Recognizing excellence. 2016 Golden Apple Awardees Bertha Blanco (front, second from left) and Irma Delgado (front, center) receive accolades from LACOE Head Start-State Preschool Executive Director Keesha Woods (left) and delegate agency supervisory staff.

On January 10, 2017, the Los Angeles County Board of Education awarded the Third Annual Golden Apple awards for teaching excellence to Bertha Blanco and Irma Delgado.  This annual honor recognizes teachers’ dedication and commitment to educating our youngest and most vulnerable children and families in Los Angeles County.

Bertha Blanco, a Head Start teacher at Mountain View SD, is a supportive, dedicated teacher who provides an active, engaging environment for her students.  This includes adopting new technology in the classroom. “Her students often use iPads and desk computers during free choice time,” said Alma Gonzales, Mt. View Head Start Director. Blanco also effectively uses CLASS and Creative Curriculum, so that “preschool students can experience a warm and inviting classroom, a rich learning environment, and participate in the highest instruction offered,” stated Gonzales.

Irma Delgado, an Early Head Start teacher at Pomona USD, “is fully invested in the success of the children and families who are in her classroom,” according to Vicki Vazquez, Pomona USD EHS Center-Based Supervisor. Delgado incorporates new and innovative ways to stimulate, encourage, and engage infants, and “involves the parents in creating learning materials to be used at home,” Vazquez added.  Delgado uses DRDP as her guide in making lesson plans that “challenge the children to reach new developmental levels in a routine-based curriculum structure.”

The two Golden Apple awardees were selected from an exemplary group of dedicated teachers, including:

  • Monica Beltran, EHS teacher (Mexican American Opportunity Foundation)
  • Maria Diaz, HS teacher (Pomona USD)
  • Ena Dorantes, HS teacher (Para Los Niños)
  • Jacqueline Flietes, HS teacher (ABCUSD)
  • Lucy Moreno, EHS teacher (Norwalk-La Mirada USD)
  • Julie Ortega, HS teacher (Foundation for Early Childhood Education, Inc.)
  • Jennifer Ramirez, HS teacher (Norwalk-La Mirada USD)
  • Leticia Valencia, HS teacher (Children’s Institute, Inc.).