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2005 Friend of Education Awards
Each year, we look forward to recognizing those special individuals and organizations That willingly go the proverbial “extra mile” to make a difference in the live of their districts’ students. It is a pleasure to meet the unique and giving people who make our schools very special places for our students to learn and grow. Each of this year’s recipients has contributed to their area schools in some very unique ways—but share the common thread of tireless dedication to our schools.
We congratulate each of this year’s Friend of Education recipients!
| Carol Pancoast has served on the Bay Village Board of Education for 23 years. During her tenure she has been involved in 18 operating levy or bond issue requests. She has also been an active member of the Ohio School Boards Association and received that organization’s All-Ohio School Board Award in 1999. She is also a recipient of the Ohio PTA Lifetime Membership Award and serves on the College of Wooster Alumni Board where she works to insure post secondary education opportunities for graduating high school seniors and a quality educational experience for today’s College of Wooster students. Carol is recognized as the Bay Village Board’s parliamentary expert and policy language expert—which is no surprise since she worked as the district’s communications expert before retiring to serve on the school board. Most recently she has served as chair of an art committee that selected two major works of art for the school district’s new middle school. At this time Bay Village Schools is hoping that Carol will run for her sixth term in the school board this November. |
| Dale Foor is the Director of Pupil and Community Services for Gahanna-Jefferson Schools. He has also served the district as a teacher and principal. In 2003 he worked to establish the Gahanna Lincoln High School Alumni Hall of Fame and continues to work with the teacher’s union to showcase staff talents as part of the Hall of Fame program. He revitalized the School Business Advisory Council and through that organization founded the Gahanna-Jefferson Education Foundation. To date $7,000 in grants have been awarded to teachers and administrators for student projects. This past March, he worked with the foundation to host “Celebration of Excellence,” a live and silent auction to raise community awareness and scholarships. Among his many other contributions was the development of “Memory Lane”—a hallway showcasing the high school’s rich traditions, which resulted in a History Channel $10,000 Save Our History grant to the school district. |
| Dana Allen is the consummate substitute teacher and volunteer, according to the Woodland Heights teaching staff. She is responsible for the school’s lobby showcase, which she changes monthly to reflect art, children’s literature, collectibles, and history. She is also an OhioReads volunteer and an avid collector who checks her collections to see what she has to share with students and staff on many topics. As a painter, reader, writer, and photographer, Dana is a living example of the kind of lifelong learner and involved citizen that Greenville Schools wants its students to become. |
| Jay Foran has championed the cause of Lakewood Schools for many years. He worked as a community leader on the “Designing our Next 50 Years” committee, a district facilities planning project; and then on the bond issue committee to fund the plan. He also serves on the district’s Design, Transition, and Coordinating committees, which is working with the community to transition Lakewood toward a school district with fewer buildings, decommissioning some buildings, and building several new buildings in the first phase of the plan. Jay developed a video highlighting the joint efforts of the school district and community to develop a master plan. He also serves on numerous community committees. In short, he works constantly to make sure that the Lakewood community and Lakewood Schools secure a stable and exciting future. |
| As a former physical education teacher, Athletic Director Dee Hastler has integrated recreational sports into the fabric of a Mad River education. In 1970, she saw a need for equity in men’s and women’s sports while teaching at the middle school level. She created an advanced physical education class for girls and sports programs in field hockey, basketball, and softball. As a high school physical education teacher, she continued this mission and coached and mentored hundreds of students, many of whom refer to her as their second mother. Since 1985, she has served as Stebbins High School’s Athletic Director. During her tenure she has created the Booster’s Club, the Scholar Athlete Award, the Athletic Hall of Fame, and the Relay-4-Life program. She also pushed for the construction of a Student Activity Center when she saw that there wasn’t enough space for athletes to practice. This May another one of her projects, the Stebbins War Memorial, honoring Stebbins students killed in action, will open. Mad River School doesn’t call Dee a friend of education, they call her a “bona fide devotee.” |
| In 2001, voters in Mad River Schools approved their share of an Ohio School Facilities construction and renovation project that would bring four new elementary schools, two new middle schools, and a renovated high school. While the community was excited about the new projects, they also wanted the district to preserve the history of current buildings before they were demolished. The school district did not have the funds to do such a project, but Mark Morgan and Fred Lageman of MainSail Productions offered to produce this nostalgia video for their expenses only, and none of the usual costs associated with such a venture. As a graduate of the school district, Mark was glad to return to the “joyful memories of his youth.” As the spouse of a Mad River teacher, Fred fully supported the project. The final DVD has been very popular. MainSail splits the cost of the $10.00 DVDs with the school district to enable fundraising. |
| As the owners and operators of Parmatown Mall, Midtown Apartments, and Parmatown Apartments, Forest City Enterprises/RMS Management has been a viable supporter of Parma Schools’ Community/Business/Partnership program. Each of the Midtown Towers/Parmatown Apartments has adopted an elementary building and provides funding and/or volunteer support for quarterly student achievement awards, homework club, superintendent’s business advisory council, staff appreciation, parent teacher association, and voter registration. The Parmatown Mall regularly showcases student artwork and musical offerings and assists with kindergarten registration. They are dedicated resources to the students, staff, and families of Parma Schools. |
| Quebecor World Lebanon has been an active support of Warren County Vocational’s Business Technology Tech Prep and Graphics Arts programs. As a full service web offset printing facility, Quebecor hosts field trips, sets up internships, and provides speakers to the Business Technology Tech Prep program. In addition, Quebecor’s Human Resources Manager serves on the Business Technology Tech Prep advisory committee. In addition, the company provides equipment and student training to the Graphics Arts program as well as sponsoring field trips. The impact of Quebecor on Warren County students is invaluable. The company’s generosity and interest reinforce lessons learned in the lab with real life situations in the workplace. |
| Michael Schuh, owner of Michael’s Salon and Day Spa, serves on the Cosmetology program’s business advisory committee for Warren County Career Center. He has worked with the program for about 28 years. When the lab was remodeled, he provided valuable advice. He also donated a salon appointment book software program that is widely in use in professional salons. As a practitioner in the field, Michael helps the program keep up with the newest trends in the business. He also takes Warren Career Center students as interns each year, giving at least nine seniors the opportunity to work in an upscale salon. “Camp Michael” is his one-week program for approximately 30 area Cosmetology students. In addition, he has been an active lobbyist on behalf of career-tech education. |
Return to main NSPRA/Ohio Awards page.
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