Several educators and/or administrators from the Brandywine, Buchanan and Niles school districts have been nominated for doing excellent work in the area of special education.

From the list of nominees, five finalists will be revealed during Berrien RESA’s 11th Annual Excellence in Education Banquet, which is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 10 at the Berrien RESA Administrative Conference Center, 711 St. Joseph Ave., Berrien Springs.

One finalist will be chosen as the overall award winner.

Individuals were nominated from across school districts in Berrien County for their contributions to the education and success of students with impairments.

The nominees are:

• Brandywine Community Schools

Diana Curran, special education resource and inclusion staff, middle/high school

• Buchanan Community Schools

Karla Hurlbutt, assistant principal, middle school

• Niles Community Schools

Daphne Carter, instructional assistant, Northside Child Development Center

Jeni Pepper, speech and language pathologist, Northside Child Development Center

• Berrien Springs Public Schools

Shelley Pero, school counselor, middle school

• Bridgman Public Schools

Sue Boyd, special education paraprofessional, elementary school

Erik Haskins, special education coordinator

Melissa Payne, special education teacher, elementary school

Jean Tuszynski, special education paraprofessional, high school

• River Valley School District

Pamela Kaniuga, teacher, middle school

• Watervliet Public Schools

Tracy Sheffer, special education secretary

• Berrien RESA-Blossomland Learning Center

Delynn Bushouse-Williams, special education teacher

Jan Chaudoir, school nurse

Karen Elsheikhi, special education teacher

Brian Kelly, physical education teacher, special education

• Berrien RESA-Lighthouse Education Center

Hilda Montey, secretary

Last year, two of the five finalists were from Niles Community Schools:

• Joanne Carlin, a teacher/consultant at Northside Child Development Center

• Lisa Smith, an instructional assistant/librarian/lunch supervisor/custodian at Oak Manor Sixth Grade Center.

Lakeshore High School teacher Francis Kasper was last year’s overall winner.