Congratulations to Welby Elementary School kindergarten teacher, Janie Lauritzen.

This incredible educator has been teaching kindergarten students at Welby for 19 years. She is devoted to making a difference in the lives of all children in her classroom, including those with special needs. Every day Mrs. Lauritzen goes about laying a solid foundation for her students to succeed as they move on to the next level in their young lives. Janie’s husband says the most important aspect of all is that she simply loves the children!

Because of her dedication to students and education, Janie Lauritzen was recently recognized by KSL NewsRadio, Governor Gary Herbert and business leaders at the 2019 Teacher Feature Spotlight banquet.

\Keep up the great work Mrs. Lauritzen! We are proud of your accomplishments in Jordan School District.

AJ Walkowski has a long resume reflecting a career dedicated to helping others. Now the Utah School Nursing Association (USNA) is recognizing his many contributions and caring service to others by honoring Mr. Walkowski with the “Mary Ito Award.” This award is given in Mary Ito’s honor, to a school nurse who has made unique contributions to school nursing by carrying on the inspirational spirit of Mary: to “Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much.”

AJ Walkowski has been an essential part of the nursing team at Jordan School District for 16 years.

AJ started his medical career as a young medic in the Army. After this service, he returned to Utah and continued his work as a firefighter and paramedic for the Salt Lake County Fire Department. AJ somehow found the time to earn his nursing degree and after retiring from the fire department, AJ continued full time employment as a nurse. He has been a nurse for over 29 years, 16 of which he has been serving the students of Jordan School District.

AJ currently serves as the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) Director, for the state of Utah.  AJ has loved the opportunity to collaborate with nurses from all over the country to promote the health and wellness of students in our great nation.

JSD nurses say AJ is a joy to work with. They say he has served our country, he has served our community, he has served our JSD students, and he continually finds ways to serve each one of us.

Congratulations to this truly amazing JSD school nurse!

Today is National School Nurse Day. It’s a day to recognize and say thanks to our hard working school nurses.

Our nurses are responsible for the health and wellbeing of thousands of students throughout Jordan School District. They serve our schools by teaching staff about important health care matters, doing vision screenings, Individual Health Care Plans, treating our students with allergies, diabetes, asthma and many other conditions. They participate in 504 meetings, IEP meetings, State School Nursing meetings, and so much more. Our school nurses work hard, and usually do it with smiles on their faces!

Don’t forget to thank your school nurse this week!

Join us in congratulating Riverton High School History teacher Laura Taylor and Valley High School Science teacher, Randall White – both are being recognized by the Utah Education Association as top teachers in the State of Utah.

Ms. Taylor and Mr. White are among 10 educators across the State selected as recipients of the UEA/doTerra “Excellence in Teaching” awards. UEA President Heidi Matthews says, “They are shining examples of the great work happening in our public schools each day.”

Laura Taylor was nominated in part because her classroom is a visual history book. It is said she engages her students in learning, analyzing, writing about and interpreting history. Ms. Taylor also teaches the school’s Peer Leadership Training (PLT) class.

Randall White is described as a “geek that likes to share his geekiness in ways that students understand.” Colleagues say anyone who sees Mr. White teach can tell he thinks its really cool to do a lab involving Oreos to teach the role chemistry plays combining cookies and milk. He has a curriculum that makes students willing to listen and to actively participate.