May 2016 Nebo PEAK Award Winners:

Submitted by lana.hiskey on

THE PEAK AWARD CUSTOMER SERVICE PROGRAM
Nebo School District wants to showcase our Positive Energy and Kind employees. PEAK Awards are nominated by patrons and recognized by the Superintendent Staff and Nebo School Board of Education. The award is administered by the Communications and Community Relations Department. 

Cecily Yeager, English Teacher, Diamond Fork Junior
Nominated by: Shanna Daniels
“I needed help with my ninth-grade English curriculum, and Cecily was so happy and willing to help! I teach at Mt. Nebo Junior, and I'm the only ninth-grade English teacher. I felt like I didn’t have all the tools the students needed to be successful in school, especially with testing. I knew I needed to collaborate with other teachers to get ideas and support to fill in the gaps. I reached out to Cecily, and she spent most of her day talking to me about their curriculum and giving me everything I needed to teach my kids in a new way that has proved to be very effective with them. I am grateful! I believe Cecily is an outstanding teacher who is willing to help out wherever she can.”

Amy Ewell, Skills Coach, Mt. Nebo Junior
Nominated by: Alice Wilson & Cheri Campbell
“Amy is AMAZING! She motivates students to make miraculous changes in their lives. She is zealous about getting students to improve and has insightful ideas that inspire students to make incredible improvement in their GPA. Amy knows how to nurture students with kind words so they become noble, productive citizens. She goes the extra mile by gathering generous gifts from local businesses. We are so grateful for her positive attitude and energy. Amy truly cares about the students here at Mt. Nebo Junior High and will do anything in her power to help them succeed. Amy is a phenomenal employee.” 

Nikki Sanford, Teacher, Salem Elementary
Nominated by: Jim Welburn
“Nikki is constantly looking out for the students who are challenging or may be difficult to teach. She has requested, on more than one occasion, to have a particular student placed in her class. She has a way of helping every student be successful. In addition, Nikki is always looking for ways to make our school a better place. She started our student council with a service emphasis. Every month the council is doing acts of service. Nikki also serves on our School Community Council and works extremely well with all of our patrons/parents. Whether she dresses up like a character from Harry Potter, or a pioneer, nothing gets in her way of engaging all students.”

Mike Larsen, Principal, Sierra Bonita
Nominated by: Entire staff at Sierra Bonita
As the principal at Sierra Bonita, Mike Larsen has provided exceptional service. The following list was compiled by his staff: integrity, kind, hardworking, uplifting, sincere, positive, caring, sporty, fantastic, inspiring, irreplaceable, supportive, trusting, optimistic, thoughtful, understanding, an example, devoted, enthusiastic, gifted, empathetic, flexible, compassionate, awesome, genuine, wonderful, extraordinary, empowering, essential, Christ-like, authentic, involved, leader, thorough, friend, professional, huggable, supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, attentive, focused on the one, loyal, amazing, approachable, and witty. Very few people would be described in so many ways. Mike’s ability to be a true leader will continue to benefit Nebo School District as he takes on a new leadership role as Special Education Director. However, Mike’s leadership and commitment to Sierra Bonita will be greatly missed.

Mandi Wilson, History Teacher, Springville High
Nominated by: Aubrey Thornock 
“Mandi is always going above and beyond helping students. I am a counselor so I hear a lot of what the students say about teachers. Students are comfortable talking to her about anything. Mandi is always willing to bend over backwards for our kids. Students enjoy her class, and they really enjoy her. Students trust her. Mandi tries to understand where kids are coming from before making a judgement on how to handle each situation. Mandi is a pleasure to work with.”

Michele Thompson, Autism, District Wide
Nominated by: Lisa Muirbrook
“Michele is one of the most knowledgeable people I have worked with in regards to meeting special education students’ needs. She is busy from sun up (or before) to past sun down on a daily basis, working to meet the needs of students, teachers, administrators and others. Michele takes special interest in helping educate all parties on the best way to help students. She truly is all about the child. Michele is what the PEAK award is all about!”

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
This initiative is designed to focus on "raising the bar" on providing exceptional customer service, both internally and externally. A key component of this initiative is the development of the PEAK Award. The PEAK (Positive Energy and Kindness) Award is presented monthly to someone in the Nebo School District who "really gets it" when it comes to providing exceptional customer service, which in turn results in positive impacts on everyone including students, parents, co-workers and members of the community.

Who Gets Nominated?
Faculty and staff members are nominated by anyone in the community through the Nebo School District website, www.nebo.edu/PEAK wherein a special Customer Service link is provided. The directions as to how to nominate an employee for the PEAK Awards are clearly spelled out on the site. All nominations must include information on how the individual has provided exceptional customer service, as well as how the employee's actions impacted the nominator's overall perception of Nebo School District Schools. The name and contact information of the nominator must be included.

Attributions
Lana Hiskey