Four teachers and eight classified employees were honored by the San Joaquin County Office of Education for their hard work and dedication.
The annual awards honor the best of the best in the education profession and celebrate the talented, caring, and committed educators and school personnel who make a difference in the lives of their students and in the community, the San Joaquin County Office of Education said in a news release.
The 12 honorees, who were nominated by their colleagues, were announced during a virtual celebration. The Teacher of the Year finalists and Classified School Employees of the Year winners received $400 each from Premier Community Credit Union and the Teacher of the Year received a $1,000 award.
Texas Keo, with 14-years of experience teaching at Ripon Elementary School, was named the 2021 San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year by the San Joaquin County Office of Education.
Keo currently teaches TK-3 as a Title 1 Response to Intervention teacher. She is also a nominee for California Teacher of the Year.
Ms. Keo gets to know her students as individuals. She differentiates instruction for each and every one of her students, as well as provides clear and effective guidance for teachers struggling to help students from the general education classroom,"Principal Dana Phelps wrote in her nomination letter."Texas takes the time to get to know each of the students she comes into contact with at Ripon Elementary. She is knowledgeable of their interests, family situations, and hobbies. She utilizes this knowledge to enhance her lessons to make them more meaningful and engaging for all her students in her program.
Renae Potts, a sixth grade teacher at Jefferson Elementary School, Jefferson Unified: You can't teach, you can't reach kids unless you reach them emotionally so if you're not, if you're not an interesting person or you're not kind, you're not smiling or you don't have a connection with the kids, they're not going to learn from you so she, she not only does that type of thing in her classroom to make kids just like her and want to learn from her, she, she does that on my entire campus,Principal Alyssa Wooten said in her nomination letter.
Amanda Bailey, a second grade teacher at Bohn Elementary School, Tracy Unified: She is the first one on campus, and the last one to leave every day. She creates activities that engage her students and help them bring life to what they are learning. You'll often hear her helping students make connections with their learning based on experiences they have shared with them. "Jonathan, what was the weather like when you went to (the) beach?" How can that weather impact sea walls?" The students love her because she listens to them and remembers what they tell her,Principal Michael Burstein said in an email.
Hans Schmitz, high school teacher at Sierra High School, Manteca Unified: I can say without hesitation that Mr. Schmitz is not only an exemplary educator, but a valuable piece of overall school culture and climate on campus to our students and school community in more ways than one. Each and every day he brings a tremendous amount of passion and advocacy for digital media education and overall student growth. Mr. Schmitz possesses a tremendous work ethic and is the consummate professional, Assistant Principal Anthony Chapman said in his nomination letter.
Devon Vallon, third grade teacher at Bethany Elementary School, Lammersville Unified: Mrs. Vallons classroom is her canvas, and she paints a rich and inviting environment where expectations are high and learning is fun. Slinkies are used to model syllabic principals and the expansion of sentences. Desks are made into covered wagons and children are organized into pioneer families to create enthusiasm for social studies curriculum. Dissections are utilized to support and enhance science curriculum. Readers Theater and poetry recitations are used to enhance reading fluency and intonation. Instruction in Mrs. Vallons classroom is never boring, Principal Deborah Wingo said in her nomination letter.
Pamela Wampler, LVN (Licensed Vocational Nurse), health and student services, McFall School, San Joaquin County Office of Education. Wampler was also named the California Classified Employee of the Year in the category of Health and Student Services: Pam is the mother to staff and students alike. She mentors young nurses and health aides by helping them to learn all of the organizational and technical skills needed for the position. More importantly, she mentors them in compassion and understanding for the unique needs of each individual in our student population. Pam takes the time to get to know our students, so she can best support them and their families. She is a role model for employees regarding best practices in working with our student population, BSN RN Director 1, Nursing Services SJCOE Donna J. Beckman said in her nomination letter.
