MILKEN FAMILY AWARD VALLEY TEACHER GETS $25,000.

Byline: Lisa M. Sodders Staff Writer

WEST HILLS - When Jennifer Yoo learned Wednesday that someone at Welby Way Elementary School had won a $25,000 teaching award, she never thought it would be her.

Called up to the microphone before a crowd of students, teachers and well-wishers that included former NFL player Rosey Grier and California's first lady, Sharon Davis, Yoo could only cover her mouth in shock when presented with the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award.

``It's better than the winning the lottery, because it's something that I've earned,'' a still-stunned Yoo said after the festive outdoor ceremony. ``And everybody in my life had a part in it.''

The 33-year-old Tarzana resident was one of two teachers in the Los Angeles Unified School District to win the no-strings-attached award from the Milken Family Foundation.

Jane Fung, a kindergarten and first-grade teacher at the Lafayette Park Primary Center in Los Angeles, also received the award.

The largest teacher recognition program in the United States, the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Awards were established in 1985 to reward, retain and attract outstanding K-12 educators. Since that time, the foundation has presented nearly $144 million in awards, celebrating the outstanding achievements of 1,777 educators in 44 states.

The foundation looks for teachers who display exceptional educational talent in the classroom; outstanding accomplishments; strong, long-range potential for professional and policy leadership; and an engaging and inspiring presence that motivates and affects students, colleagues and the community.

Yoo, who decided in second grade to become a teacher, has made her mark inside and out of the classroom. A nine-year teaching veteran, she won the Los Angeles Educational Partnership Excellence in Education Award in 2000, and established a summer camp for severely epileptic children, where she works every summer.

She's a pioneer in other ways, too. A first-generation Korean-American, Yoo is the first woman in her family to earn a college degree.

Arriving in America from Seoul, Korea, at the age of 5, she was educated in Los Angeles public schools, and received her bachelor's degree and two master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Gigi Edler, principal of the 815-student school, praised Yoo as an ``outstanding educator,'' with a ``wonderful way of delivering the information to her (students) that makes them want to work with her. She motivates them and moves them forward.''

Yoo said her students make teaching a rewarding career.

``It really is the hope you see in the child,'' she said. ``That sparkle you see when they make a connection. They are the future. Every child has a story and every child has special gifts. To be the one to spend time with that child, and to (encourage) those gifts enriches my life.''

``I think she really deserves it,'' said Henry Vaughn, 8, one of Yoo's students. ``She's a really good teacher and she's nice. She's not so strict and she teaches us good things.''

The $25,000 award comes with no restrictions on its use. Yoo, who just recently bought a house, said she would use the money to pay off student loans and take her family on a well-deserved vacation.

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Teacher Jennifer Yoo enjoys some time with her Welby Way Elementary students after receiving a $25,000 award.

Hans Gutknecht/Staff Photographer