Hernando County Schools -

Kathleen Turnbull has connected intensely with our school. She started the Sew N Sew Club which gained local recognition when the Tampa Bay Times came to interview her and her novice sewing group. The students are working on making dresses for African girls, beds for pets at a shelter and designing fundraising pillows for sale to 8^th graders and pillows that can be created for our troops. Her club made holiday stockings which were filled with holiday treats for students that may not have had a Christmas or for ones that needed a little positive praise.

Kathleen is always looking for innovative ways to demonstrate mathematical concepts to her learners. Her creative teaching concepts have made harder math lessons fun and meaningful.  She is compassionate to both students and staff and is a great idea person. To us she is truly a Hernando HERO.

Ms. Kathy always looks for the positive in the students that she encounters. She is helpful and kind to the children and challenges the students to do their best. Not only does she work well with others but she will help anyone who needs help. When she is confronted with an issue she listens carefully to all sides and helps work it through.

She is a hard working, dedicated, kind and keeps her sense of humor. Kathy sees that when something needs to be done ,  she does it. Ms. Kathy is a team player and can be counted on to pitch in whoever she is needed. She is a wonderful person and a true Hernando HEROES.

One of the very special ways Mr. Wald promotes student success at Nature Coast is with the 1^st Annual Brucy Video Awards. The students created, directed, produced and starred in the videos and then presented them at the awards. This gave the students the opportunity to come out from behind cameras and computers to speak in front of a group of their peers, parents and the community. Mr. Wald has fostered positive relations in the school community as well with over 200 people showing up the night of the awards.

Mr. Wald is a very outgoing and a soccer/football fanatic. He’s the varsity soccer coach at Nature Coast and in his spare time, he runs a community football league with the Hernando County Parks and Recreation Department.

In the school, he has a great working relationship with all the teachers, administration and students. He spent countless hours rewiring the CCTV system in the library along with many other projects. He likes to help wherever and whenever needed.  Only in his third year as a teacher, he has done a lot with the students and has gained the respect from faculty and administration.   Mr. Wald is a Hernando HEROES. He has made the TV Production program something the students and school is proud of at Nature Coast Technical high School.

JoSandra promotes students success by continuously encouraging students to try harder. She uses her job to reach out to and provide resources to help all subgroups, student populations and families. She stresses the importance of parental involvement in education and is always there to provide assistance and support to parents to help them lay a positive role in their child’s education. She is a mentor for young ladies who always seem to bond with her in the schools.  At Parrott, struggling students male and female, consistently look to her for guidance, encouragement or just someone to talk to in difficult situations.

JoSandra Maner is a well deserved Hernando Hero not only in our eyes, but also in the eyes of our students and families.

Mr. Flint has made sure teachers are accommodated with any classroom needs in order to service the children at Moton Elementary. Mr. Flint assists students in the lunchroom and makes sure to greet them with a smile. He went out of his way to beautify the school grounds this past summer. He has a great attitude, is flexible and very personable. Mr. Flint is always eager to assist anyone. He never says “I’ll see what I can do,” but rather says, “no, problem I’ll get to it”. He’s our HERO.

Ms. Beckwith helps promote student success by organizing a student study buddy club. These students help other students I math at the elementary level. The students feel more self confident knowing they are helping younger kids better understand math. Ms. Beckwith always is looking for ways to help students gain a better opinion of math and to improve their confidence in their math abilities. She is often seen at extra-curricular activities supporting students.

On a continuous basis Deputy Keeney lifts our student's morale. Every opportunity he has to enrich the lives of our students he does. He educates them in more ways than we as teachers know how. He promotes students success by keeping our halls and classrooms safe this allows our students to learn in a safe and enriching environment.

Not only does Deputy Keeney foster a positive relations hip in our school community he also has a direct connection to the community outside our doors. DS Parrott Middle School has shown great success and positive change because of his presence. Deputy Keeney plays and important rose in the success of our students here at DS Parrott Middle School.

Mrs. Michalicka was named the High School Literacy leader of the Year and that is because she is tireless in her efforts to have all students succeed. She is instrumental in making sure that the students are successful in school. Through her work in the after school program, she develops a close relationship with the students and parents involved in the program as well as the teachers that work with those students. She meets with the students individually to go over schedules and grades and checks in with the students to see how things are going. She also does tutoring with our most high risk students. This is her third year as an AP at Springstead and she is a Hernando HEREO.

September 20, 2011
Nancy Lovelock