Distinguished Service Award Winners: 2009

Watch Award Ceremony

Watch the award ceremony which took place October 20, 2009

Business

Deloitte, which has partnered with the Montgomery County Business Roundtable for Education to appear at career days and to work with ninth grade students to understand the importance of their transcript, online identity, and financial literacy skills. Deloitte also has been involved with the annual Young Professionals Conference.

United Communications Group, a company that has distinguished itself by being a strategic partner with Gaithersburg Middle School.

Community Individual

Officer Marcus Dixon, who partnered with Capt. James E. Daly Elementary School to increase the school’s outreach to Hispanic parents and students.

Emily McDonell, a recreation specialist with the Montgomery County Department of Recreation, who has worked with youth through numerous programs, including the Safe and Drug Free Schools program and the creation of the RecExtra middle school program.

Community Group

Admissions Department of Montgomery College, which has reduced in-county tuition costs to MCPS graduates and formed a strong bond with Watkins Mill High School.

Junior Achievement of the National Capital Area, a non-profit community organization that is dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and work readiness through experiential, hands-on programs.

Montgomery County Students Construction Trades Foundation, Inc., which developed a dual-enrollment, dual-credit scholarship program between MCPS and Montgomery College that can lead to an associate’s degree in applied science.

Individual Pioneer

John William Smith, a Montgomery County Council education liaison who founded a major mentoring initiative.

MCPS Staff

Karen Crawford, coordinator for student affairs, for her commitment to education and her many years of service as the advisor to the Montgomery County Regional Student Government Association (MCR-SA)

Susan Freiman, staff development teacher at Viers Mill ES, for her dedication and commitment to improving test scores at Viers Mill ES, a Title I school.  She has been repeatedly identified as the force behind their success in bridging the achievement gap.

Daric Jackson, assistant principal at Sherwood HS, for creation of the Men of Excellence program, an effort that supports mentoring relationships between male staff members at the school and students. The program’s goal is to increase academic performance and encourage college readiness.

Susan Marks, associate superintendent in the Office of Human Resources, for her many years of service in leadership roles. In her current role, she demonstrates a commitment to providing the brightest leaders and effective teachers for MCPS.

Linda Wanner, assistant principal for Blair HS (now retired), was recognized for her commitment to communication between the school and home and her problem-solving skils.

Bernard Warfield, facilities team leader in the Division of Construction, for his successful tenure managing schools under construction since 1992 and for maintaining an “open on time” goal.

School Service Volunteer

John Burley, Stedwick Elementary, Neelsville Middle, and Watkins Mill High schools

Mark Freedman, Monocacy Elementary School