Names of Note: Stanislaus honors latest Teachers of the Year. Middle-schoolers excel
The Stanislaus County Office of Education announced its latest Teachers of the Year, chosen from 57 nominees.
Chelsea Bustos of Sinclear Elementary School in Ceres won among pre-kindergarten through third-grade teachers. Danelle Garcia of Dieterich Elementary School in Modesto topped the fourth- to sixth-grade category.
Charlyn Selee of Dutcher Middle School in Turlock placed first for seventh and eighth grades. Eli Bynum of Downey High School in Modesto won the secondary contest.
The selection committee screened the applications and chose 24 semi-finalists for classroom visits. It then narrowed the list to 12 finalists, who were recognized May 3 at the 23rd annual ceremony at the DoubleTree Hotel in Modesto.
The contest is co-sponsored by the Modesto Rotary Club Foundation and Mocse Credit Union. The four winners received $1,000 each and will move on to statewide competitions.
The annual Jane Johnston Civility Award went to finalist Janette Schmidt of Fox Road Elementary School in Hughson. It is named for an assistant county superintendent who died suddenly in 2012.
The other finalists were:
- Kelsey Larrabee of Magnolia Elementary School in Oakdale
- Kelli Redman of Chatom Elementary School, west of Turlock
- Amy Harper of Freedom Elementary School in Modesto
- Amanda Bailey of Blaker-Kinser Junior High School in Ceres
- Kelli Conner of Beaver Elementary School in Ceres
- Megan Hulst of Central Valley High School in Ceres
- Yohan Partan of Pitman High School in Turlock
Ross tops Pentathlon
Ross Middle School won the Stanislaus County Academic Pentathlon for 2022, held April 30. The Blue Team at Our Lady of Fatima School placed second, Great Valley Academy third.
The event tests seventh- and eighth-graders in math, fine arts, language/literature, science and social studies. They compete via speeches, written tests and essays in three divisions based on grade point average — Honors (3.8 to 4.0), Scholastic (3.25 to 3.79) and Varsity (3.24 and below).
The gold medal winners by subject:
- Science: Elizabeth Becchetti of Ross, Honors; Megan Duke of Ross, Scholastic; Mariana Rizo of Our Lady of Fatima Gold, Varsity
- Math: Samantha Valdivia of Ross, Honors; Cadence Murphy of Great Valley and Will Coppedge of Our Lady of Fatima Blue, Scholastic; Martin Montez of Our Lady of Fatima Blue, Varsity
- Social science: Elizabeth Becchetti of Ross, Honors; Nemaia O’Brien Our Lady of Fatima Blue, Scholastic; Natalie Corona of Ross, Varsity
- Fine Arts: Isabella Michelena of Blaker-Kinser, Honors. Megan Duke of Ross and Kimberly Vazquez of Hickman, Scholastic; Noeli Gomez Orozco of Ross, Varsity
- Language/literature: Samantha Valdivia of Ross, Honors; Maryna Pimental of Ross, Scholastic; Natalie Corona of Ross, Varsity
The top speeches were by Iyska Rangel of Oakdale in Honors, Megan Duke of Ross in Scholastic and Tyler Sparks of Great Valley in Varsity.
Names of Note recognizes people and organizations for their contribution to their communities. Submit items to jholland@modbee.com.
