May 18, 2016 at 2:48 p.m.
Pelican's Miszewski receives Paraprofessional of the Year award
Pelican's Miszewski receives Paraprofessional of the Year award
By Kayla Thomason-
Renee Miszewski was stunned to receive the Wisconsin Council of Administrators of Special Services (WCASS) Paraprofessional of the Year award during a brief ceremony in the school gym
No one but a select few people knew Miszewski was to be presented with the award.
When Miszewski, who has been a special education paraprofessional with the School District of Rhinelander for 15 years, heard the announcer say the individual who won the award had shot photos at the Grandparents Luncheon she realized she was the recipient and was overcome with emotion. Happy tears fell as her family and co-workers congratulated her.
"I was so excited and overwhelmed and thrilled that the people that I work with would even consider doing this for me," she said.
Denise Check, speech therapist, and Martha Knudtson, principal, nominated Miszewski for the Paraprofessional of the Year award. They learned a month ago that Miszewski had won but kept the news a secret. Miszewski's family was in on the surprise, and were in attendance to see her receive her award.
"It wasn't hard to keep it a secret on our part," Knudtson said. "It probably was hard for Renee's family to keep silent. We didn't share with the staff to make it truly a surprise. You can tell by the way the audience reacted that everyone was surprised and happy for Renee."
Knudtson and Check acknowledged the effort and good cheer Miszewski puts forth on a daily basis.
"Renee is very deserving," Knudtson said. "She stands out as a consistently happy person. At school she is a problem solver and total team player. Children love to be with her. Renee is very flexible with the many expectations that are placed on special education paraprofessionals on a daily basis."
"In a million years I would have never, ever expected anything like this and I want to thank Ms. Check and Ms. Knudtson for thinking of me when they did this," Miszewski said.
Her excitement at receiving the recognition was plain to see as she grinned ear-to-ear.
"This is just a huge thing for me, I don't even know, it's like my Academy Award," she said.
She joked that she'd hang the award around her neck for the rest of the school year, but the added that she hasn't decided if she'll hang it at home or in her classroom.
She said she loves what she does and has never looked for special recognition.
"When I do the things I do I don't do them to get something out of it," she said. "I do it because I really do love doing it and the Pelican community couldn't be more welcoming to people."
"This speaks for all of the paras here," she added. "I don't know why I was the one that was lucky enough to receive the actual award but we work as a team and that's what makes this particular unit so good."
Karen Baker, director of Pupil Services for the Antigo School District and region 9 chair for WCASS, presented the award to Miszewski.
"It's just a special time for school districts to recognize and honor their distinguished employees," she said.
Kayla Breese may be reached at [email protected].
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