Seventeen teachers representing all of the Hart District's schools have been named Teacher of the Year by their respective sites. All 17 will be presented to the Hart District Governing Board at its October meeting, when one will be announced as District Teacher of the Year, to represent the Hart District in Los Angeles County competition.
This year's Teachers of the Year and the schools they represent are:
John Ahart has been teaching science at Hart High School since 1989 and currently is chair of the Science Department. He has also been coach or assistant coach for girls tennis, girls soccer, track, and football. "My life's work is to inspire our future generations to make this a better, more sustainable world in which to live," he commented.
Audrey Asplund currently teaches World History at Rio Norte Junior High School, where she has been since 2003. She came to the Hart District in 1999 and taught history, science and a special day class at La Mesa Junior High. She was awarded New Teacher of the Year honors in 1990 for the Los Angeles Unified School District's North Valley Region.
Pete Chavez teaches English as a Second Language at Golden Oak Adult School, a position he has held since 1993. A veteran teacher with LAUSD during the day, he dedicates his evenings to helping local students learn English. "We work a lot in adult school classes on goal setting and life skills," he adds.
Shirley Colvin has been at La Mesa Junior High since 1994, where she teaches Life Science. She joined the Hart District in 1986 as a substitute teacher and has taught at Sierra Vista and Placerita junior high schools. She helped organize "World of Difference" student workshops to develop understanding between students and the "Renaissance in Education" rewards program.
Daniel Cota, Jr. was selected to represent Placerita Junior High, where he teaches physical education. He also works with the football program at Hart High School and coordinates the all-district junior high school track and field, cross country and basketball tournament programs. He has been with the Hart District since 1991.
Dave DeLong teaches mathematics at Canyon High School and has been head cross country and track coach at Canyon for 20 years. He serves on the support team for the Hart District's new teachers and is a frequent volunteer for student activities on campus. He was CIF Coach of the Year in 2000 and has led his teams to a number of championships and honors.
Victoria Elfstrom teaches social studies at Academy of the Canyons. Students in her Virtual Enterprise classes have been nationally recognized for the virtual businesses run on the AOC campus. She also serves as the activities directors and is responsible for teaching the student government class as well as for overseeing all of the student activities throughout the year.
Sandra Geyer represents Bowman High School, where she has been teaching since 2003 and is currently the technology coordinator. She serves on the school's Leadership Team and has developed a number of successful grant applications and award nominations. She taught in the district's Intensive Literacy Program in 2005 and previously served with the SCV School & Business Alliance.
Seth Groller is a mathematics teacher and head boys varsity soccer coach at Saugus High School, where he has taught since 2002. He was instrumental in restructuring the honors math classes at Saugus in preparation for bringing Advanced Placement Calculus BC to Saugus High School, a first in the school's history.
Patricia Hibbert has been a special education teacher at Sequoia Charter School since 2006. From a background in private industry, Hibbert has become a "phenomenal" teacher, according to her nomination, keeping students actively engaged in the subject matter. She provides each student with quality education and a safe learning environment.
Von Hougo has been at Arroyo Seco Junior High since 2003, where he teaches science, photography, technology, history, Film as Literature and video production. Last year his class established the first television station at Arroyo Seco, producing a daily closed circuit television program. His classes are filled with hands-on and creative activities.
Julie Huffman teaches eighth grade physical science at Sierra Vista Junior High and has implemented a school-wide intervention program to help at-risk students. She has worked with a number of after-school programs and created a range of programs which encourage families to become involved in their students' education.
Mary Krumrich has been a physical education teacher, ASB director and intramural supervisor and coach at Rancho Pico Junior High since 2004. She joined the Hart District in 2002 at La Mesa Junior High as a physical education teacher and intramural supervisor and coach. She has coached girls' basketball at both Rancho Pico and La Mesa.
Sean O'Brien is an English teacher and English Department chair at West Ranch High School, where he has been on staff since 2004. He served those positions at Hart High from 2003 to 2004. He has been a head coach for junior varsity football at both Hart and West Ranch high schools. He also serves on the support team for new teachers in the Hart District.
Harlen Perlman has an educational background in social studies and physical education, but he teaches all subjects to his independent study students at Learning Post High School. He has been with Learning Post since 1992 and revels in the close student-teacher relationships he is able to develop. "Live your words and model good behavior" is his mantra.
Susan Peterson is a chemistry teacher at Valencia High School, where she also serves as advisor to the Science Olympiad team and Color Guard. She first came to the Hart District as a volunteer tutor at Bowman High School, then as a substitute teacher, before joining the Valencia staff in 2002. She also has taught in the district's Intensive Literacy Program for two summers.
John Salapatek has been on the staff at Golden Valley High School since 2005, where he teaches English. He also is head of the 11 th grade American Literature team and sole teacher of 12 th grade Shakespeare. He comes to Golden Valley with a professional background in show business and is interested in teaching drama and film as well as English.
Teacher of the Year honorees are chosen by their peers and the administration at each site. The District Teacher of the Year advances to the county level, where a small number of honorees are selected to represent Los Angeles County at the state and possibly even the national level.
All of the district's Teachers of the Year will be honored at a luncheon this fall at Robinson Ranch, in addition to their Governing board presentation. Their portraits will be on display in the district's Administrative Center for the 2007-08 school year.