Manuel Faria, mechanic specialist, skilled trades, transportation shop, Tracy Unified: On my end based on his professionalism, his attention to detail. He's always willing to step in and help when needed, and he's cordial, hes respectful of both his fellow employees and his supervisors, he's not afraid to give his opinion. said Director of Maintenance Anthony Flores. He has attention to detail, his number one priority is to make sure that those buses are safe for the students, and he won't let us out if he has any concern that it's not safe for the students to ride on, Coordinator of Maintenance Lisa Sawyer said.
Darla Harmon, data analyst, clerical and administrative services, District Office, Ripon Unified: Darla has been our data analyst and so much more for nearly six years now. The data analysts primary focus is maintaining the student information systems, Aeries and CALPADs. Mrs. Harmon is very thorough and accurate in all of her tasks and makes certain that projects and related reports are completed in a timely basis. She has received recognition from state entities for her lack of errors. Darla also manages the software for online curriculum, assessment systems, library and food service programs and other necessities. I last counted a list of about twenty-five programs that she maintains, Director of Curriculum Kathy Coleman said in her nomination letter.
Harold Moore, head custodian, custodial and maintenance services, Van Buren Elementary School, Stockton Unified: Mr. Harold, as he is known in our school and community is a vital part of school family. He takes pride in his job performance and it is evident by the compliments we receive from visitors. He is trustworthy, professional, reliable and you will never hear no I am not able to do that from him. He will do whatever needs to be done to make sure our school is safe and clean and that our community members feel welcomed and heard at our school, Principal Isabel Arellano said in her nomination letter.
Nick Watson, information technology coordinator, technical services, District Office, Jefferson Elementary School District: Nick is kind, professional, and has a big heart. He has a genuine passion for his craft. That is conveyed in the manner in which he answers every tech call, follows up with every email, and takes the extra time to explain the hows? and whys?, no matter how silly the question. In our office, we joke that he either tucks in his wings or hides his superhero cape really well! Within seconds of submitting a service request ticket, he magically appears in the office, ready to address all of our technology needs. Amazingly, he does this on each and every campus, each and every day! (We still have not figured out how he does it!) Over the years, Nick has built great relationships with administration, staff and even our families. He treats everyone with kindness and respect, and we all genuinely enjoy working with him. He is truly the fixer of all things! Principal Emily Stroup said in her nomination letter.
Joan Gonzalez, cook manager, food and nutrition services, John R. Williams Elementary School, Lincoln Unified: Joan helped spearhead our districts effort of feeding all children during the pandemic, working weekends beyond her normal work hours. She prepared meals at the district and site level. At our school site alone, Joan and her team at one point were distributing over 1,500 meals weekly! Not only is the number of meals prepared and distributed remarkable, but we received tremendous comments from parents about the meal contents and how wonderful they were. Joan personally selects what goes in the meals and she takes great care in her preparation. Joan accommodates parents who cannot receive meals at the set distribution times due to work, Principal Jennifer Heck said in her nomination letter.
Mike Kuhnlenz, campus monitor, security services, East Union High School, Manteca Unified: From the first day Mike started on our campus five years ago as a Campus Monitor, he stood out for his initiative and willingness to go above and beyond the job description. I actually had noticed him picking up papers with a bucket after lunch had ended and I had thought some of the guys were pranking him about his responsibilities and questioned who had told him to do that, I was quite taken aback when he responded I just saw all the trash left behind and figured if I was walking around campus anyway…I would just pick it up. Soon others began to follow his lead as well as myself. When calls go out for any task on campus, Mike is always the first to respond or volunteer and is often sought out as the go to guy by office staff and administration when a job is needed quickly, Principal Raul Mora said in his nomination letter.
Ashley Fisher, library technician, paraprofessional, McKinley Elementary School, Tracy Unified: Ashley began in this position in January 2018 and has gone above and beyond since day one. She has taken her love of books and reading and has not only shared it with families of McKinley, she has shared this love with families at other sites as well. Over the summer, Ashley delivered books to EVERY McKinley students home. These were books that she worked to have donated and she organized and distributed them. This school year, Ashley has had more books donated and on some of our students materials distribution days, she has students go through and pick out books to keep, Principal Shannon Bancroft said in her nomination letter.
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