On Wednesday, May 1st, our Rotary club will be honoring six school-site Teachers of the Year from the Orinda Union School District (OUSD) and also recognizing the one chosen OUSD Teacher of the Year who will represent Orinda in the Contra Costa County Office of Education Teachers of the Year process. By honoring Site Teachers of the Year from each of Orinda’s schools, we are able to recognize the great work of several teachers instead of just one. Nominees are selected based on how well they exemplify the five National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. Using these criteria, employees at each Orinda school nominate colleagues. Each school Principal in turn meets with his/her leadership team, reviews the submitted applications, and selects the School Site Teacher of the Year. Ultimately, the District Teacher of the Year Committee, which is comprised of teachers and administrators from each school, interview the Site Teachers of the Year and observe them in action in the classroom. They then deliberate and select the one OUSD Teacher of the Year to represent the District at the County level.
Teachers to be honored on May 1 are:
Del Rey Elementary: Jenny Dodd (K and 1st Grade)
Glorietta Elementary: Terry Schrittwieser (1st Grade)
Sleepy Hollow Elementary: Beth Hoogerhuis (Special Education).jpg)
Wagner Ranch Elementary: Liz Headley (2nd Grade)
Orinda Intermediate: Eric Page (7th Grade Core - English and Social Studies)
Multiple School Sites: Ashley Appel: District Math Instructional Coach
The teacher selected as the OUSD Teacher of the Year will be revealed during the dinner. Each educator will be receiving an honorarium from Orinda Rotary and an engraved plaque commemorating their accomplishment. Orinda Mayor Inga Miller will be attending and will also present each honoree with a certificate of recognition from the City.
Club members are encouraged to bring spouses and guests are welcome. Cost of the dinner is $20 per person, payable at the door. Please register here if you plan to attend.
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Orinda Rotary Club will host its Annual Frank Isola Field Day on Saturday, May 4 from 8:00 a.m. to 12 noon at the Miramonte Stadium. 
On Tuesday, April 9, students and teachers from the Orinda Unified School District, accompanied by Sylvia Hua, Dick Burkhalter, Lance Cowles, John Donnelly and Rodney Lal from the Rotary Club of Orinda, traveled to Butte County to deliver aid to Paradise schoolchildren displaced by last year’s Camp Fire. The program, conducted by the Orinda School District in collaboration with the nonprofit Mindful Littles, and sponsored by the Rotary Clubs of Orinda and Paradise, delivered 300 Peace Kits containing 12 mindfulness and compassion tools to students and staff of the Ponderosa Elementary School in Paradise. Their school was destroyed by the Camp Fire and 250 children are temporarily attending school at Durham Elementary School in Durham. 
ry excited about and supportive of our project as many students and staff are struggling with their emotional well-being as they heal from the devastating fire.” The Paradise Unified School District Superintendent said about the OrindaCares effort, “This is one of the best projects I have seen.” According to Orinda Rotary Club President John Donnelly, “Rotary Clubs all across Northern California contributed generously in the immediate aftermath of the fires, providing the children with school supplies and books to help them resume normal life as quickly as possible. However, the social and emotional impacts of the fires will be around for a long time to come. We are very pleased to be able to join with Paradise Rotary and OUSD to keep the commitment going and help the children heal.” 
