Board honors staff award winners and retirees; recognizes 333 cumulative years of service

The Verona Area School District on April 21 recognized multiple staff members for statewide awards and honored retiring employees who together accounted for 333 years of service to the district.

Superintendent Tremaine Clarity presented awards to staff including Lumei Huang (recognized with a teacher fellowship for Mandarin instruction), Brian Cox (winner of the Herb Kohl principal leadership award and named Wisconsin High School Principal of the Year), recipients of the Wisconsin Association of Bilingual Education educator awards (Daisy, Andrea and Diana Castellanos), and Phil Smith (Wisconsin Technology Education Association award). Administrators and colleagues praised recipients for classroom leadership, multilingual programming and career-technical education pathways.

The board screened a retirement montage and publicly recognized retirees in the meeting room. Clarity described retirement as a celebratory moment and noted the district's gratitude for mentorship and long-term service. Board members spoke of the impact retirees had on students and colleagues and invited attendees to recognize those present.

No formal board action was required for the recognitions. Board members and district leaders thanked staff for their service and said the district will continue to celebrate retirees at future events.