Recently in Schools Category

POMONA - Mendoza Elementary School students celebrated the joy of reading Friday (Feb. 26) with slightly early Read Across America day activities.

The campus, which has 500 students in grades pre-kindergarten to third, celebrates Read Across America day the last Friday in February rather than March 2, the birth date of children's author Theodor Geisel, better known by his pen name, Dr. Seuss.

The early celebration allows the school to pull out all the stops.

"We do an all-day literacy extravaganza," said Principal Alicia McMullin.

Friday (Feb. 26) children came to school in pajamas and could bring their favorite stuffed animal or blanket all in preparation to cozy up and listen to visitors who read to them.

Guests consisted of a diverse group that included Mendoza alumni - fourth, fifth and sixth graders from Lopez Elementary School. Among the adults were Pomona Unified School District officials, Pomona Police officers, Los Angeles County firefighters and former major league baseball players.

Outfielders Kenny Landreaux and Jay Johnstone, both of whom spent parts of their careers with the Dodgers and the Angels, were among the guests, McMullin said.

A group of extra special guests that included "The Cat in the Hat," school mascot Goldie the Eagle, and several other Dr. Seuss characters dropped in on a morning assembly where individual students and entire classes where recognized for their reading accomplishments.

The event, which teachers, staff and community members begin preparing for in the fall, has grown every year since it began five years ago, McMullin said.

But no matter how big the event gets at the heart of it all is nurturing a love of reading in students.

"It's about showing them it's not just teachers who read," McMullin said. "It's about reading for enjoyment."

Such activities also show children reading is the key to a successful future.

"We know if you can read you open up the door to so many possibilities," she said. For students with strong reading skill "nothing is beyond their reach."

POMONA - AVID students, faculty and staff gathered in the gym of Pomona High School on Wednesday afternoon waiting for a much-anticipated announcement.

A team of state and national representatives of the Advancement Via Individual Determination, or AVID, program spent the day on campus visiting more than a dozen classrooms and conducting interviews with students, parents and teachers.

After reviewing data about Pomona High's AVID program and Wednesday's visit the team announced it was certifying Pomona High as a National AVID Demonstration School for 2010-2012, said Julie Elliott, director of the AVID National Demonstration Schools program and the state's AVID director.

With that, students broke out into cheers and applause and faculty members embraced.

Only 110 schools out of 4,500 in the AVID program are National Demonstration schools, Elliott said.

"You are the best of the best," she said drawing more cheers from the students.

Freshman Julian Ortiz was among the students waiting for the announcement.

"I'm proud to be in this school and to represent AVID," Julian said.

Being named an AVID National Demonstration School means it will serve as a model for schools wishing to start or enhance AVID programs, AVID officials said.

The principles of AVID have spread across the campus, said Sandy Sanders, the school's AVID coach and AVID consultant with the Los Angeles County Office of Education.

Before making the announcement, Granger Ward, executive vice president of the AVID Center in San Diego, reviewed the content of the visiting team's report with the audience.

The teams made note of several things including the school's strong college-ready culture; visionary leadership at every level; high parent participation; and tutors who have ties to the school and community, Ward said.

Students are not only focused on learning but articulate and are quite capable of expressing their views clearly, he said.

About 340 Pomona High students are enrolled in the AVID program, which prepares them for college by giving them study, organizational and time-management skills in addition to academic support through bi-weekly tutoring sessions and study groups.

Most are the first members of their families who will be going to college, school officials said.

Pomona High's AVID program has been in place since 1995 and has recently grown to serve about 20percent of the student body, school officials said.

The goal is to increase that number to 25percent, said Principal Roger Fasting.

About 97percent of Pomona High's AVID students head to four-year colleges after graduation, he said.

Teachers Eva Morales-Vargas and Diana Rendon, who together coordinate the program, said the designation was an important milestone for past and present AVID students and faculty along with the school and the entire community.

In making the announcement, the AVID officials had a group of students roll out a large banner announcing the school's designation.

"It feels like a Super Bowl trophy - only better," said Rendon.

POMONA - Since 1995, Pomona High School's AVID program has provided students with the tools they need to succeed in high school as well as college.

Today, Pomona High will learn if it will be named an AVID National Demonstration School.

The recognition would mean that officials from other schools interested in starting or building up an AVID program can visit Pomona High to see how a successful program works, said Steven Baratta, a spokesman with the California AVID Center in San Diego.

Being named a National Demonstration School would do much for the school as well as the community, said several Pomona High students enrolled in AVID, or Advancement Via Individual Determination.

Not only would it be recognition of the efforts of current and past AVID students and faculty, but it would show people outside of the city that "Pomona isn't filled with gangs and pregnant teens," junior Eunice Chavarin said.

The AVID program aims to give young people the skills and support they need to help them get to college and succeed. Program teachers show students how to study, read for content, take notes and manage time. Students also participate in study groups or tutorials.

"The whole mission of AVID is to find the first generation of college-goers and give them the support they need to get there," Pomona High Principal Roger Fasting said.

Pomona High's program has grown in the past two years under Fasting's leadership.

