Perry Public Schools District Teacher of the Year Candidates
Award Reception:
April 30, 2025
4:00pm
Perry Board of Education Meeting Room (901 Elm St.)
Perry Public Schools is pleased to introduce the 2024-2025 District Teacher of the Year finalists. Each of the four school sites has named their building level Teacher of the Year. These four teachers are now in the running for the district-wide Teacher of the Year title. This award is voted on by all certified teachers in the Perry School District.
Building level Teacher of the Year honorees include:
- Lower Elementary: Mandi Justus, Pre-K Teacher
- Upper Elementary: Sarah Porter, Special Education Teacher
- Junior High: Patrick Norvelle, English Language Arts Teacher
- High School: Ron Dwyer, Science/STEM Teacher
The District Teacher of the Year winner will be announced at the annual award reception on Wednesday, April 30 at 4 p.m. in the Perry Board of Education meeting room, located inside the former junior high building at 901 Elm Street.
The reception will also include recognition of the outstanding work of Perry Schools support staff. The four school sites have selected an individual from their staff to receive the Support Staff of the Year award.
The Support Staff of the Year honorees include:
- Lower Elementary: Ashley Bode, Paraprofessional
- Upper Elementary: Suzi Warden, Library Assistant
- Junior High: Barbara Ladson, Library Assistant
- High School: Brian O’Dell, School Resource Officer
A special congratulations to the aforementioned teachers and support staff members for being selected by their peers for this prestigious honor. Community members, colleagues, family and friends are invited to the award reception on April 30.
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Perry Lower Elementary Teacher of the Year:
Mandi Justus
Pre-K Teacher
Mandi Justus grew up in Perry and graduated from PHS in 1995. She went on to attend UCO to earn a Bachelor’s degree in Education in 1999, then acquired her Early Childhood certificate.
After being a stay at home mom for five years, she was hired by Perry Public Schools as a kindergarten teacher, where she taught for two years then moved to Pre-K, which she’s been teaching for the past 18 years. She considers herself blessed to have had so much help along the way from her colleagues, including Alisha Kirtley, Marianne Ward, Jennifer Shields, Lacey Carson, and Cindy Bendure, just to name a few.
Her love of children and aspirations of teaching began her senior year of high school during her Psychology of Learning class, where students spent one hour a week in a lower elementary classroom. She was fortunate enough to be placed in Mrs. Jonna Martin’s third grade classroom and that experience encouraged her to decide on a career path in teaching.
In the 20 years she's been teaching, she has had 800+ students pass through her classroom. Many of those students have gone on to be police officers, nurses, moms and dads, members of the military, and so much more. She even has had the second generation of students come through Pre-K. Mandi commented, “I cannot believe I have a job where I am treated like a rock star each day and get to work with the best Pre-K team.”
Mandi and her husband of 27 years, Seth Justus have two children together: Avary (25) is a Registered Nurse on the rehab floor at SMC and lives in Stillwater. Brycen (26) is an Audit Senior Associate at Grant Thornton and lives in Broken Arrow.
You will still find them doing activities with their kids often on the weekends, with golf being their favorite. As empty nesters, they enjoy traveling to MLB ballparks to watch Mandi’s Atlanta Braves, attending OSU wrestling duals, and OSU baseball games.
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Perry Upper Elementary Teacher of the Year:
Sarah Porter
Special Education Teacher
Sarah Porter grew up in Duncan, Oklahoma and graduated from Duncan High School in 2001. She obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary and Special Education from Cameron University in 2014. She is currently in her 11th year as a school teacher. She started her teaching career at Morrison Public Schools teaching Pre-K through 4th grade Special Education for seven years before joining the team at Perry Schools in 2021. She is currently in her fourth year at Perry Upper Elementary as the 3rd and 4th grade Special Education Resource Teacher.
Sarah’s decision to begin a career in education came when her first daughter was two years old. She had always worked with children and felt that teaching would be a good fit for her, and allow her the opportunity to stay close to her family. It was through the persistence and encouragement of her friend, mentor and professor at Cameron University, Dr. Holly Rice, that she found Special Education. She instantly knew that area of education was what she was called to teach, change, and hopefully have a positive impact on.
