Mendiola is WSR’s most outstanding teacher

 A third-grade teacher and mother of five was adjudged as this year’s William S. Reyes Elementary School’s most outstanding educator and was bestowed the prestigious Teacher of the Year award for school year 2011-2012.

Dorothy Mendiola dedicated this recognition to her students whom she said are the ones who really motivates her. Yesterday, Mendiola was seen sharing the good news with her students: “Because of you, I was selected the Teacher of the Year! Thank you! Give me five!”

Mendiola has been with the Public School System for eight years, first joining the Oleai Elementary School in 2001 and working there for five years. After taking two years off, she returned to teaching, this time at WSR. She said the award is her first with PSS.

“It’s an awesome feeling! I didn’t expect this.and I am very honored. I guess it goes to show that they are recognizing my hard work, they’re seeing what we’ve doing in our classroom and realizing that it’s all for our students,” she told Saipan Tribune yesterday. “Being selected is almost like an eye-opener that helps me to stop and reflect too, that ‘wow! I really did a lot of successes for my students.’”

Dorothy’s third grade class was among the high performers in both the SAT-10 and SBA tests last school year. That success, she said, is not only evident in test scores but in the overall performance of her students inside and outside classrooms.

Mendiola was part of the PSS Teacher Academy program in high school where she got the chance to observe classrooms in public and private schools. She said she was greatly inspired by her first “students” under the program in 1996.

“I worked with five students in the ‘low group’ or those below their grade levels. Having to see their struggles just to succeed.they motivated me a lot. That made me decide to go to college and [come] back here and help our kids improve in their academics,” she said.

Mendiola also acknowledged the great influence of her mentor, Joan Kani, one of the pioneers of the PSS Teacher Academy program.

This year’s Teacher Aide of the Year for WSR is Ray Aguon, who is with the school’s Physical Education program. This is his third time to be chosen for the honor.

Aguon joined PSS in 1999 as a teacher aide at Oleai Elementary School, where he got his first recognition in 2002. A year after, he moved to WSR, where he has been recognized twice, in 2009 and this school year.

“It feels good to be recognized and I thank all my colleagues, the administration, for giving me their votes,” he said yesterday.

Aguon is pursuing a bachelor’s degree at Northern Marianas College to become a classroom teacher. “I hope to see myself in that position in the next four years.I want to better serve our students.”

WSR bestowed its Counselor of the Year award on Rebecca J. Flores, who has been with PSS for 21 years. Flores has already been twice recognized as the school’s Support Staff of the Year, in 1995 and 2008, when her position was still under the support staff category. In 2009, she was hailed as WSR’s Counselor of the Year, during which she also bagged the overall PSS title, besting other counselors in public schools. This year marks her second time to get the award. Prior to becoming a counselor, Flores was classroom teacher for 11 years, from 1990-2001.

“I am very honored [to get the award] and at the same time, I want to say that anybody who is a counselor deserve to receive the recognition so I am giving it to them because I have seen how they work hard. We have a lot of underrated counselors who serve as the eyes and ears of the schools. They are great leaders too,” she said.

As a counselor, Flores said that she has more time to work one-on-one with students. “Not so many people go into counseling and I know that there’s a need for counselors because kids need more intensive assistance and help and that can only be given when you are a counselor,” she said.

WSR also honored 65-year-old Delfin Lobao as its Support Staff of the Year-his fourth time to be conferred the award since becoming the school’s custodian since 1992.

“Working here is like working for your own family. Taking care of its facilities and students is like taking care of your own homes and children. I enjoy going to work every day because I know I will be working with and for my family too,” he told Saipan Tribune.

According to WSR principal Naomi Nishimura, Education Month is an opportunity to recognize hardworking employees and she described the four awardees as truly deserving individuals. “This is just one way of recognizing their efforts and hard work especially now with the growing challenges. No matter the challenges are, these people get things done. Sometimes it does take time, but they move on things that need to happen for the school and it is not everyday we are able to thank each one of them,” she said.