Four Glades Region teachers win William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education

Posted 6/2/21

WEST PALM BEACH – Four Glades Region teachers were among the seven winners in the 2021 William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education...

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Four Glades Region teachers win William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education

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Two Glades Central High School teachers, Carla Little-Griffiths and Mari Orsengio, received William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education,
Two Glades Central High School teachers, Carla Little-Griffiths and Mari Orsengio, received William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education,
Gove Elementary School had two teachers -- Benjamin Ford and Jayna Smith -- honored with William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education.
Gove Elementary School had two teachers -- Benjamin Ford and Jayna Smith -- honored with William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education.

WEST PALM BEACH – Four Glades Region teachers were among the seven winners in the 2021 William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education:

• Jayna Smith of Gove Elementary School won in the Grow Up Great: Early Education Category.

• Benjamin Ford, of Gove Elementary School, won in the Special Programs Category.

• Carla Little-Griffiths of Glades Central High School, won in the Senior High Category.

• Mari Orsengio of Glades Central High School, won in the Student Advancement and Career Education category.

The virtual ceremony, held May 25, is available on youtube.com 


“Accomplishments come every single day in Special Education class whether it’s being able to use a spoon or a fork to eat that day, or being able to go to the restroom by themselves,” said Smith, who teaches Pre-K Special Needs at Gove Elementary. Smith, who has been in the school system for 29 years, followed in the footsteps of her mother, who was also a Dwyer award winner.

“I love my students because they are smiling all the time,” she said. “They are happy to be there, which makes me happy to be there.

“There’s a new challenge every single day, and I know if I put my mind to it, I can make a difference in each one of my children’s lives,” Smith added.

“I create these connections with my students. I know their mom. I know their dad,” said Ford, who teaches at Gove Elementary. “I went to Gove Elementary and I know what they are going through.”

“The idea is these kids have some special learning needs. The first thing I do is change that word ‘needs’ to ‘differences.’ I want my students to see they learn differently from other people.

“When I reflect on this year, I think about how the pandemic impacted me and my students. The district stood up and did what was needed to get us back in the classroom and get some sense of normalcy,” he said.

“I want to thank my first teacher, my mother, Mary Jane Ford,” he said. “I learned how to teach by watching my mother.”

“Nothing gives me more satisfaction than coming to school every day, looking into the eyes of these young kids,” said Little-Griffiths, who teaches 10th Grade Reading at Glades Central High School.

“My kids and I, we just automatically connect,” she continued. “I see the passion in them ... it’s not where they are today, it’s where they are going and who they are going to become.”

She thanked her family for their encouragement and support, her students for always believing in her, and her coworkers who have shared their best practices with her.

Little-Griffiths also credited the teachers who inspired her.

“One of the reasons for me becoming a teacher was to make a meaningful impact in my community,” said Orsengio, who teaches Agriculture at Glades Central High School.

“I am an Agriculture educator by choice, not by chance,” she continued. “Every day I have the opportunity to motivate and create an environment where my students can identify, set, grow and accomplish their goals.

“As an Agriculture educator, I help feed the world, I motive future leaders and I advocate for Florida,” she added.

The Economic Council William T. Dwyer Awards for Excellence in Education is a project of the Economic Council of Palm Beach County Foundation. The Economic Council of Palm Beach County Foundation is dedicated to celebrate, support and foster excellence in education and the teaching profession in Palm Beach County and to improve the quality of the civic, cultural, social welfare and business environment for citizens of Palm Beach County. The Dwyer Awards honors outstanding educators from public and private schools in Palm Beach County.

A dynamic civic leader, the late William T. Dwyer was Vice President of Pratt & Whitney’s Government Products Division. His relentless service to the community set him aside from the rest. As a visionary organizer, he was the founding president of the Education Foundation of Palm Beach County, Inc. His zeal to promote excellence in education was put into action by his service on countless boards and committees. These included the Economic Council’s K-12 Education Task Force, Florida Atlantic University’s Advisory Board for the College of Engineering, Florida State University’s Advisory Committee on Business Education, the Florida Chamber of Commerce’s Education Committee, the South Florida Coordinating Council’s Education Committee, the Citizen’s Action Coalition on Education, the Board of Directors of the Palm Beach Community College Foundation, and the Quality Incentives Council. The Economic Council and the Education Foundation are proud to sponsor this awards program to honor dedicated public and private school teachers and their quest to improve education throughout the State of Florida.

The purpose of the Dwyer Awards program is to honor outstanding educators from public and private schools in Palm Beach County, to increase awareness of the exemplary educators teaching in our community, and to encourage all residents to promote high standards of excellence in education.

Awards are given in seven categories: Grow Up Great: Early Learning Education, Elementary Education, Middle School Education, Senior High Education, Student Advancement & Career Education, Special Programs, and STEM Education.

Applicants are judged on their classroom accomplishments, personal education philosophy, leadership and outside of the classroom school-related or community-based activities.

From a pool of 28 finalists, seven teachers are selected for the Dwyer Award in each of the seven categories. Each award recipient receives $3,500 and a crystal flame award.

Judges including nearly 100 business leaders from Palm Beach County evaluate each application in a multi-round judging process and are tasked with the difficult mission to narrow down the applications to only 28 finalists, to ultimately seven winners – one in each category.

Stephen Goodman of Pahokee Middle-Senior High was also among the finalists.

Dwyer, education, teachers, award

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