Karla de Lemos, a 7th-grade history and art teacher at Castaic Middle School, has been named the Teacher of the Year for the Castaic Union School District.

The Castaic Union School District recently named de Lemos as their Teacher of the Year, with officials describing her as “an awesome teacher.”

“She cares about the kids,” said Bob Brauneisen, principal of Castaic Middle School. “The most important thing to her is relationships and making connections with her students.” 

Having taught within the district for over 20 years, de Lemos has held many roles, from volunteering to create a debate class for Castaic Middle School to running the school’s National Junior Honor Society chapter.

“She’s the first to volunteer, first to put her hand up,” Brauneisen said. “She’s not afraid of stepping up and filling a void when a void comes up.”

One such instance where de Lemos’ initiative came into play was when Brauneisen needed someone to teach two sections of art in addition to their usual courses. 

“I knew that giving it to her, it wasn’t just going to be finger painting,” he said. “I knew that she would take that challenge and actually make it a valuable experience for the kids.”

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Another aspect of de Lemos that her colleagues admire is her determination to ensure that all students are “on an even playing field,” regardless of who they are or where they come from.

“She puts way above and beyond the accommodations needed to make sure that her kids are all able to keep up,” Brauneisen said. “She meets the needs of every single student.”

Described as a “life-long learner,” de Lemos always stays “current with the newest trends” in education to ensure that she is able to connect with her students.

“She’s doing everything she can to reach out to her students,” Brauneisen said. “She’s someone I can count on, and she’s someone that takes something and gives it 100 percent.”

Brauneisen concluded by saying that teaching is personal for de Lemos, treating every student “like they’re her own children.”

“I really believe that our community and the families of Castaic Middle School are really fortunate to have her teaching their kids,” he said.

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