Leslie Summerson, Victor Primary School

Our Golden Apple Award winner likes where she teaches so much she moved her family there. Leslie Summerson teaches a multi-age, second and third grade class. Victor Primary Principal Danny Dehm says that gives Leslie time to get to know her students, socially, emotionally and academically.

"She is able to just pull out all the stops and figure out what the best educational environment is for every single child in her classroom."

Abby Gisondi says her son Bryce has adjusted so well this year to 4th grade and a new school that she wanted to thank Mrs. Summerson for making sure Bryce was prepared. "I would call her warm, supportive, nurturing. I think that's she's overall wonderful."

Why does Bryce think Mrs. Summerson should get a Golden apple Award? "Because she's a great teacher and I think she deserves it."

Leslie Summerson has been a teacher for 15 years, the last 5 in Victor. How much does she like it? "The parents here in Victor are wonderful. They're phenomenal. I'm a parent here in Victor, we moved to Victor because we wanted our children to be educated in this district."

Leslie says coming to work every day at Victor Primary is a pleasure. "I love what I do. I love my job. And I don't consider it a job. I do this because I do it for the kids and I enjoy it, not because it's a job."

Leslie Summerson is a News 8 Golden Apple Award winner. You can read the nominating letter we got from the Gisondi's below.

Dear News 8,

I want to nominate my son's teacher of the past two years, Leslie Summerson, for the Golden Apple Award. Mrs. Summerson is a Multi-Age teacher in the Victor Primary School, teaching 2nd and 3rd graders. The last part of his school year went by so fast that I didn't get a chance to nominate her while he was still in her class.

My son has always been on the shy side and with the help of Mrs. Summerson we have seen our son grow into a confident young man. Mrs. Summerson has been wonderful in helping these kids build their confidence as well as their problem solving skills. We have loved the Multi-Age program because when these kids come into the class as a younger friend they are helped by the older friends who were in their shoes just the year before. The helping of one another and the making of friends in this way really fosters a sense of responsibility to their classroom community.

Mrs. Summerson has had a great impact on my son's progress. She takes the time to really get to know the kids and see what their needs are. She goes above and beyond the expectations of a teacher. I have many examples of this but think this sums up her going above and beyond.

My son was diagnosed with a latex allergy last year and with any new allergy you feel panic and concern of the unknown, especially when you (as a parent) aren't there with him. She shared our concerns and would speak with me about any item she had a question with which alleviated our anxiety knowing she's looking out for him. One of the last projects they did in class were paper-mch globes. I didn't even think about how they were making them until the night before when I realized that they were using balloons that they would blow up as the mold for the globe. Balloons, being latex, caused me great concern because it only takes the particles in the air to send my son into a reaction. When I went in the next morning to talk to her about it and let her know my thoughts for other options for him, she showed me the mask and gloves she had bought the night before. She had gone from store to store to find latex free balloons without any success so she brought in a soccer ball she thought he could use instead of a balloon. She had the balloons for the rest of the class blown up and WASHED ahead of time so there was no residue of latex in the air. My son was able to work with his friends in the classroom because of her being so conscientious.

This is the type of teacher every parent wants, one who looks after every aspect of their child's needs. Mrs. Summerson has really made an impact on my son as well as our family. We can't thank her enough for a WONDERFUL two years. We will miss her but are grateful we had the opportunity to have her as our son's teacher. When asked why he thought Mrs. Summerson should be nominated for this award, my son simply replied "because she is a great teacher, and she deserves it". We couldn't agree more!

Sincerely,

Michael, Abby and Bryce Gisondi