On Sept. 18, the Los Angeles County Office of Education named Mira Costa cinema and broadcast journalism teacher Michael Hernandez 1 out of 16 Los Angeles County teachers of the year.
The Manhattan Beach Unified School District awarded Hernandez as the district’s 2015 teacher of the year last Spring and nominated him as a Los Angeles County teacher of the year. An LA County Office of Education panel, composed of their administrators and previous LA County teachers of the year, interviewed Hernandez and assigned a written component in order for him to qualify for the position.
“It is definitely an honor to be named an LA County teacher of the year,” Hernandez said. “There are 72,000 teachers in Los Angeles County. To be one of the top 16 teachers in the county is pretty incredible and the spotlight is quite an honor. There are a lot of great teachers out there, so I am happy that I can represent them.”
Hernandez said that he is thrilled about this award, and he looks forward to being able to share this accomplishment with his students. According to Hernandez, his students are his inspiration to teach and innovate. He also believes that this new recognition will give him a platform to share and discuss his opinions on education, and the future of education in our district.
“I know that Mr. Hernandez loves what he does as a media arts teacher, and that’s really refreshing,” Co-Director of Broadcast Journalism Kit Chavers said. “He is constantly finding ways to improve what he’s teaching us and his constant learning coincides with our ongoing learning which makes me all the more confident that I’m getting the best education that I possibly can while being in his class.”
Hernandez attributes his LA County Teacher of the year honor to his distinct style of student-centered teaching and the broadcast journalism and cinema curriculum that he designed himself 16 years ago. Hernandez said that there was hardly a film program when he first came to Mira Costa, so he created one himself, after earning a Master of Fine Arts degree at Loyola-Marymount University and becoming a communications major at Santa Clara University.
“Hernandez is a very innovative and creative teacher,” Costa Principal Dr. Ben Dale said. “He engages the kids and gets them to be creative in their learning as well. Overall, Hernandez and his award just show that Mira Costa students have the best teachers in the county.”
This recognition will allow Hernandez to join the multiple other faculty members at Mira Costa, who have been awarded with the same title. These staff members include Mr. Fauver, Mrs. Gesualdi, and Mr. Hayden.
“He is dedicated to the class, and he is always there to answer questions and give instruction, even during snack and lunch almost every day,” the other Co-Director of Broadcast Journalism Miriam Sachs said. “He is a great teacher and knows a lot about videography, storytelling, and writing. He is also super qualified because he has an MFA in film.”
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