Last week, TCOE and the Central California Chinese Cultural Center honored three teachers at the annual Confucius’ Birthday/Educators of the Year Awards.
In March, Tulare County Superintendent of Schools Tim Hire and Wendy Jay, a member of the Chinese Cultural Center board of directors, surprised the three honorees – Alicia Bovetti of Rocky Hill Elementary School (Exeter), Carmen Diaz of Alpaugh Elementary School, and Ricardo Florez of Tulare Union High School. The three were selected as the elementary school, middle school, and high school educators of the year, respectively, in an awards program that was founded in 1994.
The program was created to celebrate the birthday of Confucius, China’s great philosopher and advocate for universal education. Around the world, Confucius’ birthday is a time when communities often honor their teachers. Since the creation of the program, TCOE and the Chinese Cultural Center have recognized 90 Tulare County teachers.
For more information and to see the tribute video for this year’s honored teachers, visit tcoe.org/EOTY.