Orinda Teacher Named Teacher Of The Year

LAMORINDA, CA — Orinda Intermediate School teacher Susan Boudreau was recently named Orinda Union School District’s Teacher of the Year (TOY). Boudreau, who teaches science, received a visit from Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE) Superintendent of Schools Karen Sakata who personally congratulated her.

Previously, Boudreau taught biology and science in the West Contra Costa County Unified School District, at U.C. Berkeley, and at the Queen Elizabeth School (grades 6-12), in Devon, UK.

“The accomplishment of which I am most proud is making science more accessible to girls and to all students who are not part of the traditional white-coat scientist mold,” says Boudreau, whose father is a particle physicist. “This compelling world of physics is incredibly male-dominated – from middle school onward, and outward to engineering too. The under-enrollment of girls is a huge waste of talent for society and for their own lives and careers, with physics being a gateway to so much beyond STEM. I want to model and convey the message that science is a fascinating, powerful, and relevant endeavor in which ALL are invited to take a part.”

Three Walnut Creek teachers have been honored this year.

On the evening of September 28, 2017, the 22 Contra Costa County TOYs, class of 2017-18, will be introduced and honored at the annual Teacher of the Year Dinner Celebration, held at the Concord Hilton. A crowd of some 500 are expected to attend.

Throughout the school year, Superintendent Sakata makes it a point to visit each incoming TOY in their classrooms, prior to the Dinner Celebration. This is a great way for her to meet the teachers and their students, as well as take in the day’s lesson plan. When individually introducing the TOYs at the Dinner Celebration, Sakata will tell the audience about her visit and will quote one or two of the students’ remarks about their revered teacher.

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Currently, there are approximately 8,400 teachers educating more than 176,000 students in Contra Costa County’s public schools. To recognize their efforts and bring much-deserved honor to the teaching profession, the participating school districts in the county named their TOY representatives in mid March. The incoming 22 TOYs represent 17 Contra Costa County school districts, the Contra Costa Community College District, and the Contra Costa County Office of Education (CCCOE). Most of these representatives, those who teach grades K thru 12, are eligible to compete in the Contra Costa County TOY competition. The two top teachers in the county TOY program will represent Contra Costa County in the California State TOY Program this coming fall.

-Photo caption: (l-r) Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools Karen Sakata and Orinda Union School District’s Teacher of the Year Susan Boudreau.

-Photo Credit: Terry Koehne, CCCOE

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