Burroughs High’s ‘Guy’ named a Los Angeles County Teacher of the Year
Burroughs High School teacher Guy Myers is certainly acquainted with winning awards.
The 16-year veteran, who has been with Burbank Unified since 2008, has led a renaissance of the school’s drama department.
He recently landed another impressive accolade, as the Yale-educated instructor was named one of 16 Los Angeles County Teachers of the Year during a ceremony Friday morning in Universal City.
“It means everything,” Myers said. “To be recognized by your peers, your community and now the county is totally unexpected and totally wonderful.”
He added, “Every teacher should get to feel that love and appreciation for what they do.”
Myers’ honor includes a $1,000 cash prize, and he is now in the running to become one of five California State Teachers of the Year, which will be announced in November.
Myers is Burbank Unified’s first county Teacher of the Year in three years, joining Stevenson Elementary’s Sara Line in 2016 and Jill Tobin, a geoscience and biology instructor at Burroughs High, in 2013.
While Deborah Madrigal, Burroughs High’s principal, raved about Myers’ “dedication to his subject matter and students,” what impresses the school’s top administrator most is his ability to mold and train inexperienced and shy students.
“He gets students involved in drama who have never been involved before,” Madrigal said. “He just can see something in a student ... and then he helps them bring it out.”
The honor is the fourth distinction since the beginning of the year for Myers, who earlier was named the Burroughs High School Teacher of the Year via a peer vote.
Then, in April, Myers was honored as the district’s teacher of the year.
“What was really exciting was when we announced in the spring that he was the [district] teacher of the year,” Burbank Unified Supt. Matt Hill said. “Just the feedback from the students, you can tell that he just touches each student so profoundly. He really looks to inspire kids and get them to find their voice.”
Members of the Burbank Arts for All nonprofit also lauded Myers with their top educator award.
Myers took over the Burroughs High Dramatic Assn. in 2008 and has guided the program to much success, including the 2018 California Educational Theatre Assn. Festival awards for Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Film, Best Play and Best Ensemble for its production of “The Laramie Project.”
Last year, the drama department’s production of “West Side Story” earned Best Actor and Best Actress acclaim from the Jerry Herman Awards for student actors Coen Sosa and Janina Colucci.
“It’s just a privilege to watch these young adults take something so seriously and get so invested in it and then bring it to the classroom to show us what they’ve been working on,” Myers said.
“You can tell they’ve put hours and hours into the work that they’ve done and, as a teacher, to be able to motivate your students like that and get them to commit physically, facially and emotionally, it’s everything,” he added.
