John M. Sexton Elementary

   Jana Bailey

Jana Bailey was acknowledged by Sandi Gerrish, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships, Responsibility, Connectedness.  Sandi Gerrish, noted that your team member:

“Jana Bailey is an amazing media specialist at Sexton. She goes above and beyond her duties as a media specialist and builds relationships with students and parents. She is always willing to help staff with any technology issues at a moment's notice, and does so with a smile. Jana is an invaluable asset to our school, students and staff."

   Beverlee Busansky

Beverlee Busansky was acknowledged for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships.  Tracy Gardner, noted that your team member:

 "Ms. Beverlee Busansky exemplifies PCS Core Values in her commitment to children. Ms. Busansky understands the importance of building positive relationships with her students so that they thrive in her classroom. Ms. Busansky's creates a climate that is warm, caring, safe, and inviting. Trust and respect are observed as students strive to do their best. The students know that their teacher is their biggest cheerleader! Ms. Busansky is a top-notch Stingray!"

   Kim Burns

Kim Burns was nominated by a peer for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Integrity, Responsibility.  Her peer sited this:

"Kim Burns goes above and beyond the expectations of a teacher.  She freely gives of her time outside of contracted hours to support her school and team by seeing a need and filling it." 

   Marianne Caterson

Marianne Caterson was acknowledged by Merit Saad, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Integrity, Responsibility.  Merit Saad, noted that your team member:

“Marianne Caterson exemplifies devotion to her students and families and so many other great characteristics. She is a model of collaboration, adaptability, and positive classroom presence. She is a team player in our wonderful fourth-grade team, and she is not afraid to ask for help. She braves learning and teaching new grade level standards with her smile and her eagerness for learning approach. She puts her students’ learning in the forefront as she collaborates with other teachers and content coaches in order to fine-tune her craft. She embodies the teacher who coaches wish to support. She is a pleasure to work with, and Sexton is blessed to have her!

Marianne was also acknowledged by Stacey Raspitzi, who noted: "Ms.Caterson is new to teaching 4th grade this school year, she has embraced her new role working with intermediate students. Serving as her testing proctor it was observable, she set goals and expectations with all students prior to testing. An environment was created for all students to flourish and do their best work. Ms. Caterson is responsible for preparing students and motivating them to do their best work not only on test day but everyday."

   Eric Charsley

Eric Charsley was acknowledged by Kimberly Burns, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships, Cultural Competence, Integrity, Responsibility, Connectedness.  Kimberly Burns, noted that your team member:

“Eric Charsley exemplifies every one of the Pinellas County Schools core values. He demonstrates professionalism as a team leader and makes connections with each student and family. He supports and leads school-sponsored activities and is an encourager to staff members. He leads and teaches with integrity and responsibility. Thank you, Mr. Charsley, for being you, a phenomenal teacher, exemplary team leader, and a supportive member of the Sexton community.”

   Darrell Cohen

Darrell Cohen was acknowledged by Jana Bailey, who noted:

"Darrell is an amazing Head Plant Operator. He comes in every day and gives 100% to our school community. When a staff member contacts him with a request, whether it is to put in a work order for a repair, borrow a table for an event, or clean up a spill, he responds in a timely manner to make sure the job is done and that it is done correctly. He has a good rapport with his staff of plant operators, which is evident in his interactions with them. We are very fortunate to have Darrell at Sexton!"

   Bea Engwall

Bea Engwall was acknowledged by Tammy Keiper, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community.  Tammy Keiper, noted that your team member:

"I am thankful for the welcome basket Miss Bea Engwall left for us, guest shelter workers, at her school.  It was a nice surprise to be greeted with a nice note, snacks, cleaning supplies and more in the room my family would be staying in. We appreciate the gesture that shows her thankfulness towards shelter workers helping our community."

Mrs. Gardner wants to give a shout out to Ms. Engwall who stayed with Ms. Gardner while we waited over an hour for students to get picked up on Friday. Thank you for being a Stingray hero!

   Ashley Fellows

Ashley Fellows was acknowledged by Tracy Gardner, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Responsibility.  Tracy Gardner, noted that your team member:

“Ashley Fellows is new to Sexton and serves in the role as reading coach. In just a short amount of time, we can already see the impact in the classroom due to the efforts of Ms. Fellows in supporting our teachers with collaborative planning. Ms. Fellows is a gift to our school, and we are grateful for her leadership capabilities!"

   Tracy Gardner

Tracy Gardner was acknowledged by Sheila Salg, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships, Integrity, Responsibility, Connectedness.  Sheila Salg, noted that your team member:

 "Mrs. Gardner has the strength & ability to take on any challenge that crosses her path.  This past week she handled a HUGE curve ball regarding FAST testing.  Within days, Mrs. Gardner not only arranged a K-5 testing schedule but, throughout all the chaos, still found time to provide uplifting remarks to teachers and students. Although our main focus is on our children, we also have to take care of each other during stressful times. Thank you, Mrs. Gardner, for all your support."

