Montclair High students walk for the homeless
Teachers Amahl Thomas and Fabian Martin didn't brush it off when they heard that Montclair High School has 122 homeless students.
"In the years past, we would give $20 here or there to help the kids, but it's kind of bandage-ish," Thomas said. "Fabian said he saw an article about a Catholic school who put on a march for breast cancer and raised an excess of $10,000. Then, he said, 'Hey, why don't we do that for our homeless students?"'
With the help of Montclair High's junior and senior class, Thomas and Martin orchestrated a 5K walk on Saturday called "Miles for Montclair."
The walk along the city's streets raised $19,000 for the school's homeless students.
More than 500 people took part in the walk, such as students, staff as well as family and community members.
"I'm excited about the money, but more excited to see more than 500 students walking through the streets of Montclair for a great cause and having them take a stake in the school and the community," Thomas said.
There are 12,768 homeless children in San Bernardino County schools, said Brenda Dowdy, homeless education program specialist for the county's Superintendent of Schools.
The term homeless doesn't only mean a person is without a home, Dowdy said. It can also entail a person or family residing:
- In a transitional home,
- In a car,
- In a motel with no water, heat, electricity or has broken windows,
- In a garage.
"Everyday of school that they miss because they are homeless, they are getting further and further behind," Dowdy said.
County and school district officials do what they can to assist homeless families.
"We do know with the help that we can provide, we see more kids coming to school because they're getting the assistance they need," Dowdy said.
"With the number of kids we have and the growing number, we sometimes wonder how we do it."
To take part in the walk, Montclair High juniors and seniors were given a pledge form and had to acquire $50 worth of sponsorships or donations.
Montclair High also teamed up with Kidcare International, a humanitarian-aid nonprofit that helps disadvantaged children, to work with the families of the school's homeless students.
The nonprofit will distribute collected monies from the 5K to the students.
"It's like a grassroots thing," said Thomas, who teaches United States history and ethnic studies at Montclair High. "It really teaches students that you don't need a lot of financial support to help each other out, as much as you need manpower."
Martin teaches economics.
"In the years past, we would give $20 here or there to help the kids, but it's kind of bandage-ish," Thomas said. "Fabian said he saw an article about a Catholic school who put on a march for breast cancer and raised an excess of $10,000. Then, he said, 'Hey, why don't we do that for our homeless students?"'
With the help of Montclair High's junior and senior class, Thomas and Martin orchestrated a 5K walk on Saturday called "Miles for Montclair."
The walk along the city's streets raised $19,000 for the school's homeless students.
More than 500 people took part in the walk, such as students, staff as well as family and community members.
"I'm excited about the money, but more excited to see more than 500 students walking through the streets of Montclair for a great cause and having them take a stake in the school and the community," Thomas said.
There are 12,768 homeless children in San Bernardino County schools, said Brenda Dowdy, homeless education program specialist for the county's Superintendent of Schools.
The term homeless doesn't only mean a person is without a home, Dowdy said. It can also entail a person or family residing:
- In a transitional home,
- In a car,
- In a motel with no water, heat, electricity or has broken windows,
- In a garage.
"Everyday of school that they miss because they are homeless, they are getting further and further behind," Dowdy said.
County and school district officials do what they can to assist homeless families.
"We do know with the help that we can provide, we see more kids coming to school because they're getting the assistance they need," Dowdy said.
"With the number of kids we have and the growing number, we sometimes wonder how we do it."
To take part in the walk, Montclair High juniors and seniors were given a pledge form and had to acquire $50 worth of sponsorships or donations.
Montclair High also teamed up with Kidcare International, a humanitarian-aid nonprofit that helps disadvantaged children, to work with the families of the school's homeless students.
The nonprofit will distribute collected monies from the 5K to the students.
"It's like a grassroots thing," said Thomas, who teaches United States history and ethnic studies at Montclair High. "It really teaches students that you don't need a lot of financial support to help each other out, as much as you need manpower."
Martin teaches economics.
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