Board of Directors Present 2022 Lifetime Achievement, Contributor Awards
Dr Jon Cerny, 2022 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award
Dr. Jon Cerny has been at Bancroft-Rosalie Community School since 1982. He began as a science teacher, became activities director in 1984 and principal in 1987. He was named Superintendent in 1993.
Dr. Cerny received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 1982 and a Master of Science in Education degree from Wayne State College in 1987. He received a specialization in Educational Administration and Supervision Degree from UNL in 1992. Dr. Cerny received a Doctor of Education Degree in Administration, Curriculum and Instruction from UNL in 1998.
Dr. Cerny served as head coach at Bancroft-Rosalie Community School for 32 years with a career record of 230-94. His teams qualified for the play-off’s 23 times, winning state championships in 1985 and 1999, and finishing runners-up in 1986 and 2006. Dr. Cerny coached in the Nebraska Eight-man all-star game in 1987 and 1992 (Head Coach), the Kansas-Nebraska all-star game in 2008, the Oklahoma-Nebraska all-star game in 2006 (Co-head Coach), and the Northeast Nebraska all-star games in 2013 and 2015 (Head Coach). He was elected to the Nebraska Eight Man Hall of Fame in 2017. Dr. Cerny retired from coaching football after the 2014 season. He returned to coach the 2021 Bancroft-Rosalie/Lyons-Decatur team.
In 2015, Dr. Cerny received the Terrell Bell Award from the United State Department of Education for outstanding leadership, the only Nebraska Administrator to receive this award. In 2013 he received the Outstanding Superintendent Award from the Nebraska Rural Community Schools Association.
Dr. Cerny has served on the Nebraska School Activities Association Board of Directors for the past four years and was chairman this past year. Jon and his wife Carol have two daughters, Jessica (Omaha, Ne) and Elizabeth (Redondo Beach, CA), both special education teachers, and two granddaughters.
Phyllis & Don Wood, 2022 Outstanding Contributors Award
Don and Phyllis Wood are former Pierce High School teachers who have supported the Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Classic for nine years. Phyllis served as the Director of Football Operations, working with the Board of Directors, coaches, players and parents, and Don helped at the games by taking photos and manning the east gate, as well as providing Phyllis with support and assistance during the year.
Phyllis graduated from Ida Grove (Iowa) Community Schools and Don graduated from Stanton High School. The couple earned their undergraduate degrees at Wayne State College, and they earned master’s degrees at Northwest Missouri State University. They retired from Pierce High School after 40 years of teaching. Phyllis taught physics, eighth grade earth science and computer science courses and later became the district Technology Coordinator. Don taught chemistry, physical science and physics. Don coached girls’ basketball for several years, and later kept the scorebook for basketball and clerked the start at track meets for twenty years while Phyllis heated and scored every track meet held in Pierce for twenty-three years. The couple have two children Andrew and Amanda. Andrew and wife Jeana live in Seward. Amanda and husband Darrell Fieldgrove live in Grand Island with their five sons: Aiden, DJ, Dayton, Chevy and Dalton.
