Two faculty members at Fort Dodge Senior High School have been honored for their efforts at preventing violence.

Counselor Jolene Hays and art teacher Samantha Henriksen received the 2025-2026 Dan Marburger Mentors in Violence Prevention Advocacy Award.

The awards, announced Thursday, were presented by the Patricia A. Tomson Center for Violence Prevention at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls.

The award recognizes individuals whose advocacy of the center’s Mentors in Violence Prevention Strategies program has had a positive impact in their communities and reflects the same commitment to violence prevention demonstrated by the late Perry High School Principal Dan Marburger. The program trains student leaders and supportive adults to guide discussions and activities around scenarios that depict interpersonal violence and bullying, with an emphasis on the role of bystanders in prevention.

Hays has served as a school counselor in Fort Dodge since 2013, dedicating her career to student advocacy, mental health support and violence prevention. In 2019, she became an MVP advisor, guiding implementation of the program within her school.

Henriksen has taught art at Fort Dodge Senior High School for three years. For the past two years, she has helped lead the implementation of the MVP program at the school.

“We want to congratulate these tremendous champions for their work in creating safe school climates for their students,” said Alysa Mozak, director of the Patricia A. Tomson Center for Violence Prevention.

Award winners will be recognized at a private event later this spring.

“We continue to honor the profound impact Dan Marburger had in his school community and through his support of our MVP program,” said Mozak. “We are grateful to Dan’s family for helping us continue this recognition through an award in his name.”

The Patricia A. Tomson Center for Violence Prevention is the lead training center for MVP in the Midwest and has supported more than 70 secondary schools and 25 colleges and universities in Iowa in this primary prevention program since 2012. First established at the University of Northern Iowa in 2011, the center marks its 15th anniversary in 2026.