After working hard to improve her grades, freshman Elly Starkweather said she felt a great sense of accomplishment.

“It was a good feeling being recognized for the work I did,” Starkweather said.

The Student Recognition Ceremony gave awards to 40 students May 20, according to health teacher Allison Luskey, one of the organizers of the event.

“Parents, families, (and) some friends of those students came and really got to hear what the individual has done to stand out and to really shine,” Luskey said.

Starkweather said she was recognized for improving her academic approach.

“I started participating and turning in work on time,” Starkweather said.

At the ceremony, awardees’ families and friends gathered as teachers recognized students. Principal Scott Meyers spoke at the event, which aimed to recognize students who stand out for personal traits, such as kindness, leadership and respect.

“The purpose of it is to recognize students that really stand out and (…) to recognize that while grades are important and GPA is important, what probably is just as important is your character and who you are,” Luskey said. “This is an opportunity to recognize kids who maybe demonstrate, on a regular basis kindness, and leadership and resilience and respect, and they really stick out to us as staff.”

Luskey and special education teacher Amy Groom distributed nomination forms for teachers to recognize students for improvement, effort and other characteristics.

Luskey said it is important for students to be recognized.

“A lot of kids could have been recognized and these particular students just really stood out for staff and they deserve to be recognized because they make our jobs better,” Luskey said.

Luskey said the ceremony was meaningful and emotional for teachers, students and families.

“The teacher or staff person introduced the student and (said) why they were taking the time to recognize them,” Luskey said. “I would say for a lot of the staff, it’s one of the favorite events because it’s just really inspiring.”

Starkweather said parents of award recipients were proud.

“All parents are proud of anything their kids win,” Starkweather said.

Luskey said many staff describe the ceremony as a highlight of their year.

“It’s one of the favorite events because it’s just really inspiring,” Luskey said.