[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 123 (Tuesday, September 21, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1903-E1904]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         HONORING SAN DIEGO COUNTY'S 1999 TEACHERS OF THE YEAR

                                 ______
                                 

                     HON. RANDY ``DUKE'' CUNNINGHAM

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Tuesday, September 21, 1999

  Mr. CUNNINGHAM. Mr. Speaker, as a strong advocate of excellence in 
education, I am honored today to give recognition to four men and women 
who have been named San Diego County Teachers of the Year.
  These are: Alma Hills, O'Farrell Community School; Karen O'Connor, 
Sunset Hills Elementary School; Jan Patrick Mongoven, San Marcos High 
School; and Gualter do Rego Moura, Mission Bay High School.
  Excellent education begins at home with strong families. It continues 
in the classroom, with teachers who do their jobs well, whose lives are 
dedicated to the children and the young people that they enrich and 
inspire. As a former teacher and coach, I understand that teaching is a 
difficult job whose rewards are not always immediately evident. But 
nothing that is truly rewarding in life comes easily. And the 
dedication and commitment shown by San Diego County's finest teachers 
exemplifies the best of our schools, the best of our communities, and 
the best of America.
  Because education is the passport to the American dream, I want for 
all of our Nation's young people to have the finest teachers. And while 
San Diego County has recognized these four for Teacher of the Year 
honors, eligible for further recognition at the State and national 
levels, the truth is that there are hundreds and thousands more 
outstanding teachers where these came from--in public and private 
schools, in public charter schools, and in home schools across our 
country. As we work to do better, we can learn from the best.
  Let the permanent Record of the Congress of the United States note 
the contributions that San Diego County's 1999 Teachers of the Year 
have made to the lives of young people in our community, the high 
standards of professionalism that they exemplify, and their love of 
teaching and learning.
  I commend to my colleagues two news articles describing San Diego 
County's Teachers of the Year. The first is from the San Diego Union-
Tribune of September 19, 1999, and the second is from the Escondido 
(Calif.) North County Times, of the same date.

           [From the San Diego Union Tribune, Sept. 19, 1999]

                  Four Saluted as Teachers of the Year

                          (By Angelica Pence)

       Four teachers were saluted last night with the San Diego 
     County Teacher of the Year Award for the creative and 
     dedicated ways in which they bring out their students' 
     potential.
       Those honored were Alma Hills of O'Farrell Community 
     School, Karen O'Connor of Sunset Hills Elementary School, Jan 
     Patrick Mongoven of San Marcos High School and Gualter do 
     Rego Moura of Mission Bay High School.
       This year's winners were announced at a Salute to Teachers 
     ceremony that was broadcast live on Cox Communications 
     Channel 4. The event was held at San Diego's Civic Theatre 
     and co-sponsored by the county Office of Education.
       Thirty-one educators throughout the county were nominated 
     by their peers and school districts. Given its size, the 
     county submits four candidates for consideration for the 
     state honor. The award is the first steppingstone to state 
     and national Teacher of the Year awards.
       Candidates are selected on the basis of student 
     achievement, professional development, community involvement 
     and accountability. A nominee's teaching philosophy, personal 
     style, knowledge of educational issues and trends, and 
     promotion and development of the teaching profession are also 
     considered.
       For this year's crew of favorites, tapping into each 
     student's talents is a key to their success.
       Hills, a language arts and social studies teacher of 
     O'Farrell, has helped prepare hundreds of teen-agers for high 
     school and beyond.
       ``I live and constantly work with the anticipation that 
     children can grow up to be productive adults in our 
     society,'' the seventh-grade teacher wrote in her contest 
     application. ``I am very anxious about my responsibility to 
     children and society, and so I