She feels rewarded in her classroom everyday by how amazing each of her students, past and present, truly are. When asked about being named Perry Upper Elementary Teacher of the Year, she shared, “I am beyond honored to be selected by my peers for this award, as they are all incredible teachers.”
In her free time she enjoys spending time with her husband, Kyle Porter and their four children: Bella (17), Rylann (13), Emerson (8), and Lawrence (9 months). Her favorite activity is spending summer days at the pool with her kids. When she’s not busy keeping up with her family’s activities, she enjoys golfing, cooking, and going for walks. “Kyle and I always tell people how welcoming Perry has been to our family in such a short period of time. We are so happy to call Perry our home,” she added.
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Perry Junior High Teacher of the Year:
Patrick Norvelle
English Language Arts Teacher
& Assistant IT Director
Patrick Norvelle serves as the English Language Arts teacher for 7th and 8th grade at Perry Junior High School. He also supports the school district as Assistant IT Director (Assistant to the IT Director, if you are an Office fan). As a proud graduate of Glencoe High School, Patrick began his academic and professional journey with computer training at Meridian Technology Center. He earned an Associate's degree from Northern Oklahoma College (Stillwater campus), a Bachelor’s degree in English from Oklahoma State University, and a Master’s in Principal Education from Southwestern Oklahoma State University.
Inspired by his grandfather, who was also an educator, Patrick is guided by the wisdom and encouragement of those around him. He strives each day to grow as both a teacher and a person.
Patrick is blessed with a wonderful family—his wife, Sarah Norvelle, and their five children: Paige, Anna, Patrick, Laylee, and Eleanor. He is also a proud grandfather to two amazing grandbabies, Houston and Archer.
He says being named Perry Junior High Teacher of the Year is a humbling honor, and he is incredibly grateful to be part of the Perry Public Schools family. He considers it a privilege to work in such a supportive and inspiring community, where students, families, and colleagues lift one another up every day.
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Perry High School Teacher of the Year:
Ron Dwyer
Science & STEM Teacher
Ron Dwyer is in his 12th year teaching at Perry Schools. Ron's teaching journey in Perry began in the 8th grade science classroom. After eight years teaching at the junior high, he moved to the high school and began teaching Chemistry, Physical Science, Environmental Science, and now is starting the new High School Aerospace program. He has also taught Biology I and II, along with AP Biology.
Ron graduated from Tonkawa High School and NWOSU in Alva. While at Alva, he married his wife Alice. Together they had three daughters: Jessica, Tory and Madison. He is now a proud grandparent of four wonderful grandsons: Ford and Palmer Lyle, and Eli and Everrett Flores, and is soon to welcome a granddaughter to the lively gaggle.
Many of you might not know, teaching wasn’t Ron’s first career. For a decade, he worked as a Lab Technician at Continental Carbon in Ponca City. But as his daughters reached elementary school age, Ron felt the undeniable pull toward education—a calling that ran in his blood. With a father, mother, sister, and wife all in the profession, teaching was practically a family tradition. Initially drawn to education as a way to coach, Ron spent years leading basketball, track, cross country, and baseball teams. When he stepped away from coaching, he redirected that energy to becoming the best teacher he could be.
“Teaching Chemistry isn’t easy,” Ron says. “It takes a lot of extra time, but it’s worth it when you see the light go on for a student.” That moment of understanding, that spark of discovery—it fuels him to continue to grow as an educator. And with the addition of an Aerospace course, Ron’s interest has only grown, “All the new learning has made me feel like I’m a first-year teacher again,” he shares. This has entailed many trainings and learning to teach the program has been rejuvenating for him, “Working with a STEM program is truly as enjoyable as it seems,” he added.
For Ron, the greatest reward is his students. “I’ve been so blessed to have had so many wonderful students over the years,” he reflects. One of his favorite joys is running into former students and seeing them thrive, “To have even a small part in their success is such a privilege to me.”
Ron is deeply honored to be named Perry High School Teacher of the Year, and he’s quick to credit his colleagues. “My fellow teachers are so uplifting,” he says. “Watching how much they put into teaching makes me proud to be among their peers and keeps me motivated. I don’t think there’s a teacher in the high school who hasn’t helped me in some way.” This award, he insists, is a testament to their support and inspiration.