posted: December 1, 2022
November’s Outstanding Employees
This month’s honorees include a professional development specialist, registrar, administrative assistant, and workroom specialist.
If you are employed by Albuquerque Public Schools, you know that we have some very dedicated professionals on our team. For the fifth year, the district recognizes at least a few of these outstanding employees through the Employee Recognition Program.
All staff members employed for at least six months can be nominated, although we ask that you not nominate yourself.
Nominate an APS employee!
November’s Honorees
- Amelia Candelaria – Strategic Professional Development Specialist, Edward Gonzales ES
- Elayne Florek – Registrar, Jefferson Middle School
- Maggie Price – Administrative Assistant, Curriculum and Instruction/Sandia Mountain Natural History Center
- Melanie Rodriquez – Workroom Specialist/R-Team, Painted Sky ES
The honorees are being featured on the APS electronic billboards around town and will have an opportunity to visit with Superintendent Elder or his representative. They also will be recognized by the APS Board of Education and receive a lasting memento.
Learn More About November’s Nominees
Amelia Candelaria – Strategic Professional Development Specialist, Edward Gonzales ES
Amelia Candelaria goes above and beyond for the staff and students of Edward Gonzales Elementary School. She strongly believes that every student deserves the best and every opportunity to learn. She helps facilitate that by providing consistent coaching and collaboration for the staff at Edward Gonzales. The staff relies on her for just about everything from rolling out new curriculum to SEL strategies to AVID coaching. She is an essential member of the leadership team and executes a shared vision and collaborative leadership approach with our entire community.
“Amelia Candelaria represents the best of us in education. She is continuously growing and honing her craft,” said Lisa Ludvik, principal at Edward Gonzales. “Last year, as I took on the leadership role at Edward Gonzales, Amelia was instrumental in helping me understand the history and culture of Edward Gonzales as well as implementing my vision for the future. She embraces new ideas and is always willing to learn. When I challenged her to provide a
social-emotional component in her professional development sessions with the staff, she immediately incorporated SEL into her curriculum, and the staff responded. She is available to the staff day and night for any need, no matter how small.”
Elayne Florek – Registrar, Jefferson Middle School
Elayne is incredibly good at her job. She’s thoughtful, organized, and extremely knowledgeable. She streamlines the registration process for parents and students. Community building at Jefferson Middle starts with Elayne during enrollment.
I’ve never encountered a problem, from policies to tech support, that Elayne did not have a solution for,” said Courtney Fish, an APS elementary school teacher whose children have attended Jefferson. “If every school had an Elayne, enrollment would be up districtwide.”
Fish added: “I have four children who have at times switched schools, going to and from district charter schools, and have been through the enrollment process at seven different schools. It has never been as easy or as organized as the process with Jefferson. ”
Maggie Price – Administrative Assistant, Curriculum and Instruction/Sandia Mountain Natural History Center
The Sandia Mountain Natural History Center is a partnership between the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science and Albuquerque Public Schools. It can be challenging to learn all the policies and procedures working in one large bureaucracy. Working in two doubles the challenges. Maggie has not only learned both systems but has found ways to get them both working together.
The SMNHC manages several grants that help get students into the outdoors to learn about ecosystems. Helping with these grants wouldn’t usually be a part of Maggie’s job, but she selflessly stepped in due to staff shortages and has been a massive help in ensuring that these grants are successfully executed. As a result, students get the outdoor learning experiences they deserve, said Paul Mauermann, who works closely with the curriculum and instruction for the history center. “This work simply would not get done without her help.”
Melanie Rodriquez – Workroom Specialist/R-Team, Painted Sky ES
Melanie Rodriguez never misses work. She is such a hard worker, and she wears many hats. If she’s not whipping out numerous jobs in the workroom, she’s subbing, filling in for various duties, helping out in the front office, running out to every R-Team call, and is still always willing to help teachers, principals, counselors, and students. She is ALWAYS busy, and she does it all with a smile on her face.
“Our staff and students love and appreciate her very much!” said Monica Sena, the library assistant at Painted Sky. “We try to convince her to take a day off here and there, but instead, she is here every single day! Thank you, Melanie, for all you do! Your Painted Sky Coyotes love you!”
How to nominate an employee
You can nominate an employee by filling out an online application. The nomination must be completed by someone other than the nominee (ie, no self-nominations are eligible for consideration).
Award recipients will be selected monthly by a Peer Praise Task Force.
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