Classified school employees are often the first to welcome students to school each morning and the last to turn off the campus lights long after the final bell has rung.
From bus drivers and custodial crews to office professionals, food service teams, para-educators, and health staff, these dedicated employees are the steady, behind-the-scenes force ensuring schools remain safe, supportive, and ready for learning day after day.
In celebration of Classified School Employees Week, the Santa Barbara County Education Office has recognized four outstanding employees recently selected to represent Santa Barbara County as Classified School Employees of the Year.
The honorees highlight the variety of skills and contributions classified school employees bring to school campuses. The individuals were selected from 125 school sites across Santa Barbara County.
The 2026 Santa Barbara County Classified School Employee of the Year honorees are:
• Teresa “Teddy” Barahona, campus security officer at Mark Richardson Career Technical Education Center & Agricultural Farm (Santa Maria Joint Union High School District)
• Rudy Bondietti, maintenance worker III at Santa Ynez Valley Union High School (Santa Ynez Valley Union High School District)
• Mary Cortez, community liaison at Joe Nightingale School (Orcutt Union School District)
• Cheri Palin, office manager at Alice Shaw Elementary School (Orcutt Union School District)
At a ceremony held during a recent County Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Susan Salcido told attendees, “Today, we celebrate four remarkable individuals whose work helps shape the culture and heartbeat of our schools. They are often the first to step in, the last to leave, and the steady presence students and families count on every day. Our schools simply would not function without them.”
Get to know this year’s honorees here.
The Classified School Employees of the Year program was created by the California Department of Education (CDE) to recognize the contributions of classified school employees who support the education of more than six million California public school students from preschool through grade 12.
SBCEO’s annual announcement leads into Classified School Employee Week, recognized this year on May 17-23.
The program invites county education offices to select employees nominated by school districts in nine classified school employment categories: Clerical and Administrative; Custodial and Maintenance; Food and Nutrition; Health and Student Services; Paraprofessional Services; Security Services; Skilled Trades; Technical Services; and Transportation.
The honorees from each county may be nominated for the statewide award in their respective categories.