On Sept. 27, the Yolo County School Boards Association (YCSBA) announced its 2021-22 Teacher of the Year, Betsy Erickson.

Erickson is a physical education teacher, assistant swim coach and AVID site coordinator at River City High School in West Sacramento. Erickson has worked for the Washington Unified School District since 1992.

Erickson was selected from among the teachers nominated from the five school districts in Yolo County and the Yolo County Office of Education. Her selection was announced during the annual 'Excellence in Education' awards ceremony.

In her nomination materials, school leaders credit Erickson with finding and creating opportunities for students to be physically active, both in and outside the classroom. During distance learning last year, she introduced yoga to her physical education classes. In 2020, she completed a fitness challenge to walk 2,020 miles by Dec. 31, 2020 and invited her students and colleagues to join her.

Erickson will now go on to represent Yolo County in the statewide California Teacher of the Year Program through the California Department of Education.

The next school year will mark Erickson's 13th year of teaching in the same West Sacramento school district where she first started her career.

Each Teacher of the Year candidate was evaluated on their contribution to the success of operations, student achievement and the provision of support to other professionals in their respective districts.

"Ms. Erickson is an asset to the students and faculty of River City High School," Principal, Brittony Billingslea said. "She most certainly needs to be rewarded for the amount of time, compassion and effort that she spends honing her craft and servicing the West Sacramento community."

Visit the Yolo County Office of Education webpage at www.ycoe.org.