   Sherry House

Sherry House was acknowledged by Marie Brainard, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community.  Marie Brainard, noted that your team member:

"Sherry House is the exemplary Cafeteria Manager at Sexton Elementary. She runs a tight ship. Her kitchen is extremely well-organized; her staff members know exactly what to do and where to be. She has a beautiful display at the entrance to the lunch line with color photos of the foods being served that day. At breakfast time she rolls a cart out to the front gate to make sure students start their day with a good meal on their way to class!" 

   Karen Hubble

Karen Hubble was acknowledged by Cassandra Turgeon, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Integrity, Responsibility, Connectedness.  Cassandra Turgeon, noted that your team member:

"Although her title is MTSS Coach, Karen Hubble is so much more! She is the glue that binds relationships between school staff, students, families, and the community. Over the years, she has developed and maintained unbreakable bonds between students and their families. Mrs. Hubble is never afraid to take on a task and works collaboratively with educators. She is a leader and fulfills her role with integrity. I truly believe that Sexton is an amazing school thanks in part to her contributions. Thank you for all you do, Hubble!"

   Elishia Johnson

"Elishia Johnson exemplifies several core values as she strives to make connections with students. She is quick to recognize a need for a student and offers support by building positive relationships. She eats lunch on a regular basis with students.

Ms. Johnson is not only the face of Sexton Elementary, but she serves as a mentor because she has a heart for kids. Thank you, Ms. Johnson, for your dedication and commitment to our school community! "

   Kara Knight

Kara Knight was acknowledged by Cassandra Turgeon, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships.  Cassandra Turgeon, noted that your team member:

"Mrs. Knight is devoted to her students and shows compassion every day. She truly wants all her students to succeed academically as well as socially and behaviorally. Her resiliency is exemplified in her commitment to students and their families. Mrs. Knight is deliberate in her consultations with her school team and student services to provide the best, well-rounded instruction for her students. She is a powerful and fearless advocate."

   Jamie Patterson

Jamie Paterson was acknowledged by Cheryl Plummer, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships, Integrity.  Cheryl Plummer, noted that your team member:

"Nurse Jamie Patterson is tireless in her efforts to take care of Sexton's students, families, and staff.  She is calm and reassuring and truly cares about the welfare of the people on our campus.  It is a pleasure to work with her.  Jamie is an asset to Sexton Elementary and a role model for the county."

   Tony Pleshe

Tony Pleshe was acknowledged by Donnika Jones, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families and the Community.  Donnika Jones, noted that your team member:

"Principal Pleshe, like many school leaders, was called to serve for shelter duty and, while answering the call to serve is not unusual, the level of kindness and commitment to our families and community is where he goes above and beyond. Principal Pleshe had a family write a letter this week about how accommodating and empathetic his entire staff was at Sexton. Principal Pleshe lead his work during the storm with our core value of commitment to families and community and that is why I am recognizing him. Thanks for your leadership!"

   Sheila Salg

Sheila Salg was acknowledged by Maura McCallister, for exemplifying the following Core Values of Pinellas County Schools, Commitment to Children, Families, and the Community, Respectful and Caring Relationships.  Maura McCallister, noted that your team member:

"Sheila Salg constantly goes above and beyond to connect our scholars and their families to our school community at Sexton Elementary. She works hard to bring in fabulous lunchtime mentors and ensures they are matched with compatible students. Last week she organized another successful Great American Teach-In by bringing in dozens of volunteer presenters to inspire kids to pursue a career they'll love. We are so lucky to have a community liaison like Shelia! "

Sheila Salg was also acknowledged by Sandi Gerrish, who noted that your team member:

"Sheila Salg is an extremely valuable asset to Sexton. She is always working hard to help staff and the community support our students. We appreciate and are very thankful for Sheila's dedication and positive attitude at Sexton. We don't know what we would do without her! "

Sheila was also acknowledged by a peer that "Ms. Salg is Sexton's community liaison. She approaches all tasks assigned with a "child first" mentality. She is kind, caring and compassionate. Ms. Salg works behind the scenes to lift the spirits of our staff and students. She connects our high-needs students with mentors and she bridges the gap to our community. What I appreciate most about Ms. Salg is that she loves our school and it shows!"

   Joe Smolek

"Mr. Smolek is a 3rd grade teacher and team leader. Mr. Smolek takes it upon himself to extensively study FL Benchmarks prior to arriving at our collaborative planning session. Mr. Smolek comes ready to discuss and share his thinking as it relates to collaborative planning with his colleagues. His leadership and sense of responsibility to his students is observable in his daily work. "

   Officer Trice

"Officer Trice is a constant at Sexton Elementary. He greets students by name in the mornings, patrols the campus throughout the day, serves as a mentor for students, and provides staff support when necessary. Officer Trice exemplifies PCS Core Values as he strives to not only keep our school safe, but he sets out to make a difference in the lives of children. He is committed to the community as he has built trusting relationships with families.  We are lucky to have Officer Trice as our school safety officer! "