Jimmy Nguyen danced his last dance before the students of Northwood Elementary School on Friday.

Known as an enthusiastic emcee at school spirit assemblies, Nguyen, a fourth-grade teacher in the Puyallup School District, won’t return to the Edgewood campus next year.

Nguyen received a Reduction in Force notice last month, which warned him the teaching job he’s held for two years might not be around in 2009-10 because of budget cuts.

A total of 68 Puyallup teachers received layoff notices, 19 of whom have since been offered their jobs back. But the lack of seniority for 24-year-old Nguyen placed him at the bottom of the rehire list.

He helped lead Northwood’s last school spirit assembly of the year Friday as students prepared to leave for summer vacation – and as he prepared to leave the school for good.

To introduce a group of student dancers, he gave his own comic impression of breakdancing, drawing laughs from the crowd of about 300 students.

He’s disappointed he won’t get to watch his fourth-graders grow up and move on to fifth and sixth grade, he said.

“I really looked at Northwood as my home for years,” Nguyen said. “This school was supposed to be the one.”

Nguyen is facing a reality not uncommon throughout South Sound school districts this year. Districts ranging from small White River to larger Peninsula and Bethel have turned to reductions in teachers and other staff to cope with deep state budget cuts and declining enrollment.

For Northwood Elementary, that means the loss of one of the school’s most promising and unique teachers, said Principal Lisa Nolan.

Nguyen is the only teacher at Northwood whose position is being eliminated through the RIF process. He’s also the only full-time male teacher at the school and the only teacher of color.

He’s the kind of educator whom younger students look forward to having, Nolan said.

“Really, it’s a trickle effect that goes much deeper than the loss of a job,” Nolan said. “It’s the loss of a school community member.”

Nguyen’s students recall fondly how he played with them at recess and took them on a variety of field trips. He started an intramural kickball and basketball program during the lunchtime and recess hour.

“He’s really fun and nice, and he’s a great teacher,” said 10-year-old Patrick Mooney. “I felt sorry for all the people who won’t get to be in his class. I wish I had him all the time.”

Nguyen’s students gathered in a circle Friday to share their memories of the past year. They tossed a water balloon between them to determine whose turn it was to speak. With each toss of the balloon, they drew their breath until it was safely caught.

Water balloons have been a staple in Nguyen’s class the past year as a way to have some fun. One student’s favorite memory was of attacking the teacher with balloons on his birthday.

Another’s was the class visit to the Paul H. Karshner Museum in Puyallup, which houses a collection of historic artifacts from around the world as well as some glass pieces by Dale Chihuly.

Some students gave Nguyen goodbye cards – and, on their parents’ behalf, gift cards to Starbucks and the Olive Garden.

“I just love his teaching style, the way he can engage children,” said Connie Steimle, whose daughter Amanda was in Nguyen’s class last year. “He really knows how to grab their attention.”

Nguyen has already received an offer to teach at Green Gables Elementary School in the Federal Way School District, he said, though the paperwork has yet to be finalized.

He and his wife, Rachel, a Highline Community College teacher, live in Federal Way.

Having a job lined up didn’t make Friday’s goodbyes much easier, he said.

Students wished him well at his new school as they left and boarded buses home for the summer. He encouraged them to e-mail him with updates about their lives and progress in school.

“That feeling of not being here is uncomfortable,” Nguyen said. “I wanted to be here for these students.”

Melissa Santos: 253-552-7058

melissa.santos@thenewstribune.com