Chamber Honors Teacher of Year

Teachers from West Valley schools were showered with gifts and honored for their work at a Teacher of the Year ceremony Friday hosted by the Encino Chamber of Commerce.

Nestle Avenue Elementary School’s Carol Siembieda was named the overall teacher of the year by a voting panel.

Siembieda received $850 and gift after gift, donated by area businesses.

Each of the other teachers honored received $425 along with an armload of donated gifts such as Los Angeles Dodger baseball tickets, said Judith Block, a chamber spokeswoman.

“Each one of these teachers does a great job educating the children,” Block said. “They deserve to be recognized for their work.”

Elementary school teachers Laurel Davidson of Encino Elementary, Jennifer Herschbein of Emelita Street Elementary, Jenny Johnson of Wilbur Avenue Elementary and L. Joanne Rygh of Pomelo Drive Elementary were honored.

Irene J. Eason of Portola Middle School, Steven Leffert of Zane Grey High, Robert Leight of Birmingham High and Scott Sperber of Sherman Oaks Center for Enriched Studies were also honored.

Each of the teachers was selected by teachers and administrators from his or her individual school, Block said.

Reggie Smith, hitting coach for the Los Angeles Dodgers and owner of the Reggie Smith Baseball Academy in Encino, was the keynote speaker for the ceremony, held at the Braemar Country Club in Tarzana.

It was the fourth year the chamber has hosted the event and Block said many more will follow.

“It’s a great time,” she said. “Any time we can salute our teachers is a great time.”