Schools
OHS Staffer Receives Employee of the Year Award from Rotary Club
The Ossining Rotary Club honored Michele Marona of the OHS Guidance Department and three other community members as Employees of the Year
Michele Marona, a 20-year employee of the Ossining School District, received an Employee of the Year award from the Rotary Club Nov. 2.
The club, whose motto is “Service Above Self,” recognizes local employees at its Annual Scholarship Fundraiser. Mrs. Marona is one of four people in the Ossining community to receive the award this year, said George Weeks, chairman of the Rotary’s Employee of the Year Committee and club secretary.
Ossining High School Assistant Principal Lorraine Longing, who nominated Mrs. Marona, said she embodies the “Service Above Self” motto in her interactions with students, families and faculty members. Her demeanor is always welcoming and helpful, Ms. Longing added.
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“Her friendly attitude has added significantly to the overall positive atmosphere of the Guidance Department,” she wrote in her nomination letter.
Mrs. Marona, senior office assistant in the Guidance Department, said it was a great honor to receive an Employee of the Year award. But, she added, “It’s not easy to accept when you feel you’re just doing what you should be doing every day for the children and the families of the Ossining community. I just really treat everyone individually and with respect and I want to help them.”
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“I treat students as I would want my own children treated,” she said.
She started working at the school in 1995 as a teaching assistant and joined the Attendance Office soon afterward. She then moved to the Guidance Department, “where she has made her extraordinary mark ever since,” Ms. Longing wrote.
Mrs. Marona, a 1983 graduate of OHS, is a conscientious, dedicated and hard-working employee who “works tirelessly at creating an environment of respect and rapport for all students and adults in the building,” the letter said.
Ms. Longing said Mrs. Marona has been instrumental in taking initiative for the Guidance Department and students, and she makes the Senior Awards Night and Junior College Book Award ceremonies “extremely special celebrations.”
Marona is very helpful with the Rotary’s scholarship program, Mr. Weeks said. She notifies students, collects completed applications and sets up interviews. Each year, the club awards scholarships to five seniors.
(Photo is of Michele Marona with Howard Penn, president of the Rotary Club of Ossining.)
