Author: Karen Dux

Some of the comments made were:
“I would like to nominate Trina Pettit for employee of the month since she is one of the best transition coordinators I have ever worked with in my teaching career. As transition coordinator, Trina has 50+ students on her caseload that she meets with on a regular basis.  She arranges and transports students to college visits and potential job sites. She also identifies work experiences for students so they can receive work credits in the transition work-study program. She participates in all student’s IEP meetings. In addition to these responsibilities, she is the CHANCE Coordinator.”

 “How she manages both of these positions is unbelievable. She is a very organized employee that never misses a meeting of which there are many. She is detailed and dedicated to the best interests of her students and this results in positive relationships with them. She always has a smile on her face when working with students and co-workers.”

“Students appreciate Trina’s dedication (going the extra mile) to transition services. I had one student tell me that if it wasn’t for Mrs. Pettit bringing him to a welding business tour, he would never have considered this as a possible future employment option. Mrs. Pettit has such a positive impact on her students and others. Please consider her for employee of the month.”

“Mrs. Pettit works tirelessly to serve our most at-risk students, the staff that serves them and to lead the transition efforts of our students in special education.”

“Mrs. Pettit supervises the teachers at both Chance and ASP. She collaborates with them regularly to serve the needs of our students and help them understand special education processes/paperwork. She assists with the transportation of students, supervision of students, plan development for students, and communication with parents. She is even known to serve as a sub teacher or para when things are tight. She develops incredibly strong relationships with parents and students and doesn’t shy away from difficult yet important honest, necessary conversations. Mrs. Pettit also coordinates the transition services for students with disabilities (ages 14ish-21). She arranges college visits for them, communicates with community members to schedule work-based learning, provides transportation, assesses their transition needs and leads that part of the IEP, which is a very specialized area and takes that pressure off our IEP managers. She collaborates with special ed and general ed teachers and administrators primarily in grades 3-12.”  She is also called on to help problem-solve through cases with students who are not yet in special programs but may need some support before they get there. She also serves on the HS MTSS team and district MTSS team. She is a model for how to professionally yet relentlessly advocate for the needs of students, particularly those who are at-risk. She is well respected by colleagues throughout the district. She is an incredible asset to the district. Without her expertise, advocacy and professional voice we would be lost. There is literally no one who I can think of who is more deserving of this inaugural honor than her.”

“Trina is a student-centered educator. She works tirelessly to help her students and make sure that they are doing all that they can to help them graduate. Many students have good relationships with her, and in my opinion, she is an unsung hero for students who do not have many adults to look to at home. She is always caring to all of her students and listens to their needs and tries to help them in many ways. Please reward her for this.  She is very deserving of it. ”