KIM TYMKOWYCH NAMED EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR
Kim Tymkowych, principal at Winona Elementary School, was named the Thompson Education Foundation Educator of the Year on Wednesday during the foundation’s 16th annual Educator Appreciation Breakfast.
Tymkowych knew she had been nominated, but didn’t expect to win anything, she said, certainly not Educator of the Year. She thought that perhaps she would be named principal of the year, an honor that instead went to Mary Lain, assistant principal at Mountain View High School.
“Then as soon as they said the phrase ‘Every Kid, Every Day,’ I thought it might be me, because that’s our phrase,” she said. “Instead of having a long mission statement or vision statement that people can’t memorize, everything we do revolves around ‘Every Kid, Every Day.’”
Other winners include: TSD Staff Members of the Year, Raquell Castillo, a social worker at Mountain View, and Sarah Rosenberry, principal secretary at Ferguson High School and Thompson Career Campus; Rookie Teacher of the Year, Jessi Chollet, a math teacher at Mountain View; Elementary Teacher of the Year, Scott Scheese , a third-grade teacher at Big Thompson Elementary School; and Secondary Teacher of the Year, Lisa Harrison, learning center teacher at Thompson Valley High School.
Staff and students heaped praise on Tymkowych after her win.
One class of students presented her with a stack of homemade cards congratulating her,
“I could point to any kid in this school, and she could tell me the family, the history, what their needs are, she knows every kid, and every family,” said Jessica Gray, a social worker at Winona. “I have never worked with a principal that involved.”
“Kim does great things on a daily basis, and it’s nice to be recognized for meeting people where they’re at, and she meets kids where they’re at every day,” said Jordan Pendleton, the school’s secretary and one of two Winona employees who nominated Tymkowych.
“I don’t know how she does all the things she does,” added health office assistant Ashley Ingram. “She’s superhuman.”
Parents appreciate her work as well.
Anna Pollock-nelson, a parent at Winona, rode her bike to Winona Thursday afternoon and ended up visiting with staff, including Tymkowych, for a few minutes.
She had chosen to send her daughter to Winona rather than New Vision Charter School, which was closer to their home, in part because of the principal.
“We live right across the street from the charter school,” Pollock-nelson said as she prepared to ride home. “So right before our daughter was going to start kindergarten we toured New Vision and we toured Winona. And Kim gave us the tour. It was just really clear that she cared about the students, she cared about the families… it felt really warm. So we chose to go here.”