[[Page E1904]]

     teach with a sense of urgency and determination.''
       Hills received a master's degree in teaching in 1989 from 
     the University of California San Diego. The 13-year veteran 
     is earning administrative credentials from National 
     University.
       ``Alma believes that a child's education is a journey, not 
     a race,'' wrote William Rose, O'Farrell's school programs 
     coordinator. ``And as their teacher, she has the obligation 
     to monitor, encourage and support every child under her care 
     to succeed on this journey.''
       Hills, who has worked at 1,490-student O'Farrell for eight 
     years, was the San Diego Unified School District's Teacher of 
     the Year for 1999.
       ``I have not found the solution to getting every student 
     where he or she need to be academically,'' Hills admitted. 
     ``But I am clear that I must never stop trying and I must 
     never grow weary in my pursuit.''
       O'Connor, a third-grade teacher at San Diego's Sunset Hills 
     Elementary, decided to take on teaching later in life than 
     most.
       ``Because I came to the teaching profession at a relatively 
     late date, I had more times than most to decide what I wanted 
     to be when I grew up.'' she wrote. ``My decision to be a 
     teacher wavered at times, but I knew when I had children of 
     my own and began volunteering at school that I had 
     rediscovered my early desire to teach.''
       She earned a master's degree in curriculum and instruction, 
     with honors, from Chapman University. This year her school, 
     the Poway Unified School District and Wal-Mart each 
     recognized her as Teacher of the Year.
       O'Connor's ability to see each child as an individual is 
     what sets her apart from other educators, said Sunset Hills 
     principal Steve Hodge.
       ``I've watched her coach a highly gifted writer into making 
     those subtle improvement that make a good piece of work,'' 
     Hodge wrote. ``Literally 30 seconds later, she's skillfully 
     guiding a severely handicapped student into a learning game 
     with his classmates.''
       Mongoven's chosen career, on the other hand, is a family 
     tradition.
       ``One could say I was born into teaching,'' wrote Mongoven, 
     who teaches genetics and a biotech lab to juniors and seniors 
     at San Marcos High. ``The first person to cuddle me and 
     murmur soothing words into my ear was a teacher--my mother. 
     The first person to lift my tiny being into the air and 
     safely return it to the ground was another teacher--my 
     father.''
       In 1994, Mongoven graduated from National University with a 
     master's in counseling psychology, all the while earning a 
     molecular biology workshop certification from California 
     State University San Marcos.
       A two-time National Teacher of the Year nominee, Mongoven 
     was awarded 1999 Teacher of the Year honors in the San Marcos 
     Unified School District.
       But he counts his students' achievements, not his awards, 
     among his greatest accomplishments.
       ``I feel so proud upon hearing that a former student has 
     become a nurse, doctor, lab tech, chiropractor, research 
     scientist or marine biologist,'' wrote Mongoven, who has been 
     teaching for a quarter-century. Among them, ``I proudly 
     recall Karin Perkins (genetics class of '86) saying she was 
     off to Stanford University as a graduate student to work on 
     the Human Genome Project.''
       Moura, a Portuguese immigrant, learned early on to love and 
     respect education.
       ``In Portugal, I learned that school is everything,'' he 
     wrote. ``Teachers were highly regarded--like demigods. Their 
     words were the Golden Rule.''
       Since then, Moura has worked hard to pass his respect for 
     learning to his students.
       ``My greatest success in teaching is instilling the belief 
     in students that they can accomplish anything they desire,'' 
     wrote Moura, who has taught mathematics at Mission Bay High 
     for six years. ``I must help students realize and recognize 
     their potential and help the formation of an appreciation for 
     mathematics.''
       Moura has degrees and teaching credentials from National 
     University, San Diego State University and Mesa College. 
     During the 1998-99 school year, he was named Teacher of the 
     Year by his school as well as the San Diego Unified School 
     District.
       ``Gualter Moura is a man for all seasons!'' wrote Donna 
     Bullock, head counselor at Mission Bay High. ``He is one who 
     is able to deal with the exceptional math students as well as 
     the student who (has) difficulty with language. The 
     counselors occasionally assign students to his classes who 
     are unable to achieve in another environment.''


