Bains Elementary held a pep rally May 2 with all students to celebrate their success during state testing.
Little did the students and staff know, Principal Brittney Rosenbach also called the pep rally for a surprise announcement.
Guests from the Louisiana Department of Education, Joni Lacey and Dana Dauzat, were introduced to present Eric Mendel the 2024 Louisiana Outstanding School Support Employee of the Year award.
With the Outstanding School Support Employee award, the department recognizes and celebrates some of the state’s most exceptional teacher aides, paraprofessionals, school bus drivers, food service workers, clerical workers, custodial/maintenance workers or any other school support employee classification.
The program provides an opportunity to acknowledge those support staff employees who are playing an integral role in school and student success. The department had hundreds of nominations for this award, approximately 20 final applications, and 10 finalists.
Mendel, Bains Elementary paraprofessional, was chosen as the overall state winner.
The school administration describes Mendel is an approachable and caring paraprofessional who teaches a leadership class and Spanish class. He goes above and beyond in his teaching by providing resources to students, bringing animals for lessons, sharing pictures and stories from his personal travels, and making the curriculum come to life, a news release said.
Outside of the classroom, he takes every opportunity possible to instill respect and manners in all the students at Bains Elementary, the release said. In an effort to help more, Mendel earned his commercial driver's license so he could drive bus routes, drive field trips and assist with field day transportation.
Every morning, he drives a bus route before class and in the afternoons, he drives a bus route after his classes. He sets up for school events, removes any animals/critters from unwanted places as he is an animal lover, and helps grade levels with projects. He even dressed up as Sasquatch to bring the first-grade curriculum to life as students read "Big Foot Cinderella"!
Students love the challenge of learning a foreign language because Mendel makes the class interesting and engaging. He has also integrated teaching third grade students cursive during ancillary to lift the load off the homeroom teachers that are trying to get every minute out of their class time.
All of these things fall well outside of his job description and have required hours of planning outside of his classroom duties.
Beyond the classroom, he has also been a Boy Scout leader for many years. He uses these experiences to build relationships with students and share his adventures with students when it’s relevant.
The celebration was originally planned at BESE on April 10 but was cancelled due to the devastating tornado that struck the area.