By Deb Risden
On June 29, Liz Dalzell, the principal of El Paso County School District 49’s Horizon Middle School, was inducted into the Jostens Renaissance Hall of Fame — the highest honor they bestow on an educator.
The ceremony took place at the Jostens Renaissance Global Conference in San Diego.
In 2022, Dalzell won the organization’s Educator of the Year Award, given to those educators who positively impact the climate and culture of their schools by guiding their school’s Renaissance programs.
Dalzell has a long history with District 49. She grew up in Peyton and attended Falcon Elementary School, Falcon Middle School and Falcon High School. She earned her bachelor of science in biology and chemistry from Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota. While in South Dakota, she worked with the Native American population, volunteering at tutoring centers and working on reservations. “It gave me a completely different insight of education and expanded my horizons,” Dalzell said. She eventually earned her master’s degree in space studies and then earned her administrator license in 2014.
She started her career in D 49 as a middle school science teacher and at Patriot High School’s night school program. She was hired as an assistant principal at HMS in 2014. “My goal was always to come back and give back to this district. I had amazing teachers here,” Dalzell said.
HMS began using the Renaissance framework when Dustin Horras, former HMS principal and current superintendent of the Sand Creek Zone, hired Dalzell. “He hired me as assistant principal and tasked me with getting this program going. We needed a culture revamp, and the Renaissance framework is right up my alley,” Dalzell said. “It’s rooted and embedded in everything I do. It’s about relationships and recognizing and rewarding people.”
According to https://www.jostensrenaissance.com, The Jostens Renaissance framework has been around for more than 30 years, focusing on culture and climate in schools through encouraging positive educator morale and retention, academic achievement and character development. Jostens Renaissance describes the framework of building culture and climate by focusing on their trademarked Results Formula: “RESPECT + RECOGNIZE + REWARD + REINFORCE + RELATIONSHIPS = RESULTS.™
Dalzell said the framework is about deciding what you respect at your school, things like attendance, grades, behavior, staff morale and student participation. HMS originally identified behavior and grades as being two things they highly respect. “That’s where we focused our efforts on with recognition, rewards and building relationships,” Dalzell said. The school cut their disciplinary referrals nearly in half in the first three years. She said students with a 3.0 or higher GPA and no discipline referrals “make the Renaissance Wall and get a Renaissance Card.” The card provides students access to different events throughout the school quarter. Dalzell said the rewards and recognitions have grown over time such as naming a student of the month based on respected character traits; other awards for improving in academics and student contributions to the school community.
After earning Jostens Educator of the Year award, Dalzell was recruited to be the company’s four corners regional coach, helping schools in Utah, Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado implement the Renaissance framework. She coaches, shares resources and invites schools to HMS to see how it runs. She also provides professional development for educators and helped write and publish the Renaissance getting-started guide for new schools implementing the formula. She thinks every school should use the Renaissance framework and wants to help any school interested in getting started.
As far as being inducted into the Renaissance Hall of Fame, Dalzell said, “When I heard the news, I was completely shocked. It caught me by surprise. I’m so honored. I think the people who are Hall of Famers are movers and shakers and difference makers. To be seen at that level is humbling but also exciting.
“I am being recognized for living out my passion. I love building relationships with students and staff, creating a place where kids can excel and be accepted and love coming to school. We spend a lot of time here and I need to make it a home away from home.”
“I am being recognized for living out my passion,” she said. “I love building relationships with students and staff, creating a place where kids can excel and be accepted and love coming to school. We spend a lot of time here and I need to make it a home away from home.”
She likes working with middle school students. “Middle school doesn’t always get a lot of focus and that’s where we need the most focus,” Dazell said. “They decide they like school and stick with it or check out and sometimes they can struggle. Relationships are key and these kids are amazing people.”
Dalzell is married and has two children who attend Sand Creek Zone schools. She loves living in the community she works in. “I like seeing the kids out in the community. If they act awkward about seeing me, I love calling them out!”
Dalzell is excited and hopeful for the future. “This generation is powerful,” she said. “They are going to be doing things that don’t even exist yet. It’s exciting to be a part of these kids’ journeys. I’m lucky and privileged to be involved in a chapter in their lives.”
Liz Dalzell has a long history with District 49. She grew up in Peyton and attended Falcon Elementary School, Falcon Middle School and Falcon High School. She came back to her roots and is now the principal of Horizon Middle School. She was recently inducted into a prestigious Hall of Fame for educators and received a ring and jacket.
