Five local teachers to be honored as San Diego County Teachers of the Year

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) – Five teachers from across the region have been named a San Diego County Teacher of the Year and will be honored Saturday during the 30th Anniversary of “Cox Presents: A Salute To Teachers.”

Sponsored by the San Diego County Credit Union and produced by Cox Communications in partnership with the San Diego County Office of Education, this year’s show will be a pre-recorded television special airing at 7 p.m. on Cox’s YurView Network.

The five honorees representing schools from Del Mar, Lakeside, Ramona, central San Diego and Valley Center, were chosen from a pool of 40 nominees countywide who are their respective school districts’ teacher of the year.

“”Cox Presents: A Salute to Teachers” has always provided an exciting platform to showcase the incredible work being done by teachers across San Diego County, said Paul Gothold, county superintendent of schools.

“Teachers are working harder than ever to make sure that students are learning and their social and emotional needs are met. It’s important that we continue to celebrate the profession and recognize the accomplishments of our County Teachers of the Year honorees as well as all of the nominees,” he said.

The five San Diego County Teachers of the Year were selected based on criteria including student progress, school-community involvement, teaching philosophy and commitment to lifelong learning. They were chosen by a panel of past Teacher of the Year honorees, education administrators and a parent representative.

The 2020-21 San Diego County Teachers of the Year are:

— Arah Allard, Del Mar Hills Elementary School, Del Mar Union School District;

— Christine Hill, Ramona High School, Ramona Unified School District;

— Jose Melo, Valley Center Middle School, Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District;

— Paula Richardson, Wilson Middle School, San Diego Unified School District; and

— Jay Tweet, El Capitan High School, Grossmont Union High School District.

Since its inception in 1991, the event has been an in-person black-tie awards show with celebrity presenters and student performances. For the 30th anniversary, the show will instead air as a pre-recorded television special honoring the San Diego County Teachers of the Year as well as catching up with past winners as they navigate the challenges and triumphs of a global pandemic and social and political unrest.

“Just as the classroom looks different this year due to the pandemic, so will our show,” said Sam Attisha, vice president and region manager for Cox Communications. “But we’ll still capture the passion, creativity, and innovation of San Diego County’s 26,000 public school teachers.”