ANDOVER – Pymatuning Valley Local Schools Superintendent Christopher Edison recently presented Wendy Tisch with the Hard Hat award.
Tisch is the principal at the PV Middle School.
Edison shared remarks regarding Tisch from her colleagues.
“Wendy goes above and beyond for her students and her staff. My colleagues in middle school always have great things to say about the building culture and atmosphere. I also was lucky enough to have her volunteer to pick me up when I had to take a student to the emergency room. She didn’t even hesitate to offer. Before break, she was hit with a huge loss in her staff and she handled it with grace. She made sure that everyone had what they needed and continued to hold strong and smile as she navigated losing a classmate, a colleague and a friend. Her heart is so big and always goes above and beyond to meet the needs of everyone,” a colleague wrote.
A colleague also described Tisch as the “steady light of our middle school, leading with grace, strength and compassion.”
“She treats everyone like family while confidently and swiftly addressing even the most difficult situations. During one of our hardest moments, Wendy was the rock that held our school together. She supported staff with empathy, kept the environment positive during a time of deep sadness, and ensured everyone felt cared for and supported,” her colleague wrote. “Her ability to be both tough and deeply compassionate makes her an exceptional leader and an invaluable presence in our school community.”
Another colleague described Tisch as “the Real Deal.”
“She is always available and makes sure our staff has everything we need. She has a Heart of Gold and is very sincere. She wears many hats and we are truly blessed to have her on our team,” her colleague wrote.
Another colleague praised Tisch for helping staff, students and community deal with the unexpected death of Kevin Wolf, a fifth-grade teacher at the school.
“I understand this is usually not for administrators, but Wendy went above and beyond during this very difficult time,” her colleague wrote.
Another colleague shared that Tisch is not just a leader of PVMS – she demonstrates what it means to be a leader.
“Wendy wears so many different hats around the PV campus. It doesn’t matter which hat Wendy is wearing – you will see a smile while she is working on a task or two,” the colleague wrote.
Tisch was praised for representing Pymatuning Valley at community, events including 4-H events and FFA events.
“You will see Wendy at Winter/Spring concerts and Theatrical Productions for both the middle school and high school. You might even catch her driving students to musical events. You will see Wendy at sporting events for every season, both at the middle school and high school, cheering on and supporting the athletes (including her own son), but you will also see her working the concession stand, talking to current and past students, parents, and staff family,” her colleague wrote. “You will see Wendy walking the halls in the middle school, often with a milk carton in hand. Wendy greets students and staff every morning with a smile, a ‘good morning’ greeting, and some parody, piggyback of an ’80s song. She makes her daily rounds to check on each classroom personally. Wendy is always making sure everyone feels seen and heard and important.”
The colleague wrote that Tisch also is seen in the cafeteria, hallways and in and out of classrooms all day.
“She visits her office when a student is in need, a teacher is in need, or a parent is in need,” the colleague wrote. “You will see the individual emails of encouragement, public acknowledgements, text messages and social media posts.”
The colleague continued, “That is a list of the things you will SEE. There is an even longer list of things that you do not SEE, much like an iceberg where you only see the surface. I have only scraped the surface and only focused on service to others. Mrs. Wendy Tisch is the epitome of service to others.”
