Most county offices of education organize and administer regional Teacher of the Year recognition programs for applicants within the county. The California Department of Education (CDE) urges counties to ensure that state and local teacher of the year eligibility and application information is made accessible to all public and private school teachers. Counties should seek applicants who represent the diversity of their students. As in past years, each county office is entitled to select and send forward for consideration by the state selection committee one teacher for every 5,000 (or fraction thereof) teachers in the county. Counties with fewer than 5,000 teachers may still submit one teacher for consideration.
Districts and counties are encouraged to hold local competitions in the spring. The state deadline for submission of candidates by county offices is in the fall (refer to application for details). This deadline is driven by the National Teachers of the Year Program. The CDE recommends that counties use the timeline. It is designed to provide local and county agencies with a time frame to organize and conduct Teachers of the Year selection and recognition activities. Some county offices hold elaborate competitions and ceremonies to duly recognize the many deserving teachers who give their best to the classroom. A few counties do not participate or have difficulty garnering applicants from local schools and districts due to time constraints. All counties are encouraged to honor their teachers and participate in the state program.
For the state competition, candidates need time to complete their applications and collect letters of support. Counties can support their finalists by carefully reviewing the final application so that each candidate, as a potential state finalist, offers a compelling and competitive application and is not penalized from lack of local support.
