Superintendent Michael S. Nelson and Police Chief Richard Nighelli are pleased to share that 14 students at the Sippican Elementary School so far this year have received the Norman Award, named after the police comfort-dog that’s been serving the school community since June 2024.
The Norman Award was established this school year to honor students for meeting or exceeding school expectations and demonstrating good character. Award recipients are nominated by school staff.
Each month, new winners of the Norman Award are added to the “Norman Board” on display in the main lobby. Students who are nominated are then recognized at an all-school meeting, and they are presented with a Norman stuffed animal and a Norman award certificate.
Students are recognized with the Norman Award for the following reasons:
-Excelling in academics or have shown significant improvement in classroom efforts.
-Being respectful, responsible and kind, in line with the school’s “3 to Be” initiative.
-Acting as good leaders or role models for classmates.
-Always giving one’s best effort.
Comfort Dog Norman and his handler, School Resource Officer Jonathan Tracy, have become an integral part of Sippican School. Norman is tasked with providing comfort to children and staff who have experienced trauma, de-escalating stressful situations, and serving as a friendly face for the Marion Police Department. Other benefits of having a comfort dog like Norman include teaching empathy, helping students to develop stronger social skills, and building up stronger bonds between students and police.
“Norman and I are happy to be able to recognize the students who go above and beyond with their behavior and school expectations,” said Officer Tracy. “We are so proud of all the students who have earned the award so far this year, and we look forward to presenting more awards to the students who have been ‘Norminated.'”
Norman joined the Marion Police Department on June 7 last year, acquired as a 13-week-old puppy from Boone Field Labradors. Norman was the 18th member of the Plymouth County Comfort Dogs Program, overseen by District Attorney Timothy Cruz, identifying grant funding to get the Labrador trained by Professional Canine Services in Middleboro.
Sippican School students then voted on what to name the dog, choosing between a total of three names, with Norman receiving the most votes.
Sippican School Principal Lynn Dessert congratulated the 14 students who have received the Norman Award so far and looks forward to celebrating other students in the future.
“This is a wonderful way to honor our students for doing their best, and showing others how to be respectful, responsible and kind,” Principal Dessert said. “I look forward to continuing to issue more Norman Awards and adding more names to the Norman Board. Congratulations to all of our current and future Norman Award winners. Thank you to Norman and our police partners for helping to create these special moments of recognition for our students.”
Assistant Principal Greg Thomas appreciates how the Norman Award has made the Labrador retriever and School Resource Officer Tracy into even more integral members of the school community. And the Norman Award reflects how they’ve become role models for the students.
“It’s fantastic to see our students recognized with the Norman Award for their character,” said Assistant Principal Thomas. “Their positive impact speaks volumes, and we’re incredibly proud of them.”
Police Chief Richard Nighelli said it’s an honor to have Comfort Dog Norman become the namesake for an award recognizing good character among students.
“This is an amazing initiative,” Chief Nighelli said. “We really appreciate all of our Norman Award honorees, and we wish them the best as they continue to excel in school, showing good character and doing their best inside and outside of the classroom.”
“The Norman Award has been a wonderful way of taking the likeness of our beloved police dog and using it to reward our students for doing their best, while practicing respectfulness, responsibility and kindness,” said Superintendent Nelson. “Sippican Elementary School is very fortunate and we’re grateful for the positive impact made by Comfort Dog Norman and Officer Tracy. To have such a strong and helpful partnership with our police department has been tremendous. The faculty, staff members and students absolutely love Norman, Officer Tracy and the Norman Award.”