SRVUSD 'Teacher Of The Year' Praised By Former Student

SAN RAMON, CA — Athena Agustin is a health teacher at Dougherty Valley High School, and she’s special. She was recently named San Ramon Valley Unified School District’s 2019-20 Teacher of the Year, and she just received a classroom visit from Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools Lynn Mackey.

The superintendent makes it a point to visit each incoming TOY in their respective classrooms before she catches up with them at the annual Teachers of the Year Dinner Gala held in September.

Agustin has been a longtime educator. Prior to her 12 years at Dougherty Valley, she was at Mt. Eden High School in Hayward teaching health, life science and peer mediation. In total, Agustin has been educating for 20 years, and one of her past students was very excited to sing her praises.

“When I entered Dougherty Valley High School in 2009, there was not a single part of me that cared about what I was doing or where I was going once high school ended,” remembers former student Morgan Dawson. “At the time, my parents had high hopes for me to attend a university, but all I cared about was just passing by. I thought I could just cruise through school without much fuss and without having a plan afterward. Mrs. Agustin made sure that didn’t happen!

“Early in the semester, Mrs. Agustin asked me to stay after class,” Dawson continued. "Initially, I thought I was in trouble for low grades. Instead, she looked at me and told me I had potential. She knew that I was smart, knew that I could do better, and wanted to offer me an opportunity to do so by joining Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) program. It was the first time that a teacher had pulled me aside to bring me up through encouragement rather than bringing me down with disappointment. Thanks to Mrs. Agustin, I ended up making a full turnaround with my GPA, got accepted in every university I applied to during my senior year, attended a four-year university, and now am currently earning my master’s degree. Without Mrs. Agustin and her determination for my own success, I do not believe any of the things listed would have ever been possible for me.”

On September 26, 22 Contra Costa County TOYs class of 2019-20, including Agustin, will be introduced and honored at the annual Teacher of the Year Gala held at the Hilton Concord. The 22 TOYs will be accompanied by their families, friends and coworkers. The expected crowd of close to 500 will also include numerous other supporters of the program.