The Sunnyvale School District is so proud to announce our 2020-2021 Employees of the year!
Teacher of the Year: Julio Delgado (Vargas)
Julio Delgado is a fifth-grade teacher at Vargas Elementary School in the Sunnyvale School District. He has been with the district for eight years.
Julio consistently adjusts his instruction to meet individual needs. He is very reflective and is always open to new ideas and the perspectives that his colleagues provide. He is always looking to support colleagues and provide insight to them as well. He builds strong relationships with his students and staff members. Julio consistently reaches out to parents (through messages and phone calls) to learn more and gain a stronger relationship with student families. He also utilizes Siobhan, who has strong relationships with many of our families. He is always looking for ways to improve his teaching through professional development, books, and hearty conversations with colleagues. I appreciate his willingness to continually reflect and grow as an educator
Julio is an amazing educator who truly knows our community. He is aware of the struggles that our families are going through, especially now during Covid. It’s easy to be frustrated with the challenges that have come with teaching virtually. Rather than being defeated with all the things that are wrong or hard, Julio seeks to find the Why- Why are our students struggling so much? What might be going on in their family that I don’t know about? Understanding that students are part of a complex family structure, and have different cultural backgrounds are part of what makes Julio an effective teacher and teacher leader. Julio is always willing to support other teachers and provide perspective. This shows his dedication to the growth of our staff. Julio has been an exceptional leader this year. He has taken on the leadership role of the Social Justice League team at Vargas. His willingness to reflect and openly share his own biases and cultural experiences have been invaluable. This mentality and openness have bled into the Professional Developments that have been provided to Vargas.
Outside of the responsibilities as a classroom teacher, Julio is an active member of the English Learners Advisory Team and our school’s Multi-Tiered System of Supports team. Through his leadership on both of these teams, he demonstrates advocacy for all students and looks for creative ways for all students to get what they need to be successful in school. The 2020-2021 school year has not been an easy one. Vargas has needed some morale boosters and Julio has helped to ensure that! He independently planned our Staff Christmas Zoom Party. He has also planned game nights as well. Julio has made such a positive impact on the Vargas Community. We are so lucky to have him and his leadership.
Classified Employee of the Year: Claudia Estrada (Columbia Middle)
CMS chose Claudia Estrada because she is the absolute BEST at fulfilling her responsibilities and more! Whenever there is any “ask” of Claudia, she demonstrates incredible
efficiency, effectiveness, and thoughtfulness! Despite all that she takes on, she always has a cheerful attitude and a smile on her face! Claudia Estrada is a hard worker and is willing to help and communicate with parents. She is friendly and kind and goes above and beyond with our CMS families.
CMS chose Claudia Estrada because she is incredible! Claudia puts students first and works hard because she believes that school is the most important thing for students and works with teachers, families, and students to ensure that they are successful every day. Claudia does SO MUCH for our school community and she’s always cheerful, never complains, and works hard EVERY SINGLE DAY. She is a tremendous asset to the CMS school community. Any request sent her way is responded to as if it is of the utmost importance and she is just so valuable to all of us!
As mentioned above, Claudia has gone above and beyond the realm of her job title. She single-handedly revived our English Learner Advisory Council parent group by making personal connections. It was because of Claudia that CMS had its first full PTSA board. In addition, Claudia would never turn down an ask and would stay late on multiple occasions in order to translate for the CMS administrations during our Parent Guardian Nights. Words cannot express enough the impact that Claudia has had on our school community and our parents would be lost without her. She truly is the BEST!!!!!
Management Team Member of the Year: Danielle Lowry
“Dedicate yourself to what gives your life true meaning and purpose; make a positive difference in someone’s life.” ― Roy T. Bennet. When I think of Danielle these thoughts come to mind as it is so apparent in her work and dedication to her school site, her teams, and the entire Sunnyvale Community. If each of us
works toward making a sincere effort when we wake up each morning with a renewed commitment and dedication to embracing what lies ahead, this world will become a better place, bringing us ever closer together. A leader should always be dedicated to what they do, and demonstrate the resilience, determination, and commitment required to achieve results. They should understand that there may be obstacles and setbacks along the way, but rather than giving up, they should work out how to overcome them. Danielle has demonstrated Dedicated Leadership is all about being committed to circumstances, people, and things we do believe in. Danielle has demonstrated her dedication to practicing daily and on a continuous basis since joining Sunnyvale in 2017
Danielle has demonstrated her dedication by:
- Jumping in to do whatever work needs to be done
- Extending a hand to help when others might run.
- Noticing when staff has been stretched beyond their reach.
- Investing in our students to help make their future brighter.
- Taking on extra to make a colleague’s workload a little lighter.
- Remaining committed to the work in spite of the many challenges we have experienced over the past few years.
- Availing herself tirelessly to make sure we are compliant and providing quality services to ALL of our students.
Ms. Lowry’s dedication to excellence extends not only to her career, as she is committed to providing the highest level of care to those that she serves & she balances this commitment with her love and support to her family. She does a lot of work behind the scenes for our district and she is dedicated to service, steadfast, and true to Sunnyvale School District.
Retirees
Congratulations to those listed below for their years of service and dedication to the Sunnyvale School District who will be retiring at the end of the year. We will miss you!
- Theresa Brink, 27 years
- Sandra Bruno, 34 years
- Eric Carlson, 33 years
- Martha (Marti) Coppage, 26 years
- Marian Gericke, 32 years
- Rosann Guidry-Marks, 3 years
- Carol Price, 24 years
- Ronald Hammond, 2 years
- Andrew Morales, 27 years
- Pamela Murdock, 20 years
- Julia Pedraza, 15 years
- Christine Montgomery, 13 years
- Lisa Atkins, 17 years
- Peggy Bagdriwicz, 21 years
- Haydee Varela, 4 years
- Pat Bradley, 23 years
- Kathy Goodman, 29 years
