The Santa Clarita Valley Education Foundation is set to host its 37th Annual Teacher Tribute on Friday, April 30 to honor the 2020/2021 Teachers of the Year.

The community is invited to help celebrate during this virtual event which will showcase this year’s theme: MASK-ERADE.

“The theme of the event was selected because behind every mask is a person and behind every person is a story. We felt that after spending a year wearing a mask and teaching in a virtual world, we needed to emphasize the faces and stories of these outstanding teachers”, says Executive Director Jackie Hartmann. “We can’t wait to share their stories. They deserve to be recognized, now more than ever.”

Teacher Tribute will be a hybrid event. Honorees will be provided with a socially-distanced red-carpet experience prior to the virtual ceremony.

They can be joined by anyone sharing their household, walk a red carpet, be photographed by “paparazzi” and receive a catered meal from Marston’s, along with a swag bag filled with wine, dessert, a personalized award, printed program, tote and more.

The virtual ceremony will premiere at 6 p.m. on the SCVEF Facebook page, SCVTV’s Facebook page on the SCVEF and SCVTV websites, on local cable channels Spectrum 20 and AT&T 99, and on SCVTV’s Apple TV and Roku apps. Honorees can invite their family and friends from anywhere in the world to join them “at” a virtual viewing party!

“Last year one of the honorees invited their family from India to watch. What a unique advantage it was to hold the event virtually”, said Hartmann.

There is no cost for guests to join in the celebration. Premier Partners of the SCV Education Foundation are helping to fund the cost of the tribute.

“Our year-round education partners make such a difference to our organization,” Hartmann said. “I have to say thank you to JSB Development, the California Credit Union, Harley Davidson of Santa Clarita, Pocock Brewing Company, FivePoint, Foster Construction, Claremont Homes and SoCaGas for their on-going support of public schools in Santa Clarita”.

The SCV Education Foundation is looking for gift basket sponsors and donations for swag bag items. Those interested in supporting Teacher Tribute are asked to visit their website at www.scveduactionfoundaiton.org or text “MASKERADE” to 44-321.

Teacher Tribute honors one teacher from each of the 54 public schools who are selected by their peers and school administrators.

The 2020/2021 Teachers of the Year are:

• Castaic Union School District
  Castaic Elementary
  Alyson Baron

• Castaic Middle
  Jeannetta Thomas

• Live Oak Elementary
  Brian Malette

• Northlake Hills
  Taylor Schubert

• Newhall School District
  McGrath Elementary
  Karla Valenzuela

• Meadows Elementary
  Amy Dobry

• Newhall Elementary
  Barbara Patten

• Oak Hills Elementary
  Tera Stulbaum

• Old Orchard Elementary
  Christine Worby

• Peachland Elementary
  Sinna Severini

• Stevenson Ranch Elementary
  Kelly Miyake

• Valencia Valley Elementary
  Amy Pierson

• Wiley Canyon Elementary
  Michele Hunt

• Saugus Union School District
  Bridgeport Elementary
  Cathy Demidow

• Cedarcreek Elementary
  Allison Smith-Fullarton

• Emblem Academy
  Emily Wargo-Williams

• Charles Helmers
  Kristin McCardy

• Highlands Elementary
  Laura Yanez

• James Foster Elementary
  Shauna Booth

• Mountainview Elementary
  Rob Ayres

• North Park Elementary
  Tina Suwarno

• Plum Canyon Elementary
  Michelle Mularky

• Rio Vista Elementary
  Mary Beth Lewison

• Rosedell Elementary
  Kristen Luna

• Santa Clarita Elementary
  Kelly Pugsley

• Skyblue Mesa Elementary
  Beth Perdisatt

• Tesoro del Valle Elementary
  Lori Turner

• Westcreek Academy
  Emily Norman

• Sulphur Springs School District
  Canyon Springs Community
  Jeri Potter

• Fair Oaks Ranch Community
  Nicole Tzanetatos

• Golden Oak Community
  Holly Linam

• Leona Cox Community
  Melanie Elder

• Mint Canyon Community
  Whitney Salerno

• Mitchell Community
  Trina Mitchell

• Pinetree Community
  Jennifer Guzman

• Sulphur Springs Community
  Renee Perez

• Valley View Community
  Selma Asmatey

• Wm S Hart School District
  Academy of the Canyons
  Dustin Funk

• Arroyo Seco Jr. High
  Lisa Simmons

• Bowman High School
  Shonna August

• Canyon High School
  Dan Davis

• Golden Valley High School
  Courtney Straka

• Hart High School
  Cynthia Ross

• La Mesa Jr. High
  Jennifer Frias

• Placerita Jr. High
  Lauren Sperber

• Rancho Pico Jr. High
  Devon Hensley

• Rio Norte Jr. High
  Leanne Bonilla

• Saugus High
  Jim Klipfel

• Sequoia Charter
  Fidel Garcia

• Sierra Vista Jr. High
  Mary Sirchia

• Valencia High
  Christine Mocha

• West Ranch High
  Alison Hunsaker

The Santa Clarita Valley Education Foundation was founded in 1995 to foster relationships between businesses, schools, the community, educators and youth to enrich public school education and to promote appreciation for public school education in the Santa Clarita Valley. In support of these goals, the Education Foundation sponsors several annual events and programs to foster and support excellence in education for students of Santa Clarita Valley. The programs include Teacher Tribute, Principal for a Day, Page Turners, Teacher Innovation Grants, Scholarships, Bag of Books and Read with Me!