     
                                  ____
    [From the Escondido (Calif.) North County Times, Sept. 19, 1999]

                 2 Local Teachers Named Best in County

                          (By Joseph Gimenez)

       San Diego.--Two North County teachers were among the four 
     educators who received San Diego County Teacher of the Year 
     awards Saturday night.
       Jan Mongoven, a science teacher at San Marcos High School, 
     and Karen O'Connor, a third-grade teacher who specializes in 
     writing instruction at Poway's Sunset Hills Elementary 
     School, joined two San Diego Unified District teachers as the 
     honorees at a banquet at the San Diego Civic Theatre. 
     O'Connor accepted her award, saying, ``I can't believe this. 
     Thank you so much.''
       ``They told us to have a 15-second speech ready in case we 
     won, but I didn't,'' she said. ``It has been a humbling 
     experience.'' Mongoven thanked his parents and family. ``I 
     couldn't stand up without the support of my wife and my 
     sons,'' he said.
       Moura of Mission Bay High School and Alma Hills of 
     O'Farrell Community School also received the Cox 
     Communications-sponsored awards at Saturday's 26-year-old 
     ceremony.
       Each school district in the county selects a Teacher of the 
     Year who can apply for the county award. Saturday's four 
     winners were among 10 finalists who advanced to the awards 
     ceremonies after interviews and screenings. The 10 finalists 
     selected from 31 nominees included two other North County 
     teachers: Mary Lou Schultz of Pacific View School in 
     Encinitas and Giff Asimos of Ramona High School.
       O'Connor has taught third- and fourth-graders in Poway 
     since 1986. She is a San Diego State University graduate who 
     earned teaching credentials from the University of San Diego 
     and a master's degree in curriculum and instruction at 
     Chapman University.
       ``One thing that really sets Karen apart is her incredible 
     ability to see each child as an individual and to know 
     exactly what each child needs to succeed,'' Sunset Hills 
     Principal Steve Hodge wrote in a background package for the 
     nominees.
       ``I've watched her coach a highly gifted writer into making 
     those subtle improvements that make a good piece of writing a 
     great piece of work. Literally 30 seconds later, she's 
     skillfully guiding a severely handicapped, fully included 
     student into a learning game with his classmates. But, most 
     remarkably, she knows exactly what that average child, the 
     one who does average work and demands little attention, needs 
     to move to the next stage in his or her development.''
       O'Connor also assists the district with its proprietary 
     writing programs and assessments.
       Mongoven has been a teacher and athletic coach at San 
     Marcos High School since 1974. He attended San Diego State 
     University, where he earned his bachelor of science degree in 
     zoology and his teaching credentials.
       He earned his master's degree in counseling psychology at 
     National University in 1994. In his application letter, 
     Mongoven credited his parents, who had six decades of 
     teaching experience between them, and other instructors who 
     inspired him.
       ``I have indelible memories of my finest teachers,'' 
     Mongoven wrote.
       ``Hoisting me by the back of the shirt collar, Mr. Bradford 
     dangled this would-be class clown like a mortified Howdy 
     Doody in front of his sixth-grade chums (saying) `Jan, I 
     expect more of you.' ''
       San Morcos District Superintendent Larry Maw praised 
     Mongoven's professionalism in a letter to the county 
     selection committee. ``Jan is an expert in his subject matter 
     of biology and genetics, and is recognized throughout the 
     county and state as a leader in his field,'' Maw wrote.
       ``His unique courses provide students the opportunity to 
     experience a college-level course while still on the high 
     school campus. ...The high success rate of his students 
     reflects his philosophy of presenting material in a way so 
     that all students will succeed in his classroom.''
       All four of Saturday's honorees qualify to compete for the 
     state's Teacher of the Year award. The four were each 
     presented $1,000 in cash, etched crystal apples, and an all-
     expenses-paid trip for two to Washington, D.C. Hewlett-
     Packard is donating computer equipment to the schools of all 
     10 finalists this year.
       O'Connor joins four other Poway district teachers--Robert 
     Pacilio, Linda Foote, Lori Brickley and Kristie Szentesi--in 
     winning the county award since 1995. Five other Poway 
     district teachers won the awards in the '70s and '80s. 
     Mongoven joins Carol Scurlock, who won the award in 1993, as 
     the two San Marcos district teachers to win the award since 
     1974.

     

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