If one were to write a motto to describe Kern County’s Teachers of the Year - Stockdale High health teacher Sloan Holmes and Sunset School music teacher Louis Yuen - it would probably read the same - "Don’t Give Up." Both were selected from a distinguished field of 37 educators in an awards reception on May 6 at the Kern County Museum to represent Kern County in the California Teacher of the Year competition. Carrie Atkin, a preschool special education teacher with the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) Office and Rick Francis, AVID and English teacher at Golden Valley High School were honored as alternates for the award. The California Department of Education (CDE) sponsors the annual California Teacher of the Year program. The county program, sponsored by KCSOS, featured teachers nominated for the award by their schools and districts. A committee of educators and volunteers reviewed all the applications. Recent site visits were made to the top candidates. All 37 nominees received plaques and certificates. Recognizing each of the nominees for their accomplishments, Kern County Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider told them, "Education in Kern has many things of which to be proud. To this proud list of accomplishments, we can add our ‘Teachers of the Year’ nominees. They represent the very best of our many fine teachers - those that daily make sure a child learns the skills necessary to succeed in later life." More