Ocean City Schools Honor Merit Scholars and Retirees

The Ocean City Board of Education recognized National Merit scholars and retiring staff and board members on Wednesday night.

In a presentation that included heartfelt tributes, School Superintendent Kathleen Taylor spoke about both young students destined to achieve great things and the retiring educators who helped pave the road for them to do so.

The board honored:


National Merit Scholars

As "Commended Scholars" in the National Merit Scholarship program, these Ocean City High School seniors scored among the top 3 percent on the PSAT test among students nationwide.

• Maham Ahmad: Ranked No. 1 in the class, Ahmad has a 4.9998 grade-point average. She is waiting to hear about early admission to the University of Pennsylvania.
• Isabel Benvenuti: Raniked No. 5 in the class, Benvenuti has a 4.7 GPA. She  is waiting to hear about early admission to Princeton University.
• Aine Boyle: Ranked No. 16 in the class, Boyle a 4.3 GPA. She  is waiting to hear about early admission to Georgetown University.
• Jack Kane: Ranked No. 3 in the class, Kane has a 4.8 GPA. He is waiting to hear about admission to Brown or Northeastern universities.
• Carolyn Previti: Ranked No. 2 in the class, Previti has a 4.8 GPA. She is waiting to hear about admission to several universities.

• Skip Angelo: The health and physical education teacher served more than 25 years in the district and coached several sports at the high school and intermediate school.
• Margie Kaighn: The special education teacher worked for 11 years in the district and helped implement the Wilson Reading System at the high school.
• Lucy Masi: The teacher brought an infectious love for foreign languages to Ocean City Intermediate School in her 22 years in the district.
• Pat Mulvaney: The veteran teacher has taught every grade, K-12, in his career and spent more than 27 years at Ocean City High School, teaching everything from Gifted and Talented to special education. "The innovation has not stopped," Mulvaney said in praise of the district he's leaving.
• Debbie Heiler: The dedicated employee worked in food services for more than 30 years in the district.
• Barbara Young: An instructional aide at Ocean City Primary School, Young defines "care and warmth and hope and dreams," Taylor said. She read notes of thanks from former students that left Taylor, Young and board members in tears.
• Bob Gannon: The head custodian at Ocean City High School has worked in the district since 1969 and knows every nut and bolt in the new high school. Gannon "made everything work and always took care of it," Taylor said.

• Lloyd Hayes: A board member since 2007 and former educator, Hayes was recognized for his invaluable knowledge of the district and his advocacy on issues.
• Brenda Moiso: A board member since 2004, Moiso was honored for the dedication it takes to serve as board president (since 2011).