Ashoka
Park Forest Elementary School
As a caring community of learners connecting learning to the world outside, Park Forest Elementary’s mission is to have all students live as good people and citizens, having respect for themselves, others, and the environment. All children and adults who walk through their doors are welcomed as learners who strive to develop a commitment to lifelong learning. At Park Forest, they seek to honor all voices by embedding democratic practices and encouraging global awareness in the daily life of the school. PFE’s commitment to the school-wide community, service learning, inquiry and inclusive practices are at the heart of how they meaningfully engage all learners. These opportunities and experiences help nurture and empower their community as they grow in empathy and agency.
Donnan Marie Stoicovy
Throughout her life, Donnan has been involved in activities that were committed to making positives change. Whether it was her early participation in organizations such as church youth groups, girl scouts, and high school service clubs, Donnan was always finding a way to make the world a little better for someone else. She would lead and participate in cleanups after floods, tornadoes, and other tragedies where acts of kindness and empathy would make a difference. When Donnan became a teacher, she wanted to make a difference in her classroom by engaging her students in activities that would not only help them to “walk a mile in someone else’s shoes” but also to figure out how to make their world a better place. Donnan and her students did such things as visiting the local nursing home, planting a tree nursery or developing a nature trail for the school. Each of these capitalized on the skills and talents that her students had to offer. Their engagement in those activities helped them to realize that they could change things and that they were important. Personally, Donnan stayed involved in activities such as helping to support a food cooperative in a previous community, being on the Girl Scout Board, the ClearWater Board, participating in Leadership Centre County, and being on the Centre County Family Outreach Program Committee. Her most recent outreach has been my participation with the Penn State - Altoona & University Park collaborative efforts through the Humanitarian Engineering and Social Entrepreneur (HESE) Program in Kigali, Rwanda. Last year, they built a greenhouse at PFE and two greenhouses at the Star School to begin a collaborative partnership. This year, she returned to engage in helping them to build another greenhouse, working with students to build their capacity for leadership and working with teachers to strengthen our partnership. Donnan has also been collaborating with educators all over the world to encourage meaningful student voice. As the lead learner of her school, Donnan continually models, engages and encourages learning at all levels. Being the leader carries both responsibility and joy in the process of learning.