El Verano Elementary School Students of the Year

Student of the Year Justin Borgnis is described by his teachers as having “a caring nature that is contagious in the classroom” and as being “the type of student that teachers dream about having in class.”

A student at El Verano since kindergarten, Borgnis has long been admired for his ability to work well with other students and his eagerness to help, encourage and support his peers. His strongest subjects are math and science. Outside of school he keeps busy with football and baseball, fishing and dirt bike riding. He is also learning how to play the guitar.

Student of the Year Melissa Chen is described as a joy to know and to be around and as possessing the many positive qualities that El Verano School seeks to instill in its students. Chen has a famously sunny attitude and her teachers say that her “easy going demeanor makes her revered among her classmate and teachers alike.” Chen loves learning and thrives in the El Verano classrooms. It is a common sight to see Chen with her face in a book. Her teachers say that she “always works to the best of her ability, and remains tenacious in finding the answer. There are no higher standards for Melissa than the ones that she has set for herself.” Outside of school, Chen participates in a number of different after-school enrichment classes as well as helping out at her family’s popular local restaurant, greeting customers and taking orders. From the moment she walks on campus with a warm smile and bubbly, “Good morning” for all, Chen is a treat to have in class, a joy to know and the perfect recipient for El Verano’s Student of the Year.

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This article is the fifth in a series for the 2014-15 school year honoring Students of the Year at each campus in the Sonoma Valley Unified School District.