North County elementary school teacher named a California Teacher of Year

A kindergarten teacher from Escondido, credited for her drive and passion, has been named a 2026 California Teachers of the Year.

Corina Martinez, a kindergarten teacher at Pioneer Elementary School in the Escondido Union School District, is one of the five statewide awardees, while another San Diego County instructor was a finalist.

“(She) is not just passionate about supporting her students to learn – she’s driven to make sure that they have every support they need to arrive at school every day,” according to a statement from the office of California’s Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond.

“Mrs. Martinez has built a legacy of leadership and partnership with community organizations at her school site by building out programs that support students’ social-emotional learning and partnership with families. She is passionate about tackling chronic absenteeism by building real solutions for families.”

Gloria E. Ciriza, San Diego County’s superintendent of schools, in an emailed statement, called Martinez “an exceptional educator whose commitment to making her students and their families feel welcome, included, and supported, is something we can all learn from.

“Her love and care for each child stood out to our county Teacher of the Year judges and we’re so glad to see her recognized at the state level,” she added.

Gregory Hinchliff, a Spanish, English, social studies, Native American studies and speech and debate teacher at Bonsall High School in the Bonsall Unified School District, was one of four finalists, Thurmond also announced.

Hinchliff builds partnerships with local tribes, universities and civic groups, according to the state, and has contributed to California’s Native American Studies Model Curriculum. He also participated in Cal Poly Humboldt’s Four Freedoms civic learning program and led his speech and debate team to state championships.

April Raguindin, of the Bakersfield City School District, was nominated by Thurmond as California’s representative for the National Teacher of the Year competition. The new national recipient will be announced in the spring.

Raguindin and Martinez and the other state Teachers of the Year will serve as representatives of California for the calendar year. The others are from two Los Angeles-area districts, Covina Valley Unified School District and the Monrovia Unified School District, and East Side Union High School District in Santa Clara County.

The annual awards are presented by the California Department of Education and supported by the California Teachers of the Year Foundation. The program began in 1972.

Each county submits nominations. The three other local Teachers of the Year are Miguel Marin, from Granger Junior High, Sweetwater Union High School District, Allison Schmitt, from Solana Pacific Elementary, Solana Beach School District and Kevin T. White, from De Portola Middle School, San Diego Unified School District.

City News Service contributed to this report.