Alameda County Teacher of the Year 2026

Alameda County
Teacher of the Year
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1, 2026
HAYWARD UNIFIED PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
The Alameda County Office of Education is honored to recognize the 2025 Teachers of the Year named by county school districts and regional occupational programs.
Nineteen district-level honorees were selected by the 17 districts and regional occupational programs that have chosen to participate this year. The honorees are recognized for their individual dedication and excellence in the classroom, and they collectively represent the thousands of educators doing amazing work across Alameda County every day.

Tyler Rust
Alameda County Office of Education

Katherine Werner
Alameda Unified School District

Effie Hsu
Castro Valley Unified School District

Jericho Griffin
Dublin Unified School District

Megan Bello
Eden Area ROP

Leslie Payne
Emery Unified School District

Cristina Quezada
Fremont Unified School District

Elizabeth Londry
Hayward Unified Schoop District

Melissa Smith
Livermore Joint Unified School District

Michelle Cimino
Mission Valley ROP

John Sowell
New Haven Unified School District

Diana Kotake-Gomez
Newark Unified School District

Dawn James
Oakland Unified School District

Lyla Ollinger
Oakland Unified School District

Megan Hatschek
Oakland Unified School District

Greg Dankwardt
Pleasanton Unified School District

Anthony Farley
San Leandro Unified School District

Anneka Harper-Knox
San Lorenzo Unified School District

Alysa Machado Oliver
Tri-Valley ROP
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Contact Us
For more information regarding Alameda County Teacher of the Year
communications@acoe.org