Left to Right: Donna Tyree, Maria Angelone, Janet Elliot, Lara Williams, Joe Fontana

Since 1995, the Foundation for the Future has recognized and rewarded teachers who demonstrate excellence in the classroom through the presentation of Foundation Teaching Awards. In 2003, an additional award was created to recognize and reward classified staff through the presentation
of Foundation Classified Staff Awards. The 2006 award recipients are a talented and deserving group:

Teaching Award Recipients:

Maria Angelone
In her six years in the English department
at M-A, Maria has proven to be a stand-out. She began one of the first English electives, Creative Writing, and inspires students to develop a voice all their own.

Janet Elliot
Janet has taught at M-A for 25 years. Janet began her M-A career in the Academy program and was instrumental in the program’s success. Called “the champion of the underdog,” Janet has opened the doors to college for challenged students.

Joe Fontana
As the leadership teacher and varsity baseball coach for the past seven years, Joe revolutionized student leadership--spearheading the hugely successful canned food drive and blood drives—and made Bettencourt baseball field a reality. Joe is a true All-Star!

Lara Williams
Lara has been at M-A for three years, working with M-A’s most academically challenged students, many of whom are just learning English, in her English classes. Lara prides herself in “finding strategies that help students feel successful and independent.”

2006 Classified Staff Award Recipient:

Donna Tyree
Donna spent over 20 years at M-A before retiring at the end of the 2006 school
year. In that time, she served in a variety of roles at M-A, most recently in the guidance department. According to a fellow co-worker, “Donna puts out more work than two people and makes the office laugh on a daily basis. She will be sorely missed and hard to replace, and it won’t be the same here without her wit and joy of life.”