Winners of the 2023-2024 Los Angeles County Teachers of the Year and Classified Employees of the Year competitions hosted at Los Angeles Chargers game against New Orleans Saints on Oct. 27

SchoolsFirst Federal Credit Union, the largest credit union in California and the largest serving school employees and their families, hosted winners of the Los Angeles County Teachers of the Year and Classified Employees of the Year competitions at the Oct. 27 Los Angeles Chargers game against the New Orleans Saints. Honorees were given two game tickets each with premium seating in a suite at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. Among those in attendance, three Los Angeles County Teachers of the Year winners will move on to the California statewide competition.

Josh Smith, vice president, school and community relations for SchoolsFirst FCU, hosted the afternoon’s event, which honored the following winners of this year’s competitions in Los Angeles County:

Teachers of the Year

• Melissa Ellis, CTE/Intro to Health Careers, Bellflower High School, Bellflower Unified School District

• Alanna Grimaldi, Sixth-Grade Science, Luther Burbank Middle School, Burbank Unified School District

• May DeGuzman, AP English Literature & Composition, Leuzinger High School, Centinela Valley Union High School District

• Kirsten Neill, Fifth Grade, Old River Elementary School, Downey Unified School District

• Hannah Rodriguez, Preschool Special Education, Beardslee Dual Language Immersion Academy, Duarte Unified School District

• Bryan Johnson, Fifth Grade, Daisy Gibson Elementary School, Keppel Union School District

• Kimberly Furman, Kindergarten/Eighth-Grade Adapted PE, Promise Academy, Lancaster School District

• Andrew Lewis, Music, Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts, Los Angeles Unified School District

• Kimberly Min, First and Second Grades, Open Magnet Charter School, Los Angeles Unified School District

• Marcella Lopez, First Grade, Frank del Olmo Elementary School, Los Angeles Unified School District

• Daniel Leonard, Sixth-Grade Science, Manhattan Beach Middle School, Manhattan Beach Unified School District

• Alison Meloserdoff, Third Grade, Wild Rose School of Creative Arts, Monrovia Unified School District

• Danielle Burson, Kindergarten, D.D. Johnston Elementary School, Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District

• Courtney Baker, First Grade, Jefferson Elementary School, Redondo Beach Unified School District

• Casey Cuny, Honors English/Myth & Folklore, Valencia High School, William S. Hart Union High School District

• Aimee Glotz, Sixth-Grade English, Wiseburn Middle School, Wiseburn Unified School District

Classified Employees of the Year

• Yvonne Garcia, Clerical and Administrative Services, District Office, Pasadena Unified School District

• Anthony Martinez, Custodial and Maintenance Services, Blair IB Magnet School, Pasadena Unified School District

• Nairi Karkudian, Food and Nutrition Services, Ben Lomond Elementary School, Covina-Valley Unified School District

• Kimberly Patterson, Health and Student Services, Claremont High School, Claremont Unified School District

• Merrylin Edwards, Paraprofessional Services, Cherrylee School, El Monte City School District

• Stephen Ford, Security Services, Palmdale Academy Charter School, Palmdale School District

• Joseph Federico, Skilled Trade Services, Facilities Division C3, Los Angeles Unified School District

• Christian Gonzalez, Technical Services, Technology Department, Downey Unified School District

• Pedro “Pete” Cruz, Transportation Services, Transportation Department, Downey Unified School District

“The Los Angeles County Teachers of the Year and Classified Employees of the Year winners are exemplary in creating positive environments to enhance learning and prepare students for successful futures,” said Josh Smith of SchoolsFirst FCU. “We wanted to personally thank the winners and celebrate their achievements in a fun way that recognizes their hard work, dedication and commitment to education.”