IOWA STATE EDUCATION ASSOCIATION
For release: March 31, 2008
Contact: Lana Oppenheim Schlapkohl, 515-471-8026 or LOppenheim@isea.org

Cedar Falls elementary school paraeducator to receive statewide honor

Hansen Elementary School paraeducator Sheryl Traetow is this year's winner of the Iowa State Education Association's Education Support Professional award. She will be honored on Friday morning, April 4, before a group of nearly 500 educators attending the ISEA Delegate Assembly at the Hilton Coliseum in Ames.

"We have many outstanding professionals in the field, and Sheryl is a shining example of someone who is deeply committed to her students," said ISEA President Linda Nelson. "Sheryl is one of those unique and gifted professionals who is able to determine a child's strengths and weaknesses, determine the level of support they need, and work with them to be successful -- all while earning their love and respect."
Paraeducators work alongside licensed or certificated educators to support and assist in providing instructional and additional aid to children, youth, and their families and are a critical component in raising student achievement.  As a child-specific paraeducator, Sheryl works one-on-one with an individual student, attending to his or her special needs and ensuring the best educational opportunity possible.  She also works closely with her students' parents and she's created a Web page with links to teaching and learning resources they can use at home.
"On top of her great work for the Association as co-president of her local education association, Sheryl prepared thousands of books for the reading rooms at Hansen by cataloging them into the database, labeling, shelving, and inventorying them," Nelson said. "Sheryl has clearly demonstrated her love and commitment to her students and to the profession and has, time and again, gone above the call of duty in her profession."
The Education Support Professional Award was established to recognize the many contributions school support staff members make to teachers, students, and the education profession.

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The ISEA is a professional organization made up of nearly 33,000 educators who are dedicated to supporting and protecting a quality public education for all Iowa students.  Great Education. It's an Iowa Basic!