The Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Award recognizes operational and non-instructional nonschool-based employees who serve in a curriculum support or student support capacity and who have made unique and exceptional contributions to FCPS. Recipients demonstrate commitment and foster cooperative relationships with colleagues and in the community. Any FCPS employee or community member may nominate an operational employee that is a Schedule B or non-instructional school-based employee that has held their position for at least one full year for this award.

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee 

Kenneth T. Wilson

Safety Specialist
Gatehouse Administration Center, Facilities

Ken, a former technical theatre professional, joined FCPS to develop a theatre safety program, fire safety, and tornado preparedness. Ken's satisfaction comes when he helps students design safe special effects such as fire or rain or assists an administrator with tornado shelter or fire evacuation planning. There is always a look of relief from the group when Ken works on a project. Ken could have retired 15 years ago, but he didn't want to give up the joy of working with school staff and students and many other support colleagues. "My current collaborations with Design and Construction will not be built for years, but those details will be appreciated in the future."

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Finalist

Sania Ahmad

Student Information Analyst
Wilton Woods Center, Information Technology

As a member of the newly formed Analytics Team in the Department of Information Technology (DIT), Sania works to create data visualization products to help leaders across the division have easy access to data and make strategic decisions. From being a 2011 South County High School graduate to working in a school in 2018 to her current position in DIT, Sania has a deep and long-standing connection to FCPS. She is passionate about ensuring cutting-edge technology is used for data-driven decision-making to ensure the best for students and staff. Outside of data, she strives to uphold the caring culture of FCPS, forging strong relationships with her colleagues within IT and stakeholders across the division.

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Finalist

Bethany A. Demers

Educational Specialist, Mental Wellness
Willow Oaks Administrative Center, Special Services

Bethany strives to spread awareness and reduce stigma related to mental health. Through collaboration with staff, families, and students across the division, she has supported the implementation of multiple initiatives that improve student wellness, such as suicide prevention programming, teletherapy services for high school students, and Handle With Care. Bethany believes that if we support students in building relationships, this will serve as a protective factor that fosters mentally healthy students who are engaged and successful. It's okay not to be okay, but when our students have a relationship with at least one trusted adult, they can talk to someone who can support them in accessing help.

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Finalist

Kendra Dyer

Manager, ESOL Program Assessment
Dunn Loring Center, Instructional Services

Kendra takes pride in improving services for students, families, and schools. She has a heart for students and families. Through her leadership at the Student Registration Welcome Centers, she welcomes new FCPS families from every part of the world and connects them with the resources they need to make their experience a positive one. Kendra values each family's assets to FCPS and provides students a safe space to share their background knowledge and experience to set them up for success in school. To do this, Kendra collaboratively developed the English Learner Program History (ELPH) application to provide schools with timely, accurate, and reliable testing data that informs instruction for English learners from the first day in school.

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Finalist

Claudia Haggerty

Financial Analyst II
Gatehouse Administration Center, Financial Services 

As a member of the Financial Support Team, Claudia trains and supports school finance officers across Fairfax County Public Schools. Claudia is very professional and knowledgeable. Her attention to detail and ability to break down processes and procedures make learning and assimilation easier. Claudia has many strengths and is always looking for ways to enhance training, document instructions, and improve processes. Within her team, Claudia is known as the "Document Queen." She is always happy to assist her teammates and customers with documentation so that it is easy to understand. In the last year, Claudia led the rather large project to rewrite the FCPS School Finance Handbook, an essential resource for all finance officers.

2023 Outstanding Nonschool-Based Professional Employee Finalist

Jim Jenkins

Senior Functional Applications Specialist
Lorton Center, Transportation

If you ask Jim what he does, he will undoubtedly answer, "I help Transportation Services keep students safe from boarding the school bus in the morning until they arrive home again." Jim is the point of contact for the electronic systems on school buses that provide communications, video monitoring, and real-time tracking. These include the GPS tracking system, the onboard camera DVR systems, the two-way radio system, and, soon to be, bus stop arm camera system. In total, Jim supports over 7,000 electronic devices installed in over 1,600 buses traveling around the county, "Things break, we know that, but our goal is to be vigilant, identify the issues, and have everything working by the end of the day."