RIDGEFIELD — The Ridgefield School District recognized the March 2022 Employee and Students of the Month during a regular Board of Directors meeting.
Susan Karnes has been a huge asset to the Ridgefield School District and the special education department for more than 10 years. According to her award, she brings a long list of skills and is always willing to lend a hand. Her flexibility allows her to support teachers and maximize the productivity of the time spent with her students. Karnes is warm and welcoming; she exudes a calm and optimistic spirit and has a gift for using positive reinforcement to hold students to high learning expectations.
Students of the Month include Carson Giles, a pre-kindergarten student at the Early Learning Center; Benjamin TerHorst, a fourth grader at South Ridge Elementary School; Hayden Barnette, a fourth grader at Union Ridge Elementary School; Ginger Gorycki, a sixth grader at Wisdom Ridge Academy; Parker Bellah, a sixth grader at Sunset Ridge Intermediate School; and Nathan Kim, an eighth grader at View Ridge Middle School.
Ridgefield High School honoree Alberto Vasquez-Ramirez has an exceptional story of resilience. Alberto came to the United States in February 2020, enrolling at Ridgefield High School at age 18. After one month, schools were shut down and Alberto was placed into remote learning. As teachers were navigating how to successfully implement remote teaching, Alberto was navigating a new country, a new language, a new educational system, a pandemic and virtual learning. He remained in school through these turbulent times, passing all of his classes.
He will soon graduate from Ridgefield High School carrying a 3.4 grade-point average.
