Veteran Superintendent Receives 2013 Dr. Effie H. Jones Humanitarian Award

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kitty Porterfield, kporterfield@aasa.org, 703-774-6953

Alexandria, Va., Feb. 1, 2013 – Concetta Raimondi, 36 year veteran of public education and currently superintendent of Metropolitan School District of Lawrence Township, Indianapolis, Ind., will be honored by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) and awarded the 2013 Dr. Effie H. Jones Humanitarian Award during the AASA National Conference on Education (NCE), Feb. 21-23 in Los Angeles, Calif.

Concetta Raimondi

This award recognizes leaders who exemplify the qualities modeled by the late Effie Hall Jones, educator and AASA associate executive director—her professional and personal commitment to diversifying the field of education with high quality leaders and to ensuring the best education for all students. The award honors Jones’ efforts to elevate the status of minorities and women in education and her legacy of justice, humanity and promise for all children.

During her long career in public education, Raimondi has served as teacher, counselor, administrator and faculty member. She has championed educational excellence for all children, working with parents, teachers and administrators, to promote equitable practices and high-quality learning opportunities, and to remove barriers to participation. Raimondi has been active in local, state, and national professional organizations, has authored articles and monographs, and has given presentations at both the state and national level on issues of diversity.

She was named Monroe County Educator of the Year by the Bloomington (Ind.) Chamber of Commerce, and received the Educator of the Year award by the Stacey Toran Foundation, an organization that supports disadvantaged youth. Recently, she was named Title IX Hero by Indiana Humanities. For her scholarship and research she was named the B.L. Dodds Fellow by the University of Illinois and recently was bestowed an Honorary Doctorate of Laws by Martin University for her efforts on behalf of children of color.

The recipient was selected by an external panel of judges based on evidence of her advocacy, and commitment to address social justice issues among children, youth and adults in public education. The award was first given in 2004.
Raimondi will be honored at the first NCE general session, Feb. 21.

Dr. Tyrone Howard, professor at University of California Los Angeles, Graduate School of Education will be the featured speaker at the Dr. Effie H. Jones Memorial Luncheon, held at the conference on Friday, Feb. 22, at 11:30a.m. Dr. Howard’s most recent book is Why Race and Culture Matter in Schools: Closing the Achievement Gap in America's Classrooms. For more information about the luncheon, click here.

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About AASA
The American Association of School Administrators, founded in 1865, is the professional organization for more than 13,000 educational leaders in the United States and throughout the world. The mission of AASA is to advocate for the highest quality public education for all students, and develop and support school system leaders. For more information, visit www.aasa.org. Follow AASA on twitter at www.twitter.com/AASAHQ. Become a fan of the AASA Facebook page at www.facebook.com/AASApage.