Suffolk Zone Middle School Health Teacher of the Year - Jodi Maurici

May 11th, 2022

NYSAHPERD’s Suffolk Zone Professional Awards Committee reviewed “some very impressive candidates” and has announced that Sayville Middle School’s Jodi Maurici is the recipient of the Suffolk Zone Award for “Middle School Health Education Teacher of the Year."

For more than twenty years, Mrs. Maurici has been an integral part of the Sayville Middle School community. She has developed programs to assist her students in gaining new knowledge, setting goals and reaching the level of wellness they desire. In addition to her academic service, Mrs. Maurici is an effervescent and creative motivator who has organized staff development and teacher trainings, presented workshops on a variety of wellness topics, given Podcasts regarding nutrition and aging, all while maintaining a website and blog on wellness.  An articulate writer in her own right, Mrs. Maurici has spoken at NYSAHPERD events. She has been interviewed about her “Independence Initiatives” to help anxious students develop independence and resilience.  Through her implementation of the Let Grow Project, anxious students reduced, if not eliminated, their existing anxiety. As an outcome of the successful initiatives, Mrs. Maurici participated in documentary films and was featured in both Lenore Skenazy’s book, Free Range Kids, as well as, in the book Stolen Focus by international and New York Time Best Selling Author Johann Hari.

These are just some of Mrs. Maurici’s accomplishments. It is no wonder that she has been honored with the NYSAHPERD’s Suffolk Zone Professional Award. Mrs. Maurici will be recognized at the Suffolk Zone Conference in November 2022 and at the Suffolk Zone Awards Dinner in January 2023! Congratulations on your well-deserved award, Mrs. Maurici!