SAN DIEGO -- A teacher who works at Juvenile Hall and four others were named San Diego County teachers of the year, it was reported Sunday.

Melanie Tolan, who works at the Sarah Anthony School at Juvenile Hall, was chosen among thousands of teachers countywide for her work with ninth- and 10th-graders, teaching English-language arts, history and physical education, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

Tolan said she has to make a "safe haven from the chaos" of the institution. She sets daily expectations for her students and said her goal is "that students know their future is important to me."

Also named teachers of the year at last night's ceremony in the Balboa Theater were Donna M. Farquar, an English-learner resource teacher for the Santee Elementary School District; Kelly Kovacic, an 11th- and 12th-grade social studies teacher at The Preuss School at UCSD; Michael Love, a ninth- through 12th-grade mathematics teacher at Mount Miguel High School in Spring Valley; and Eric Mabrey, an instrumental and choral music teacher at Olympian High School in Chula Vista.

Each advances to the state competition next month.

Last year, math teacher Alex Kajitani of Escondido was named California Teacher of the Year and traveled to the White House as one of four finalists for United States Teacher of the Year. Farquar has been a teacher for 36 years, the past five in her position in Santee. In her application for the award, she wrote that education and teaching "involve making a choice to have a relationship." "Teaching history is about storytelling," Kovacic wrote in her application.

At The Preuss School, which educates students from low-income families to prepare them for college, Kovaci said she believes teachers have to build "a safe learning environment that allows the student to achieve his or her full academic potential."

Love has been a teacher for 15 years at Mount Miguel. He wrote that in his classroom, he strives to connect with students on an informal level "to make the formal learning fun and accessible." He takes at least 10 minutes per week out of his math classes to share a reading, motivational or humorous, or an experience to connect with students on a personal level.

At Olympian High School, which opened in 2006, Mabrey has built the music program from scratch and now has 120 students in the marching band and 60 in the choir. In his classes, he said he tries to create an environment where students can"learn, create, appreciate and enjoy great music."