Trustees of the Ripon Unified School District paid special recognition to Christina Orlando on Monday.

She officially resigned after serving 12 years on the school board.

“Her interest was always students, first,” said board Clerk Kit Oase.

He added: “We were fortunate to get her (on the school board). She was parent and educator – she made a difference.”

Orlando moved to Ripon from Fresno with her husband, Scott, and their sons, Matteo and Gianni, eight years prior to being elected to the local school board.

She graduated from Fresno State, and worked in education for 17 years in the Fresno area, teaching preschool, kindergarten, first through fifth grades, and special education in junior high.

Orlando especially enjoyed teaching Language Arts to seventh and eighth graders, with her teaching experience also consisting of both public schools and private Catholic schools.

She was first elected to the school board in 2012, which was prior to Trustee Area voting.

Orlando was the board representative for Trustee Area 5, which was made up of east Jack Tone Road, bounded by a large section north of the Stanislaus River.