Rotary club honors Atchison County teachers and student leaders

The Rotary Club of Atchison put local education front and center at Paolucci's Restaurant Deli & Lounge, recognizing Ashley Funk as its Teacher of the Year and Aliyah Elias and Liam Patterson as Students of the Year from Central School and Atchison High School.

The honors came during a Rotary luncheon meeting on May 7 at 113 S. 3rd St. in Atchison, where honorees, their guests and school administrators shared lunch with Rotarians before being recognized individually. Atchison Public Schools said the celebration brought together the three honorees at the same table, a small setting that made the recognition personal and public at once.

Atchison Public Schools identified Funk as the Rotary Teacher of the Year and Elias and Patterson as this year’s Rotary Students of the Year. The district also congratulated the three students and teacher directly after the luncheon, underscoring how the award connected Central School and Atchison High School with one of the county’s most visible civic groups.

The Rotary Club’s calendar shows the event was part of its regular Thursday noon meeting schedule at Paolucci's, and the club’s standing lunch-hour presence has made the downtown restaurant a recurring gathering place for service and school recognition. That regular setting gave the awards a local, working feel rather than the formality of a one-time banquet.

The timing also matched a crowded stretch in the Atchison Public Schools calendar. Atchison High School held Senior Awards Night on May 13, followed by graduation on Saturday, May 16, at 10 a.m., placing the Rotary recognition in the middle of a season when seniors were already being publicly celebrated and preparing to move on.

District messaging around Teacher Appreciation Week added another layer to the honors. Atchison Public Schools said community partners, booster clubs and site councils supported staff appreciation efforts, while students publicly thanked teachers and even gave trophies to staff. That broader pattern helped frame the Rotary luncheon as part of a communitywide push to make sure educators and students were seen beyond the classroom.

For Atchison County schools, the awards were more than ceremonial. They highlighted the teachers and seniors whose work and achievement have become visible enough to draw recognition not just from school buildings, but from the civic groups meeting downtown every Thursday at noon.