Mark Powell, messenger, LWSD
Kudos to Mark Powell, Lake Washington School District’s “Staff Star” for July 2011.
With 50 schools and two additional facilities located in 76 square miles in the cities of Kirkland, Redmond, Sammamish and part of Woodinville, have you ever wondered how mail is carried between all of them? Mark Powell is the answer. Mark is a messenger for the school district, and he spends his day traveling over 60 miles to deliver mail to locations throughout the district. (Another part-time messenger covers the remaining schools).
Mark has worked for the school district for nearly nine years. Being a messenger is an ideal job for Mark since he does not like to sit still for long. He loves getting out in the district and seeing familiar faces in the school buildings each day. In fact, he says that his favorite part of his job is the people, from the administration offices to the schools. He enjoys greeting everyone and putting smiles on their faces.
Mark has also enjoyed the fact that he works close to home. His children attended LWSD schools and his work hours have allowed him to coach his kids’ baseball and football teams.
On warm days, everyone wants to trade him jobs to be in the sunshine. On cold or snowy days, many staff members are happy to be in their warm buildings. Either way, Mark is ready to work in his typical uniform of navy blue polo shirt and navy blue shorts.
Mark’s job is an important one for the district. While he does not deliver mail from the post office (with the exception of the one stop he makes at the post office each day), he does deliver mail from one building to the next, helping to sort it twice each day at the district’s support services office. He also works closely with the district’s Print Center to deliver educational materials to the schools, ensuring that they arrive in time for the day’s lesson.
As a member of the support services staff, Mark recognizes the value of his role in the daily education of students and as part of the district’s overall vision of “Every Student Future Ready.” The support services team recognizes that educating students is a team effort and that everything that they do is for the students. From maintaining facilities to delivering mail between schools, every role helps the schools to run smoothly and helps to support the education of students.
Mark came to work in LWSD after working in the airfreight industry at Boeing for 12 years. In September, he will celebrate his nine-year anniversary of working in the school district.