Gary Winsett, a social studies teacher at Thomas Stone High School and advisor to the Charles County Association of Student Councils (CCASC), was recently named the 2012-13 Mike Michaelson Advisor of the Year award recipient by the Maryland Association of Student Councils (MASC). Recipients are honored for their involvement in student-centered activities, for displaying outstanding leadership and for their contributions to student councils and student success.
Delfone Prince, a student council advisor at Theodore G. Davis Middle School, was also named as the 2012-13 Middle School Advisor of the Year award recipient by the MASC. Selected honorees are recognized for their commitment to promoting middle school involvement at the school, regional and state levels, and for inspiring young leaders to become involved in the MASC.
Winsett was nominated for the award by Ciara Albrittain, the CCASC first vice-president and La Plata High School sophomore, for his leadership of the CCASC, his ability to communicate with students and encourage them to become involved in student-focused activities, and for his energetic and kind demeanor. “Mr. Winsett leads by example. He is always at our meetings to show the students that involvement is important. He is welcoming to everyone and makes students feel like they belong. This is important because the students look up to him and he is there for us, encouraging us to give it our all,” Albrittain wrote in her nomination letter.
Winsett said he was honored to receive the award, and especially to be nominated by students. “We have tremendous students in Charles County and I am very fortunate to work with these exceptional young men and women who want to make a difference in the world. To be able to earn such an award while working in the county I grew up in is a tremendous honor,” Winsett added.
To support Winsett’s nomination, General Smallwood Middle School Principal Kathy Perriello wrote a letter on his behalf. Perriello said Winsett is a wealth of knowledge and source of support in building student leadership. “Mr. Winsett is a staunch supporter of student involvement and the democratic process. He promotes student accessibility, freedom of speech, ideas and views. He is always willing to go the extra mile,” Perriello wrote in a nomination letter. She also credits Winsett with the high ratio of student involvement in student council activities.
Winsett has been the CCASC advisor for the past three school years and also works with student government advisors at the middle and high school levels. La Plata art teacher Jodi Kitson is the advisor at La Plata and has worked with Winsett since he was chosen to lead the CCASC. She said his dedication to the organization cannot be duplicated. “Gary is truly, genuinely, 110 percent dedicated to this organization, and completely and totally deserving of this award. There is no one who could replac
