Two from District 205 honored with ISBE Those Who Excel Award

Submitted by Elmhurst Community School District 205.

Kara Caforio, a Focus 205 co-chair, and Stephen Fijor, a P.E. teacher at Jackson, were both honored by the Illinois State Board of Education on October 22 at the annual Those Who Excel banquet, held in Bloomington-Normal. Kara received an Award of Merit in the category of Community Volunteer and Stephen received an Award of Recognition in the Early Educator category. Kara was nominated by Superintendent Dr. Dave Moyer. Stephen was nominated by Jackson Principal Dr. Ryan Anderson.

Dr. Moyer noted that “Kara has been a true leader through her involvement in the PTA and has been integral in our Focus 205 process. She has been a terrific supporter of the District for a long time and is truly deserving of this recognition.”

For the last 18 months, Mrs. Caforio has served as co-chair of the District’s Focus205 Facilitating Team, spending countless hours planning and implementing a community engagement process with District administrators, consultants and other community volunteers. This process, which involves extensive community input, is designed to assist the District in developing a long-term master plan to modernize education and improve student outcomes in a way that aligns with our community values.

“Mrs. Caforio is always among the first to step up to help with any District function, such interview committees or focus groups that provide feedback on a wide range of instructional programming, from special education to the recent Middle School Task Force. Her education background and personal provide an invaluable perspective to inform the work of the District,” said Dr. Moyer.

She has a long history of supporting the District’s schools, most notably through her involvement in the Emerson Elementary and Churchville Middle School PTAs, and through her service as President of the District’s PTA Council in 2013-14.

According to Dr. Anderson, “For students who are fortunate to have Mr. Fijor as their physical education teacher, they are truly receiving a complete education in the various elements of PE. Students learn the vocabulary, concepts, mental skills, physical skills, game strategies, teamwork, sportsmanship, and physical fitness values. All of these help to create well-rounded, healthy children for school and for life.

“His lessons, learning targets, activities, and assessments are as ‘academic’ as any other class in school. He even includes writing activities in the course of the class or within homework assignments – that’s right PE homework to reinforce skills and make personal connections with life outside of school. He promotes physical activities in a language that children can understand, such as comparing it to being a superhero,” Mr. Anderson said.

“Mr. Fijor is a very high energy person who goes to great extents to promote physical fitness and a positive attitude in everyone he meets in the Jackson School community. When not enthusiastically conducting his P.E. classes, he is out and about Jackson School. He regularly recommends and donates books to the school library on the topics of fitness, health, and a positive outlook. Students often come to the library looking for health and sports materials because Mr. Fijor has inspired them to further their own knowledge.

“Within his teaching, he makes learning and effort personalized to each student. He helps them to understand the value of being physically active. Every student, including those with athletic skills and those with physical disabilities are effectively challenged and empowered to learn and grow.

“Beyond his classroom, he has been highly successful at strengthening our Jump Rope for Heart health education and fundraising campaign. In addition to raising thousands of dollars for the American Heart Association, he has successfully taught and communicated to students and families the value of living a heart-healthy lifestyle. Also, he skillfully organized a large jump roping event at York High School to provide the chance for students to jump rope in teams and to provide local health organizations to connect with Jackson School families,” he concluded.

The Board of Education honored both Kara and Stephen at its October 25 meeting, thanking them for their service and for representing District 205 in the Those Who Excel recognition program. A total of 250 honorees received recognition at the banquet on three levels – Recognition, Merit, and Excellence – and across multiple categories, including classroom teacher, school administrator, and student support personnel. Not all nominees are honored.

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Photo courtesy of Elmhurst Community School District 205