The Ed Fund celebrated and honored the excellence of five West Contra Costa Unified School District teachers and 20 scholarship T h e E d F u n d • 1 7 C W . R i c h m o n d A v e • R i c h m o n d , C A 9 4 8 0 1 winners at its 29th Annual Soaring to Excellence Celebration on May 12th. In addition, the Ed Fund showcased the work of its collaborative partners by recognizing a 2017 Collaborative Partner of the Year. Student performances by the DeAnza Jazz Band and El Cerrito High School Dance students were also featured. The Ed Fund was honored to have WCCUSD Superintendent Matt Duffy as our keynote speaker and guest speaker President of United Teachers of Richmond (UTR) Demetrio Gonzalez. 2017 TEACHING EXCELLENCE AWARD WINNERS The five 2017 Teaching Excellence Awards winners who were honored at the Soaring to Excellence Celebration share a profound passion for instilling a love of learning in their students so that each student can attain their goals and realize their dreams. By carefully and thoughtfully weaving creativity, adherence to high standards, profound knowledge of the subjects being taught, and appreciation of individual differences, needs and strengths, these award winning teachers raise the quality of education to new heights. Tiffany Okubo Chieudjui 3rd Grade Teacher, Grant Elementary School Ms. Chieudjui has very strong roots with the West Contra Costa Unified School District as she grew up in West Contra Costa County and her mother was a long-time teacher in the District. Ms. Chieudjui has a very special way of engaging students even before a lesson has started. She’s always looking to find ways to enhance student learning by seeking opportunities that allow students to tie the lessons into real life experiences that have an everlasting impact. Using innovation and technology she taps into every students’ hidden talents. She fosters creativity by allowing self-expression and providing student choice. She taps into students’ interests and chooses themes that are enjoyable to the students and creates cross curricular activities-slightly above their skill level and then raises the challenge as performances improves. Jasmine Johnson 5th Grade Teacher, Richmond College Prep Elementary As an educator, Ms. Johnson’s is to create an academically rigorous and rich experience where all students are growing and creating. It’s also equally important that students learn about themselves, their histories, and begin to see themselves as creators in this world. If you were to walk into her classroom, she would want you to see students who are passionately engaged, students who are reading and writing, and speaking and listening to each other. She values participation and believes that true learning only takes place once students are talking, moving, and truly engaging with materials. Of course, this level of work requires her students to be at school every day, and it demands that they show integrity and urgency.
Contra Costa Marketplace - June 2017
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