2022 Honorees
Community Leadership and Service Award
Wioletta (Wiola) Jasińska
Principal of Polish Saturday School in Derby
Wioletta and her husband Darek moved to America from Poland in 1993. Her love for the Polish culture and language help Wioletta decide to get involved with the Polish Saturday School (Polska Szkola Sobotnia), named after the famous Polish writer Adam Mickiewicz, in Stamford, Connecticut as a teacher. Two years later, Wioletta took a teaching role at the Polish Saturday School in Derby, Connecticut, where later in 2000 she became the school’s principal. She has been leading the school for the last 22 years and 165 students currently attending the program. Under her leadership, the school has been expanding the programs and now offers all the levels from preschool to the 11th grade. The school’s primary objective is to teach youngsters the Polish language, culture, geography, and the traditions of the Polish ancestors. She has created a welcoming and engaging school environment in which the students enjoy learning and interacting with one another.
Being the Polish Saturday School’s principal is a huge responsibility and very time consuming. Nevertheless, she still finds time for involvement with different organizations. For the last thirteen years, Wioletta has been presiding over the Connecticut Region of the Polish Supplementary School of America (Centrala Polskich Szkol Doksztalcajacych). She has been the coordinator of the student pilgrim trips to Polish Czestochowa in Doylestown, PA, organizer of the “Sybiraki in Connecticut” contest, coordinator of the “Zolnierze Wykleci” contest in New York, coordinator of the workshops in methodology for the Polish teachers in Connecticut, coordinator for the LOTE (Language Other Than English) exam, coordinator for the “Bo Lubie Jezyk Polski” (Because I like the Polish Language) activities, coordinator “Dzieci – Dzieciom” (Children for Children) activities at the Polish Saturday School in Derby, Connecticut, serves as a liaison for the Polish Schools and Polish organizations cooperation on the East Coast of the United States.
Wioletta has been recognized and awarded many times over the 28 years of her community work. In 2002, she received her “Medal Komisji Edukacji Narodowej” (Medal of the National Education Commission), “Krzyz Kawalerski Orderu Zaslugi Rzeczpospolitej Polskiej” (Poland’s Cavallier’s Cross “Order of Merit”) in 2019, Medal Ignacego Paderewskiego (Ignacy Paderewski Medal) from the Stowarzyszenie Weteranow Armii Polskiej w Ameryce (The Polish Army Veterans' Association in America) in 2020, to name a few.
Wioletta loves her family and enjoys spending time with her son Czarek, daughters Aleksandra and Justyna, and a two-year-old grandson Dominik. She has a passion for Polish literature and Polish cinema and makes sure her knowledge of both is shared with others, especially the youngsters.
