From left to right: Laura Klingensmith, Cheryl Spurgin, Anna Julian,
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell,
Maria Rosa Thompson, Joanne Gaylor, and Edward Cooper
Anna Julian
Child Nutrition Category
Food Service Lead Cook
Stacy Nutrition Center
Westminster School District
Anna Julian started at the Westminster School District in April 1986 and has been an active professional in the area of food services and the increasingly demanding requirements of food preparation and quality control required in public schools nationally. She is involved in school activities and has been a vice president of the California School Employees Association.
Cheryl Spurgin
Maintenance and Operations Category
Lead Custodian
Wildwood Elementary School
Yucaipa-Calimesa Joint Unified School District
Cheryl Spurgin has been a custodian at Wildwood Elementary School for nine years, the last two as Lead Custodian. Described as a “consummate professional,” she is supportive of the school program and has been involved in the school site council.
Edward Cooper
Transportation Category
Vehicle Maintenance Coordinator
Fullerton School District
Edward (Eddie) Cooper has been with the Fullerton School District for 26 years, 21 in his current position. He has been elected president of both the Parent Teacher Association and the School Site Council and received the district’s prestigious “Above and Beyond Award” for his volunteer work and great attitude.
Maria Rosa Thompson
Para-Educator Category
Resident Care Attendant-English as a Second Language
Bernard-White Middle School
New Haven Unified School District
Maria Rosa Thompson has been a Resident Care Attendant in the English as a Second Language program (RCA-ESL) for 23 years and her duties include testing of English learners and direct instructional support for students in core classrooms. But she performs a great many other tasks, including translating for parent conferences, making bilingual phone calls, teaching evening and Saturday parenting classes, supervising one of the after school Homework Clubs, and assisting parents in acquiring food and clothing.
Laura Klingensmith
Office and Technical Services Category
Administrative Assistant
Andrew Jackson Elementary School
Desert Sands Unified School District
Laura (Lori) L. Klingensmith has been an administrative assistant at Andrew Jackson Elementary School for 15 years and coordinates dozens of projects and assignments from attending to the needs of the students, parents, and staff to compiling the high school course catalog to ensuring everyone is up to date on disaster preparedness.
Joanne Gaylor
Support Services and Security Category
Student Services Assistant
Bernard Hughes Elementary School
Empire Union School District
Joanne E. Gaylor has been a student services assistant since last year, and prior, an administrative assistant for the Bernard Hughes Elementary School since 1994. She has been a classified employee in the Empire Union School District since 1981, serving as an instructional aide at both the elementary and middle school levels.
