Dozens of teachers, employees and volunteers were honored Nov. 12 at the annual Starstruck! Awards presented by the Poway Unified School District.
The Oscar-style event held at the Poway Center for the Performing Arts included a reception, student performances and photo opportunities in addition to the awards recognition. The awards honored teachers, employees and volunteers of the year for the 2023-24 school year.
Special recognition was given to the Poway Unified Foundation’s Partners of the Year. Recipients were personal computer and printer company HP, which was given the Business Partner of the Year Award; Clifford Harrison, who received a Student Impact Award; and Karen Herreros, who was given a Community Service Award.
Courtesy Poway Unified School DistrictStarstruck! attendees are, from left, Andy Surber, former District Level Volunteer of the Year Deb Surber, and Learning Support Services Executive Director Dave LeMaster. (Courtesy Poway Unified School District)
The Business Partner of the Year Award honors a business partner who has provided exemplary contributions through the donation of time, talent or treasure in direct support of Poway Unified School District Foundation’s mission, organizers said.
This year, the school district recognized its long-standing partnership with HP. For the past 45 years, Poway Unified students interested in engineering have been given opportunities to tour HP facilities, connect with HP employees, and learn about different career paths within engineering to pursue.
Recently, HP hosted the district’s Career Technical Education (CTE) Expo at its Rancho Bernardo corporate offices. The event featured students from 24 different CTE courses sharing the work they produced during the school year.
Harrison is the recipient of the Student Impact Award, which honors community organizations, agencies or individuals who have demonstrated excellence as a partner and co-educator, directly impacting students in the district.
Harrison serves as an adviser for the CTE Arts and Media Entertainment Pathway for Rancho Bernardo High School, which provides insight and guidance for curriculum development and student learning outcomes, organizers said.
“Clifford has a unique connection and commitment to the school as a former Rancho Bernardo High School student himself,” Poway Unified officials said. “His involvement extends beyond advisory roles to practical tasks such as advising on specific equipment purchases, maintaining equipment in the Performing Arts Center, and working directly with students to educate them on industry-specific skills.”
Courtesy Poway Unified School DistrictStarstruck! attendees are, from left, Andy Surber, former District Level Volunteer of the Year Deb Surber, and Learning Support Services Executive Director Dave LeMaster. (Courtesy Poway Unified School District)
Herreros received the Community Service Award, which recognizes an individual, business or community organization that has provided valuable resources in service of district students.
As community services chair of the Rotary Club of Poway-Scripps, Herreros supports the Youth in Transition program that provides assistance to students and their families experiencing homelessness or housing instability. Herreros has organized the collection of supplies for families, advocates for the Youth in Transition program, and has connected families with agencies to better assist the needs of the demographic.
Herreros also volunteers her time to help the district prepare for supply distribution events. During the holiday season, she collaborates with fellow Rotary Club members to sponsor families by fulfilling wish lists for students and parents.
“In every action, Karen removes barriers for our students,” Poway Unified officials said.
Other honorees were:
Abraxas: Tracy Hargrove, Melanie Sharoff, Fung Yuang “Wu” Chu
Adobe Bluffs: Holly LeSage, Melissa Lopez, Julie Peecha-Gonzalez
Adult Education: Judy Moreno
Bernardo Heights: Lamis Abousalem, Alannah Babauta, Chiaki Milton
Black Mountain: Jose Maria (George) Rosello, Danielle Brown, Angela Bader
Canyon View: Gloria Lew, Entire Teaching Staff, Karolynn Sparlin
CTAE: Courtney Craig, Clifford Harrison
Chaparral: Sarah Brewer, Entire Teaching Staff
Connect Academy: Ella Babin, Stephanie Shabsin
Creekside: Rana Balaa, Jacque Dyer, Minyque Brink
Deer Canyon: Rayleen Montesi, Susan Bureau Rodriguez, Heather Hall
Del Norte: Sue Reich, Lily Carlon, Evan Krecek
Del Sur: Brittany Abifaker, Nicole DiCarlo
Design39 Campus: Entire Teaching Staff, Susan Ross
Garden Road: Gabrielle Meadows, Tory Evans, Joy Balcombe
Highland Ranch: Cristian Cisneros, Kriscia Cabral, Rach Ashcraft
Los Peñasquitos: Issis Aranda, Nicolette Bailey
Meadowbrook: Sue Henson, Melissa Yu, Michelle Zeidler
Mesa Verde: Daniel Rosenberger, Elise Milling, Soumya Chennapragada
Midland: Kellie Ames, Shelby Mason, Yukie Zuill
Monterey Ridge: Annette Horton, Lindsey Wilson, Theresa Manalang
Morning Creek: Agustin “Steve” Esteban, Kelly Day, Christine Goldsmith
Mt. Carmel: Angela Voggenthaler, Christine Beadle, Nicole Goebel
Oak Valley: Belinda Pagaduan, Kelly Southwell, Camille Joy DeCamp
Painted Rock: Roberta Markey, Tracy Dimino
Park Village: Purvi Shah, Entire Teaching Staff, Nikki Blackman
Pomerado: Melissa Sampo, SarahWohlwend, Suzette Lam
Poway: Jaime Brown, David White
Poway to Palomar Middle College: Cosette Marolt, Janna Talbot
Preschool: Judith Mok Fam
Rancho Bernardo: Mayumi Athay, Ross Kallen, Kristin Bradvica
Rolling Hills: Kim Huynh, Lisa Mallory, Missy Simon
Shoal Creek: Arlynn Cook, Emily Brooks, Nancy Swartz
Stone Ranch: Patricia Kain, Jennifer Inzuzna, Andie Villegas
Sundance: Becky Cook, Nicole Lin, Jaclyn Congdon
Sunset Hills: Michelle Testa, Nicole Stowell
Tierra Bonita: Julie Burr, Christine Froebe, Julianna Bramwell
Turtleback: Sandra Fivaz, Sabrina Kastrup, Felicia Yerks
Twin Peaks: Saskia Walker, Jennifer Faulkner, Kym Sosnowski
Valley: Aide Trujano, Malini Asher
Westview: Leila Yekrangian, Robert Townsend, Scott Taylor
Westwood: Charlotte Eazer, Rachel Varga, Lizeth Burkholder
Willow Grove: Nicolette “Nika” Cokas, Jeneva Patterson, Melissa Stark
ESS (DO): Karine Ghougassian Gassian
Facilities, Maintenance & Operations (DO): Miguel Granados-Vazquez
Finance (DO): Jennifer Latham
Food & Nutrition (DO): Charlene Thompson
Learning Support (DO): Eva Peters
Payroll (DO): Annette Vaughan
Personnel Commission (DO): Danielle Strauss
Personnel Support Services (DO): Tiffany Sun
Publications (DO): Ryan Schear
Purchasing (DO): Gayle McCormick
Special Education (DO): Kristina Cho, Christine Mazloff
Superintendent (DO): Brittanie Arnett
Tech & Innovation (DO): Rich Garcia
Transportation (DO): Jose Abel Moreno Cervantes
Warehouse (DO): Sean McCurdy
Youth in Transition (DO): Karen Herreros
Administrators of the Year: Greg Mizel, Ken Wall, Margaret Godman
Business Partners of the Year: HP, Clifford Harrison, Karen Herreros