Pizzo’s Final Bell

After 20 years of teaching, Sandy Pizzo has announced her retirement after the ’24-25 school year

Will Nolan, Reporter | March 7, 2025

FACS teacher Sandy Pizzo shows her students how thin the potato should be cut.

Will Nolan

Kay Cooper, Kieran Howsare, and Kristiauna Brown

Love, care, and lessons. FACS teacher Sandy Pizzo’s three goals she wants to spread throughout her life.

Pizzo has been teaching for 20 years, 10 of those years she spent teaching at a middle school level.

Pizzo came to Liberty in 2014 with the mission to give kids challenges that they don’t think they can do, while helping them accomplish new achievements.

While helping students accomplish their goals, Pizzo has accomplished some of her own.

Pizzo was named one of two Wentzville School District teachers who won the Emerson Excellence Teaching Award.

“It was the greatest honor in my teaching career besides my ‘Teacher of The Year’ award,” Pizzo said. “I felt so proud to represent the Wentzville School District.”

Pizzo has made an impact on everyone she meets, including student, teachers, and administrators. Principal Edgar Nelson, is one person that Pizzo has inspired and impacted the most.

“Her innovative teaching methods, such as hands-on projects and real-world applications, have led to tangible student success,” Nelson said.

Throughout her years of teaching she has met plenty of people and has inspired them to do great things later in life. Students have learned many valuable lessons from Pizzo, including the right ways to cut and cook food, the importance of safety in the kitchen, how to be kind and caring, and so much more.

Tyler Cook (11) has been with Pizzo since he took her Culinary I class last year, and has gotten to know her better each year.

“She’s such a kind and genuine person that even beyond culinary arts, she impacts so many people, she’s such a great teacher and a great person in general,” Cook said.

Many people will miss Pizzo after these next few months. Fellow FACS teacher, Nicole McFadden, is one person who will miss her the most. But simply her caringness and reliability, is something everyone will miss.

“She will drop whatever she is doing immediately to help anyone who asks,” McFadden said. “She is a constant positive presence in my life and the whole population at Liberty.”

After her retirement, Pizzo won’t be at school with us any longer, but she will always be a Liberty Legend.

Pizzo poses with her Culinary II students while cooking potatoes. (Will Nolan)

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About the Contributors

Will Nolan, Editor-in-Chief of Broadcast Media

Will Nolan is a senior and this is his second year in publications. Nolan is the Editor-in-Chief of Broadcast Media as well as a reporter for Online News. He cannot wait to work alongside his class to try and produce the best videos possible for this program. Currently, Nolan has a job at Lake Forest Country Club where he works in the bag room and the cart barn. In his free time, Nolan enjoys playing golf, hanging out with friends, and traveling. Nolan cannot wait to start the year and see how far the broadcast program will go.

Kay Cooper, Reporter

Kay Cooper is a sophomore and in their second year of publications. They are working to film and report on anything interesting happening around Liberty and tell a story. Cooper loves creating and performing as he is a part of colorguard and enjoys the rush of being in front of a crowd. Cooper is also president of GSA and hopes to create a space for everyone and hope his videos can spread awareness of the community around us. They hope to pursue journalism in the future and potentially go to college for it.

Kieran Howsare, Eagle’s Eye Editor

Kieran Howsare is a Junior this year and in her second year of the Broadcast Media class. This year she’s going to be the editor-in-chief for the Eagle’s Eye. Kieran in her freetime enjoys baking and being around her family after a long day at school. She also does costume crew in theater and just recently started EMT work. Once she graduates she’s picking between majoring in Culinary or Cosmetology.

Kristiauna Brown, Reporter

Kristiauna Brown is a sophomore and she enjoys acting, reading, listening to music and writing. She also loves having fun with her three older sisters and her family . In her free time she likes to play video games. She recently joined the school district after being online for three years. She wants to become an actress after high school. She was born with a disability called amniotic band syndrome but she didn’t let that stop her from achieving her dreams and working hard. She was born in Round Rock, Texas until her parents decided to move to New Orleans, Louisiana where she was raised in her early years of life until her parents made their last move to O’Fallon, Missouri. Kristiauna plans to study film at Washington University.