Two faculty members of the Jim Thorpe Area School District received The Lauretta Woodson Recognition Award at the latest school board meeting. The awards were presented on behalf of the Carbon County Chapter of the Pennsylvania Association of School Retirees (PASR), by Jill DeLong, Educational Support Chairperson, and Gloria Bowman.

"One of the primary goals of PASR is the support of public education. The Lauretta Woodson Recognition Awards is one of the ways the association brings recognition to a person who has exhibited outstanding work in the field of education. One teacher and one support professional are selected each year from a school district in Carbon County. This year PASR is honoring the Jim Thorpe Area School District," stated DeLong."It is especially important to recognize a staff that consistently does an outstanding job," she added.This year's recipients were Denise Budd, JTASD Food Service Director, and Christopher Holub, JTASD High School History teacher."Denise has managed the food service in the district for nine years and has expanded both food options and programs on nutrition for all district students. She has provided the school district with a superior cafeteria service," stated Bowman.She added, "Christopher is in his ninth year of teaching at Jim Thorpe High School and teaches U.S. History II and a course in the Civil War. He has created a Civil War re-enactment for the entire district and community in order to provide enrichment and enjoyment in history."Budd said, "I just want to thank everybody in Jim Thorpe for making me feel such apart of this unique district, and it is very unique."She also wanted to thank her cafeteria staff for going above and beyond. She also wanted to thank her nutrition family for always being there for her for the past 29 years of working with the company.Holub stated, "I would just like to say this is great place to teach history. It's always been a joy to be here.""We have a lot of fun with the history. I'm hoping to come up with more things as time goes on. Thanks for having me," he added.DeLong discussed who Lauretta Woodson is and the award given in her name, "Dr. Lauretta Woodson was born and raised in Chester, Pennsylvania, and attended West Chester State Teacher's College where she earned a degree in Secondary Education in English. She received her master's degree from Columbia University and doctorate from Temple University."She added, "She taught English at Eddystone School District and then became an instructor at Temple. She taught at Temple for more than 25 years. Dr. Woodson rose through the ranks of PASR and assumed many local and state positions in the organization. Upon her death, she bequeathed a sum of money to be used in support of public education."Bowman thanked the school board members and the Superintendent for allowing them to present the awards. She also congratulated Budd and Holub for an outstanding job.In recognition, Budd and Holub received a citation, a medallion, and a lapel pin.