Sarasota County Schools announced that Pine View School’s Gena Bufkin has been named the 2019 School-Related Employee of the Year for Sarasota County. Bufkin serves as an administrative assistant to both elementary assistant principal Alison Rini and middle assistant principal Sue Fair, and has served the Pine View School community for 14 years. 

The Florida Department of Education’s School-Related Employee of the Year program, administered by education commissioner Richard Corcoran, annually recognizes outstanding education support personnel for the significant contributions they make to their schools and district school systems. The program honors one state representative and four finalists from the 67 school districts in Florida. All non-certified, non-instructional educational support personnel who serve at the school or district level—such as teacher aides, library aides, bookkeepers, secretaries and clerks, bus drivers, food service staff and custodians, among others–may be nominated. Nominees may be full or part-time employees. As the award recipient for Sarasota County, Bufkin is eligible for the overall state-level recognition, to be announced later this spring.