Student bookmark designer, special education teacher celebrated

Ralph Witters Elementary Principal Nichole Ciz presented both of the evening’s celebrations for the Hot Springs County School District Board of Trustees’ June 15 meeting.

Amelia Johnson, who completed fourth-grade teacher Toby Emery’s class this year at Ralph Witters Elementary, also participated in the “Bookmark and Beyond” program, as part of “Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom.”

Ciz explained that Johnson was one of 13 students, across the entire state of Wyoming, who made it into the ranks of this year’s finalists, out of more than 1,600 entries that were submitted.

Wyoming Agriculture in the Classroom’s Bookmark and Beyond program tasks students in grades 2-5 with creating their own bookmarks, each illustrating a Wyoming resource message, to showcase their understanding and appreciation of Wyoming’s essential resources, and the winning designs will be printed and distributed throughout the state.

As one of this year’s 13 finalists, Johnson will be treated to a visit to state Gov. Mark Gordon’s official mansion later this month, to meet with the governor himself, who will personally congratulate all the finalists at that time.

“So we’re very excited, and we just wanted to recognize Amelia for her hard work and her beautiful art entry,” said Ciz, who briskly moved onto the evening’s second celebration, of Ralph Witters Elementary special education teacher Jessica Carswell.

Ciz read aloud from a letter she’d received from the National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET), who have selected Carswell as one of the winners of their Outstanding Special Education Teacher Award for 2023.

“This award is bestowed on special education teachers who have demonstrated truly exceptional achievement in the field of special education,” Ciz read aloud from the letter. “It recognizes and rewards the special skills and excellence of special educators throughout the United States.”

Ciz then explained that the National Association of Special Education Teachers is “a national membership organization, that’s dedicated to supporting and assisting teachers and future teachers of special education. It develops and promotes professional excellence, through the support of teachers who provide services to children with special needs.”

NASET executive directors and Drs. Roger Pierangelo and George Giuliani wrote Ciz “to personally congratulate you on having an award-winning staff member” in Carswell.

During the public comment portion, Marshall Keller, whose daughter is entering her sophomore year at Hot Springs County High School, recently learned that at least two semesters of a foreign language are preferred when applying to selective colleges, and for competitive scholarships, so he suggested the district educate parents on such academic requirements for high school graduates seeking higher education, especially outside of Wyoming.

Keller asserted that admission into a number of universities is more restricted than it once was, and that “hiring is tough in today’s climate,” even as he acknowledged the challenges of hiring educators willing to work in rural school districts, but he nonetheless wondered “if there are other options besides just one Spanish class” at Central Wyoming College.

Board Chair Sherman Skelton thanked Keller for his input, then noted that the district is already considering handbooks to help brief parents on such requirements, before he further suggested it could even be incorporated into family orientations.