On May 18, the Santa Cruz County Office of Education presented the 2023 Santa Cruz County Educator of the Year awards to staff from across the county who exemplify educational excellence and embody the values of the school community. The honorees are:
Teacher of the Year
Maria Ferreira, special education teacher, post-senior class, Santa Cruz County Office of Education
Maria has dedicated her career to supporting students with special needs to have full access to the community and learn crucial safety and life skills while having a positive experience.
Maria has taught special education for 18 years, from early intervention to adults ages 18-22. She joined the COE in 2017. An immigrant from Paraguay who moved to the U.S. as a young adult, Maria learned English while attending Fresno City College and eventually transferred to Fresno State University, where she earned her teaching credential.
Her first son was diagnosed with autism at age 2. After her second son was diagnosed with autism, she decided to make special education her career while spending countless hours doing and coordinating therapy for her boys. Her two sons with autism are now young adults and although they have many needs, they are both thriving young adults.
Classified Employee of the Year
Paige Lynd, administrative assistant, Happy Valley School, Happy Valley Elementary School District
Paige has been an administrative assistant at Happy Valley for more than 15 years. Before that, she was a parent volunteer for more than 5 years as both her children were students. Her background in bookkeeping and as a registered nurse helped prepare her to take on the many roles required in the position at a small one-school district.
Some days that can consist of payroll, HR, accounts payable, attendance, and state and federal reporting, while other days it’s everything from maintenance, snakes in classrooms, and flooding buildings to bandages and first aid to students.
“The students are definitely the best part of my job,” she says. “No day is the same, and I never get bored!”
Counselor of the Year
Jose G. Morelos, academic counselor, Pajaro Middle School, Pajaro Valley Unified School District
Raised in Watsonville, Jose is the youngest of seven children to a widowed mother who worked day in and day out to be the sole provider to her children. At a young age, he learned the importance of working hard and having the resiliency to overcome many obstacles while learning the values and struggles of a first-generation immigrant family.
Like any young man of his generation, Jose had to make difficult choices to stay engaged in school. The Cabrillo Advancement Scholarship Program was an eye-opener to his full potential which put him on a path to higher education.
After graduating from San Jose State University with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and Mexican American studies, he returned to his community as an assistant social worker. After a few years, he returned to his true passion, teaching, and he went on to earn a master’s degree in counseling education and PPS credential. Jose has been a counselor for 15 years, 11 of those at Pajaro Middle School.
He also serves his community of Pajaro as an advocate, leader, and mentor for families, colleagues, and students, working to inspire and guide future first-generation professionals.
Administrator of the Year
Craig Broadhurst, principal, Santa Cruz Gardens Elementary School, Soquel Union Elementary School District
Melissa Nix, assistant principal, Shoreline Middle School, Live Oak School District
Craig has spent more than three decades in education. He taught upper elementary and two years of middle school physical education from 1988 to 2007 — including a two-year position at the Vienna International School in Austria — before beginning a 16-year administrative career.
He started as an assistant principal in Pajaro Valley Unified School District and later became principal of Main Street Elementary and New Brighton Middle School. At New Brighton, Craig successfully implemented the Advancement Via Individual Determination elective program to enhance student college and career readiness.
He enjoys soccer, cycling, music, woodworking, and spending quality time with his daughter Milan and partner Nancy.
Melissa is in her third year as assistant principal at Shoreline Middle School, where she worked for 18 years as a math teacher, instructional coach, and administrator.
She is recognized by colleagues for demonstrating the highest level of commitment to serving each student, staff member, and parent through an equity lens.
Melissa is married with two children, ages 12 and 9, and has been part of the Santa Cruz community for nearly 30 years.
Community Partner of the Year
NAMI Santa Cruz County — National Alliance on Mental Illness
NAMI Santa Cruz County deeply values inclusion, empowerment, and equity, striving for well-being for all through education, support, and advocacy for those with mental health conditions, their loved ones, and the surrounding community.
Its programs include evidence-based support groups and classes for students, their caregivers, and school staff, as well as Help Lines for those looking for one-on-one support in connecting to local resources.
NAMI programs are offered in both English and Spanish, are always free to participants, and require only self-identification to join.
NAMI aims to help transform isolation into community, stigma about mental illness into compassion and understanding, and a lack of resources into abundant and high-quality care. See namiscc.org.
•••
A selection committee reviewed nominations using the California Standards for the Teaching Profession, the California Professional Standards for Educational Leaders, and these criteria: Ability to create a passion for learning, high expectations for all students, strong communication and collaborative skills, strong sense of values, integrity, and professional ethics, knowledge of subject and curriculum content, commitment to the community they serve.
Typically a single individual is selected for each award. However, this year the selection process resulted in a tie for the Administrator of the Year, leading to two honorees.
Honorees received a plaque recognizing their service and their names will be engraved in the Educators of the Year perpetual plaque hanging in the foyer of the Santa Cruz County Office of Education.