Though the school year is days away from ending, Jamison High School's award-winning days don't seem to have an end in sight. One of the school's programs and another of its long time teachers were announced as winners at the California Continuation Education Association annual conference held in Santa Clara earlier this month.

Susan Stone, a teacher at Jamison for the last 20 years, was selected in the fall as one of 10 finalists for the region for the California League of High Schools' Educator of the Year. She wasn't the title winner, but she was the only finalist selected from Kings County.

She also decided this fall to apply for a California Continuation Education Association Exemplary Program Award, using the screen printing class that she teaches. In the class, students learn everything they need to know to operate their own screen printing business. They also run a business out of the class, and profits earned from screen printing fund study trips and school activities.

"It validates that what they are doing is important," Stone said. "It actually can be one of those classes that gets them to school."

Stone said this title will help as the school applies to be named a "Model School" -- comparable to a traditional state distinguished school title -- next year.

Also at the recent California Continuation Education Association conference, Ryan Righetti was named the state Teacher of the Year -- a title that Stone held in 2001-2002. Righetti, a science teacher at Jamison, said the award came unexpectedly.

He added that patience and understanding are the keys to being an effective teacher.

Righetti, who has taught at Jamison for all 10 years of his teaching career, said he sees himself in the same place in 10 more years.

"I'm just so happy here," Righetti said.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2424.

(May 19, 2009)