Rebecca Mieliwocki: The nation’s top teacher talks about education and opportunity

From pre-K to post-grad, Southern California is the white-hot center of educational opportunities for the very young and the forever young. Come inside any one of the many schools in SoCal and you’ll see what I mean: innovation, intellectual rigor, research, technology, diversity, creativity, discovery and performance. It’s guided by fully engaged, motivated and highly skilled educators ready to give our region’s children the tools they’ll need to realize their unique potential and gain a critical competitive advantage in today’s global society. Southern California’s incredible collection of schools ranges from the jewels in the post-secondary crown UCLA and USC to groundbreaking K-12 centers for learning — CHIME, Lycee International and CES, just to name a few. No matter where we lucky SoCal residents live, students have access to the finest education available, be it down the street or just across town.

About Rebecca Mieliwocki
2012 Teacher of the Year, Rebecca Mieliwocki grew up the daughter of two public school teachers. So at first, she rebelled against becoming a teacher herself.

But after experimenting with other careers, she realized what she wanted to be, helped in large part by great teachers from her past. For example, Mieliwocki’s second-grade teacher used guitar music to foster creativity. Her fourth-grade teacher showed her how “to get out of the way when the kids are going gangbusters doing something they love because that is where passion is ignited.”

Mieliwocki, who teaches seventh-grade English at Luther Burbank Middle School in Burbank, believes you learn best from those who taught you the best.