Each year, Parenting OC selects some of the best and brightest education professionals from a countywide pool of nominees for its annual School Heroes of Orange County recognition.
In its 11th awards season, the program is once again seeking administrator-approved nominations for teachers who go above and beyond to make a positive impact on their campuses and in the lives of students.
The publication also seeks to honor classified school staff who make outstanding contributions to their schools and leaders who have dedicated their careers to providing a quality education to students. Colleagues, families and peers are encouraged to submit their favorite education professional serving in public, private, online and alternative K-12 schools.
Nominations, which include a 400-word essay, can be submitted to parentingoc.com by Jan. 2. All applications must be approved by the nominee’s school principal or site administrator before reaching the selection process conducted by the publication’s panel of judges.
The top honorees will be featured in Parenting OC’s 11th annual special awards issue in March. After receiving more than 237 nominations last year, the publication is hoping to double the amount of educators this award season.
The School Heroes of Orange County recognition is not to be confused with OCDE’s Teachers of the Year program, which hosted its annual ceremony at the Disneyland Hotel earlier this month and advances finalists to compete in the state Teacher of the Year program.
Last year, Los Amigos High School economics teacher Rebeca Martinez was selected as Parenting OC’s Top Teacher of the Year. Patty Fabian, lead office coordinator for Vibrant Minds Charter School, and Adrienne Kessler, CEO of the Speech and Language Development Center in Buena Park, were named the 2023 Top Leader and Top Employee, respectively.
Award category details and criteria for nominations can be found at parentingoc.com/top-teacher-awards. For more information on the awards program, contact Madison Amirehteshami at madison@parentingoc.com or 714-630-4510.