do, every day,” the superintendent added.
DUSD Classified Employees of the Year were nominated by their peers to be recognized under various categories, including clerical and administrative services, custodial and maintenance services, food and nutrition services, health and student services, paraprofessional services, security services, skilled trades services and technical services.
John, a paraprofessional from Dublin Elementary, was chosen as the Classified Employee of the Year. She is an exemplary instructional assistant for the preschoolers in special day class, according to district officials.
John was honored for her punctuality and dedication in encouraging students and recognizing their individual strengths. She is a positive influence on students, instilling in them qualities of self-reliance and independence, officials said.
Dublin High teacher Kaplan is the winner of the Teacher of the Year, who comes with 14 years of experience overall and has worked at the school for the last five years.
Kaplan, along with her team, played a crucial role in initiating a new English 1 Intensive course at the school.
She is credited with creating a comfortable experience for Freshman by including engaging ways of teaching, officials said.
She is a passionate educator constantly striving to develop innovative and inclusive curriculum for her students, officials said. Additionally, she is appreciated by her colleagues and students.
The Teacher of the Year was chosen out of 12 total nominated teachers by their peers across the district and submitted to the Alameda County Office of Education for DUSD Teacher of the Year for their exemplary work in the classroom this year.
The site-level recipients for Classified Employee of the Year were:
Kim Gaela, Wells Middle School – Clerical and Administrative Services
Roxana Pineda, Dublin High School – Custodial and Maintenance Services
Maria Santana, Cottonwood Creek K 8 – Food and Nutrition Services
Lauren Wasano, Murray Elementary – Health and Student Services
Hepzibah John, Dublin Elementary – Paraprofessional Services
Linda Hunt, Dublin Elementary – Security Services
Quin Richmond, Dublin Unified School District – Skilled Trades Services
Darrell Chapman, Fallon Middle School – Technical Services
The nominees for DUSD Teachers of the Year for 2021-2022:
Monica Chinn, Kindergarten – Amador Elementary
Taiba Tahir, Fourth Grade – Cottonwood Creek K8
Lisa Kiernan, Kindergarten – Dougherty Elementary
Adrianna Rocha, Fourth Grade – Dublin Elementary
Ramany Kaplan, English – Dublin High
Shawna Healy, English Language Arts and History – Fallon Middle
Bradley Dobrzenski, Third Grade – Frederiksen Elementary
Julie Nielson, First Grade – Green Elementary
Colleen Henry, Kindergarten – Kolb Elementary
Michel Masuda-Nash, Fourth Grade – Murray Elementary
Sara Quintero, English Language Arts and History – Wells Middle
Felicia Suminski, Kindergarten – York Alternative Learning Center/VLA
