The Illinois State Board of Elections announced the recipients of the “Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year Awards” Thursday Feb. 2, and four Oswego SD 308 staff members were recognized for their extraordinary contributions to education.

Superintendent John Sparlin said in a statement Feb. 3, “Each year we are so proud to have staff acknowledged as Those Who Excel. This statewide recognition program highlights those in the educational profession who go above and beyond, and inspire their peers, students and educational communities.”

The annual awards also celebrate paraprofessionals, security guards, nutrition professionals, nurses, librarians, bus drivers and coaches who succeed in making every student feel known and valued, and who are essential to students’ success.

There are seven award categories: classroom teachers, early career educators (teachers with 1-4 years of experience), administrators, student support personnel, educational service personnel, community volunteers and teams.

Recognition comes in three distinctions: Excellence is the highest honor, with meritorious service and special recognition following in order of achievement.

The awards received by Oswego District 308 are as follows:

Meritorious Service:

• Classroom Teacher - Barbara Richmond - 1st Grade Teacher, The Wheatlands Elementary School, Aurora
• Early Career Educator - Diana Calvillo - 2nd Grade Dual Language, Hunt Club Elementary School, Oswego
• Administrator - Samantha Sinovich - Principal, Southbury Elementary School, Oswego

Special Recognition:

• Team - Believe It Or Not, I Care (BIONIC) - Student Run Organization, Oswego High School

“Congratulations to this year’s winners, Barbara Richmond, Diana Calviollo and Samantha Sinovich, and in the team category our BIONIC team at OHS,” Sparlin said in the statement.

The BIONIC Team received special recognition, and was the only student-run program in Kendall County to be recognized.

The team is made up of 410 students and three adult sponsors, Wendy Monn, Colleen Predl and Rachel Zeifert.

Predl said BIONIC’s overall goal is to spread kindness and provide a supportive environment where students can feel a sense of belonging around peers who model positive and healthy behaviors.

The team pursues this goal through their TALK (Teens Activating the Language of Kindness) program which runs three times per year in the high school, and HIKE (Heroes Invested in Kindness Everyday) program which runs in district elementary schools.

Predl said of the 410 BIONIC team members, 171 have gone through training to become HIKE (Heroes Invested in Kindness Everyday) mentors, and 115 have been trained as TALK (Teens Activating the Language of Kindness) mentors.

TALK is an all-day immersive program which trains Oswego High School students in active listening, reporting, speaking, and leadership.

Predl said the TALK program gives students the opportunity talk honestly about bullying, diversity, empathy and teen experiences.

HIKE is a mentorship program in which high school students are trained to be positive leaders and then run a half-day program for 5th graders in the district.

Predl said the goal of HIKE is for 5th graders to see everyday heroes in their lives, and encourage them to stand up for classmates and be empathetic. She said they are hoping to run HIKE at every elementary school in the district next year.

Predl said one of the biggest projects BIONIC has taken on is the Giving Trees, where members of the community nominate families in need and the team works to provide Holiday Gifts for these families.

In 2022 BIONIC, with help from the community, raised over $10,000 in donations and gifts, and were able to provide holiday gifts for 11 families.

The BIONIC team works closely with the Kendall County Community Food Pantry, where many members volunteer, and is piloting a new after school program in which High School students will go to their former elementary schools after the high school day is over to volunteer in classrooms.

ISBE will celebrate the awards at a banquet April 29. Go to the ISBE website to see the full list of award winners.