Celebrating the volunteers making a difference across MPS

Happy National Volunteer Appreciation Week! We're celebrating the incredible volunteers who bring the spirit of service to life across MPS every single day. Volunteers are essential to our schools, and we appreciate the family and community members who support students every day in classrooms, at events, on field trips and in extracurricular activities.

This year we've seen:

• 994 volunteers (and counting!)
• Support across 58 schools, early childhood and Community Education programs
• 650+ new faces

Join us in celebrating volunteers who demonstrate outstanding commitment to our students, families and school communities. Liaisons across the district were invited to highlight their most exceptional volunteers, and we extend a special thank you to those recognized for their incredible impact at MPS!

 

Katy de la Torre

Armatage Elementary Every Meal bags fulfillment 

"Katy is a ray of sunshine every time she comes into the Armatage office. She is efficient and thorough in her tasks and someone we trust completely. She's proactively problem-solved a few issues for us, leaving our school better than when she arrived. Katy delivers the food bags discreetly, ensuring that the students get the dignity that they deserve. We're so lucky we got to meet Katy and thoroughly enjoy every minute she's at Armatage."

 - Metra Kootsikas

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Sheila Jacobson

Washburn High School Miller Mart lead

"Sheila is always going above and beyond and doing it with a smile!" And she's been doing it for years.

- Mary Scavotto

 

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Stuart Klipper

Armatage Elementary reading partner for over 20 years!

"Stuart has travelled the world and he brings artifacts related to our current lessons each week to share with the whole class.  He then reads with small groups each and every week."

- Christian Houdek

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Sage Lesiak

Student Placement Services bilingual support since 2024

"Sage, a first-year student at the University of Minnesota, has become an indispensable part of our Placement Center team. For the past two years, they have worked with our team during the famously intense “Fall Rush” with dedication and tenacity, and since this past August, their commitment has only deepened. Sage shows up, nearly every Friday without fail, and even chose to spend almost their entire spring break volunteering with us, just because they like to help.

What sets Sage apart is not just their reliability, but their wholehearted approach to service. Many volunteers offer support within the limits of what they already know, but Sage goes far beyond that, continuously seeking to learn every detail of our processes so they can confidently assist families and answer questions without needing to rely on staff. Their initiative is matched only by their warmth.

When Sage picks up the phone with their signature greeting, “Student Placement, this is Sage, how may I help?”, they mean it. They are here to help, to put callers at ease, and to bring extra kindness and heart to the experience of our families. Their presence makes our work lighter, our days brighter, and our community stronger."

- Martha Swanson

 

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Zoe Martinez

Longfellow High community partners leader for 10 years!

"Zoe is amazing. She coordinates all events for volunteers at Longfellow: awards celebration, staff appreciation, holiday celebration, fundraiser, coordinating volunteers for knitting and other, mentors for undocumented students, diapers and clothing donations, graduation, backpack school supply drive."

- Geneva Dorsey

 

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Maggie Skrypek

Washburn High School Parent Council Chair

"Maggie saw a need and filled it. We did not have a parent council chair and she stepped up, not begrudgingly, but willingly, and in a way that has made parent council thrive! She surveyed families to see what they wanted, she is leading the charge with groceries and rides for students in need and has initiated a new 9th grade college info night. Though Maggie has a full-time job and three kids of her own, somehow, she makes time to care about ALL of the students at Washburn."

- Mary Scavotto