Governing Board Awards & Recognitions

Congratulations to the Latest DVUSD Governing Board Honorees!

While the school year has officially wrapped up, there are still incredible accolades to celebrate across all areas of DVUSD!

OC Beach Volleyball: Head Coach Jamey Spartz and the Eagles clinched a historic 5-peat Division 1 State Championship Title, defeating Xavier 3–1. Despite early injuries to key players like Kaylee Woodruff, Kaiya Kearney, and Imani Huesca, this squad powered through to secure their sixth straight championship appearance. Special recognition goes to the 11 graduating seniors, including 4-time state champion Delaney Singleton (University of Hawaii signee) and 3-time state champion Kaylee Woodruff (Grand Canyon University signee & DVUSD Female Athlete of the Year).
Brecken Bellows (Track): Under Coach Eric Bolus, sophomore Brecken Bellows became the first Open State Champion in school history for the 800-meter event, shattering the school record with a time of 1:51.91. He also earned the D1 State Runner-up title (1:54.91) and ranks third nationally among sophomores.
AIA Director’s Cup: Under Athletic Director Gregg Carroll, Sandra Day O'Connor High School received the AIA’s highest honor, awarded for overall excellence in athletics, academics, leadership, sportsmanship, and community involvement.
ACEE Stock Market Game: Charles and Amir led their OC Business and Finance club to a High School Spring Championship, achieving a massive equity return of $156,711—beating their closest competitor by $25,000.

Led by outstanding coaching, multiple Skyhawk track athletes stood tall on the state podium:

Daequan Tigue: Junior Division 3 800-meter State Runner-up.
Ryan Patterson-Lopez: Junior D3 300-meter Hurdles State Runner-up.
Boys 4x400 Relay: The team of Daequan Tigue, Maldiny Hirmiz, Ryan Patterson-Lopez, and Aukai Fletcher shaved 5 seconds off their preliminary time to capture the Division 3 State Championship.
Elias Riley: Achieved D3 State Runner-up in the High Jump during his very first track season.
Julius Wald: Senior D3 State Runner-up in both Discus and Shot Put under Coach CJ Morgan.
Teagan Theall: Senior D3 400-meter Dash State Runner-up, setting a brand-new school record during the finals.

Cameron May-you: Capped off her senior year by capturing the Division 1 State Championship in the Triple Jump with an incredible distance of 37 feet 5 inches.
Sanel Eminovic: Dominated the hurdles, taking D1 State Championships in both the 110-meter and 300-meter hurdles. He followed that up by becoming the Open State Runner-up in both events, setting a personal best of 37.24 seconds in the 300-meter finals.
Boys 4x800 Relay: Secured the Open State Runner-up spot with an elite time of 7:48.33.

Japneet Kaur & Michelle Bullock (Tennis): In an all-Jaguar final under Coach Gino, junior Japneet Kaur won the D1 Singles State Championship, while standout Michelle Bullock took home the D1 State Runner-up title.
Boys Indoor Volleyball: Awarded the prestigious AIA 6A Sportsmanship Award for demonstrating top-tier character and integrity as voted on by the officiating community.
Ryan Bogensberger (Academic): Earned Second Place in the 2026 National Chinese Speech Contest against over 800 competitors nationwide, highlighting the immense strength of DVUSD’s K–12 Mandarin Immersion Program.

Paseo Hills School: Teacher Thomas Standring’s middle school investors earned an amazing 16% return on investment ($110,623 total equity) to become the ACEE Stock Market Game State Runners-up.
Silver Apple Awards: Two extraordinary educators were honored by Arizona's Family:
- Anne Lippert (Copper Creek Elementary): Celebrating over 16 years of teaching first grade.
- Hylari Villamar (Sonoran Foothills): An exceptional middle school teacher beloved by her campus community since the school first opened.

Congratulations to all of our award winners and honorees!