San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year says this is his biggest challenge as an educator

Angelaydet Rocha, The Record
·4 min read
San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year Gary Pease.
San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year Gary Pease.

Gary Pease says one of the biggest challenges he faces as an educator is getting students who miss school caught up.

“Some kids that have the kind of internal drive will do it on their own, but other kids that don't, that's the ones that are struggling,” Pease said. “That's why I make myself available before school and after school to try and reach those kids.”

His efforts to reach out to his students are a big part of why the Jefferson School teacher was picked as the San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year.

The award was presented to him at the San Joaquin County Classified Employees and Teacher of the Year Awards Celebration Dinner earlier this month.

“To me, I wouldn't have this award without the people that I work with,” Pease said.

Pease, 60, whose teaching career spans more than 30 years, has spent 21 of them at Jefferson School, where he is an eighth-grade math teacher in the Jefferson School District.

“Mr. Pease picks up every opportunity to reach the students, through Wednesday afternoon online STEAM classes, online in person or online tutoring, supporting students on Home in Hospital or on extended distance learning, to taking them under his wing and listening to them in time of need,” Alyssa Wooten, Jefferson School principal, said in her nomination letter.

Pease teaches three classes: The eighth-grade math class, a Jefferson District algebra class with students from three different sites, and a STEAM elective, which is a design and coding class. Overall, he teaches more than 150 students.

He has also mentored teachers and led the district's math professional learning team, has helped grow the STEAM department, and has also been a volleyball, basketball coach, and athletic director before the COVID-19 pandemic struck.

Five teachers at different schools across San Joaquin County were finalists for the title of San Joaquin County Teacher of the Year.

Finalists for 2022 Teacher of the Year:

  • Staci Diaz, El Portal Middle School, Escalon Unified School District: Diaz teaches seventh- and eighth-grade English Language Arts (ELA) and sixth-grade English Language Development (ELD) and has been teaching for more than 8 years.

  • Tammy Hurst, Altamont Elementary School, Lammersville Unified School District: Hurst teaches third grade and has been teaching for more than 17 years.

  • Annie Thompson, Ripona Elementary School, Ripon Unified School District: Thompson teaches sixth grade and has been teaching for more than 16 years.

  • Robert Winterhalter, Lodi High School, Lodi Unified School District: Winterhalter teaches grades nine through 12 and has been teaching for more than 17 years.

Eight school employees were also honored at the San Joaquin County Classified Employees and Teacher of the Year Awards Celebration Dinner. Custodial and maintenance services to food and nutrition services were all recognized.

All the winners were nominated by their colleagues. Top county classified employees were announced in late March. The Teacher of the Year finalists were announced in late April.

The Classified School Employees of the Year winners and the Teacher of the Year winner are county nominees for the California Department of Education recognition program.

As Teacher of the Year winner, Pease received $1,000 from Premier Community Credit Union. Teacher of the Year finalists received $400 each from the credit union. Classified School Employees of the Year winners also received $400 each.

2022 Classified School Employees of the Year winners:

  • Kelly Cabral, Clerk I, clerical and administrative services, Tom Hawkins Elementary School, Jefferson Elementary School District.

  • Arthur Medina, maintenance lead, custodial and maintenance services, Lincoln Unified School District.

  • Rachelle Metcalfe, nutrition services lead, food, and nutrition services, Lathrop Elementary School, Manteca Unified School District.

  • Hector Calderon, intervention and prevention specialist, health and student services, one.Program, San Joaquin County Office of Education.

  • Mary Gomez, special education and paraprofessional, Waterloo Middle School, Linden Unified School District.

  • Maria "Lilia" Martinez DeArredondo, school site assistant, security services, Great Valley Elementary School, Manteca Unified School District.

  • Debra Yanez, work order technician/ dispatch, skilled trades, Stockton Unified School District.

  • Kitty Towers, technology coordinator, technical services, Banta Unified School District.

At the awards celebration dinner, two retiring superintendents were also recognized: Escalon Unified School District Superintendent Ron Costa and Tracy Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Brian Stephens.

Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow. 

This article originally appeared on The Record: San Joaquin County 2022 teacher of the year, top educators named