The Tucson Kino Rotary Club honored seven local high school students with its Character Award for serving as role models in their schools and in society by performing acts of service in their communities.
The awardees, who were recognized April 8, were nominated by school administrators, counselors, teachers and other students.
This spring, the Character Award recipients are:
Stephanie Celaya, PPEP TEC High School
Jaquelyn Duarte, Desert View High School
Ricardo Echanove, Sunnyside High School
Kimberly Hernandez Guerrero, Alta Vista High School
Carlos Laphond Moreno, Pueblo Magnet High School
Victor Jesus Paraza, Star Academic High School
Stanislaus Venego, Baboquivari High School
The students were recognized at a breakfast attended by family and school representatives. Each honoree received a certificate, a Rotary commemorative coin and a $50 gift card.
In addition, Tucson Kino Rotary will donate $25 to a charity of each student’s choice.
Rattlesnake Ridge principal
The Marana Unified School District announced that its board hired Matt Uden as the new principal of Rattlesnake Ridge Elementary School, effective July 1.
Uden, currently the associate principal for Rattlesnake Ridge, will replace Benjamin Smith in the coming school year.
“Mr. Uden has served Rattlesnake Ridge with dedication and passion for six years,” Superintendent Dan Streeter said. “We are confident that he will build on the success of the current administration while advancing the Rattlesnake Ridge Elementary as a model of excellence in the district and the state.”
Uden’s experience also includes serving as associate principal for Coyote Trail Elementary and as a special education facilitator at the high school level. He received his master’s of educational leadership from the University of Arizona.
Teacher award
The Ohio State University Alumni Club of Southern Arizona held its Teacher of the Year luncheon last month to honor a Vail School District teacher.
Jennifer Roberts, a social studies teacher at Empire High School, was awarded the 2022 Scarlett and Gray Excellence in Education Award. She received $750 and a plaque.
Roberts was nominated by Empire High Principal Matt Donaldson, who said she offers her students authentic learning opportunities.
“One example of this is our Mock Trial class that Jennifer started at Empire,” Donaldson said. “In this class, students work to prepare for mock trials, learning the legal system and working with an attorney coach to apply their learning in the courtroom.”
Roberts said that she likes to focus her teaching on how current events tie back into the history that students are learning about.
