A high school English teacher and a middle school study skills and intervention teacher are the Sacramento County Teachers of the Year 2021. The Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) made the announcement yesterday during a virtual celebration via video conference.
- Video: Teachers of the Year 2021 Celebration Event (courtesy SECC)
(Also airs on Comcast Channel 15/Consolidated 21/U-Verse 14—8/14 at 12:30 p.m., 8/15 at 9 a.m., 8/16 at 4:30 p.m., and 8/19 at 12:30 p.m.)
Belinda Foster is an 11th grade English teacher at Grant Union High School (Twin Rivers Unified School District). Lynda Bettencourt is a study skills and intervention teacher at James Rutter Middle School (Elk Grove Unified School District).
A selection committee comprised of education professionals, including previous Sacramento County Teachers of the Year, interviewed the 12 local district Teachers of the Year and selected the two winners. All of the school districts within Sacramento County, local charter schools, and SCOE, are invited to participate in the annual program. Larger districts are eligible to nominate two teachers.
During the virtual celebration, Sacramento County Superintendent of Schools David W. Gordon introduced the teachers. Each spoke about what it meant for them to be chosen as Teachers of the Year for their district. Sacramento County Board of Education President Joanne Ahola announced the two county winners, who will receive the Elinor Lincoln Hickey Award of Merit—the highest honor bestowed by the County Board of Education. The Sacramento Scottish Rite Bodies of Freemasonry will also provide both teachers with perpetual trophies that honor them during the upcoming school year.
SCOE is collaborating with the Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium (SECC) to produce a Teachers of the Year 2021 awards program that will air at a date and time to be announced.
The two winners join an elite group of teachers who have represented Sacramento County over the years. Previous Sacramento County Teachers of the Year are listed online, going back to the 1973–74 school year.
Update 8/10/20: Added SECC video presentation.