Nationally, 90 percent of AVID students go on to college after high school. At Pomona High, 97 percent of AVID students go to four-year colleges, he said.

About 20 percent of the school's student body, or 340 students, are part of the program, said Eva Morales-Vargas, a teacher who coordinates the program with colleague Diana Rendon.

In the past, students were invited to attend the program but now they often ask to be part of it.

Limited space means some students end up on a waiting list.

Oftentimes, the program's students have average grades, but demonstrate they have the potential to achieve more. Once in the program, students work on organizational and study skills as well as have biweekly tutoring sessions.

During a recent tutoring session, groups of six students worked under the guidance of college students to tackle subjects such as advanced placement calculus, advanced placement statistics, anatomy, physiology, government and economics.

Each AVID student presented a question to the group that he or she was struggling with and, together, they figured out the answers with the help of their notes, texts and other educational resources.

Senior Daladros Tillett presented a chemistry question to his group. After reviewing the problem with the group, he found out why he wasn't coming up with the right answer - he left out a step in the calculation process.

"This is like a plus," he said. "It makes things a lot easier."

Among the things AVID does is help students learn to recognize there are times when they will need help mastering an academic concept. When that happens, students must know how to go about finding the help they need to overcome their struggles, senior Evelyn Godinez said.

"It's not a bad thing not to know. It's bad to not seek help," Chavarin said.

Junior Floyd Early said he heard about AVID from a cousin who participated in the program. Floyd enrolled in his sophomore year.

"I heard it was a program that helps you go to college, and I do want to go to college," he said.

Floyd said there is no history in his home of people attending college and he will be the first to do so in his immediate family.

Before AVID, Floyd said he thought he would finish high school, go to community college and get a job.

But through AVID, he has come to realize there are many more options.

"There's so much more for me to do," Floyd said.

His plans now include attending a four-year college, possibly UC Irvine or a historically black college. His career interests involve working with young people, either as a psychologist or as a pediatrician.

Floyd also sees his role at home changing. He now views himself as a role model for his two younger siblings and instilling in them a desire to pursue a college education.

Pomona High graduate Saul Del Real said AVID played a significant role in his success.

Del Real, who graduated from Pomona High in 2003, joined AVID as a freshman. While he was a hard-working student, he had questions about college that his parents couldn't answer because they had a limited education.

"I knew I wanted to go (to college) but I didn't know how to get there," Del Real said. Through AVID "they guided me as to what I needed" to do.

Not only was he clear on what classes he needed to take in order to meet college entrance requirements, he worked to improve in areas such as answering essay questions, visited college campuses and heard from speakers talk about their own college and professional experiences.

"They gave us the tools we needed," Del Real said.

Del Real said many of the tools came in handy when he enrolled at UC Santa Barbara, from where he would earn a degree in business economics and global studies.

Del Real, a resident of Manhattan Beach who recently became an international trade officer for a major banking institution, has returned to Pomona High to talk to students about his experiences.

"I would say AVID made a huge difference," he said. "I got a lot more exposure to opportunities."

POMONA - With music and poetry the students of the School of Arts and Enterprise celebrated the dedication of the campus flag pole the morning of Feb. 12.

All 410 members of the student body, elected officials, members of the Boy Scouts and the Pomona Rotary Club gathered in the courtyard of the school at Garey and Monterey avenues for the ceremony.

The flag pole was purchased with a donation of the Rotary Club, said Rita Romero, the school's admissions coordinator.

Romero sought the help of the club in order to bring a flag pole to the school.

The charter school did not have a flag pole because of a lack of funds, Romero said.

Even before Romero began working at the school she had noticed the school lacked a flag pole, a matter that gained importance once she became part of the staff.

"As soon as I got here that became my mission," she said.

Some time ago she approached Rotary Club member Don Church and explained the situation.

"I was shocked. This is a high school and it doesn't have a flag pole," Church recalled thinking.

Church, then the vice chairman of the club's youth services committee, went to the club's leadership which agreed to provide $500, he said.

The money helped pay for the pole and its installation, Romero said.

Friday's ceremony, for which most of the student body dressed in red, white and blue, included the singing of the national anthem by the school's choir,

the playing of "You Raise Me Up" on violin by senior JuRang Kim and the reading of a poem written by sophomore Julian Marenco.

His poem was inspired by both the ceremony and the death of Julian's father, a U.S. serviceman who died in Iraq, Romero said.

The pole was dedicated to the nation's servicemen and women who have made the sacrifices that allow the school's students to enjoy freedom of speech which in turn has allowed them to express themselves through song and theater performances, Romero said.

POMONA -- In summer 2008, Justin Castruita had just graduated from Bonita High School and was working in a machine shop testing hydraulic parts when he heard about a course being taught at Fairplex.

The six-week, eight-hours-a day water technology course was the first class offered as part of the Fairplex Educational Foundation's Career & Technical Education Center program, also known as CTEC.

Castruita wasn't enjoying his work at the machine shop and thought he'd give the class a try.
The class led to a job with the East Pasadena Water Company and what Castruita sees as the start of a career in water utilities.

"I'm trying to get experience and as much knowledge" as possible, the 18-year-old La Verne resident said.

The company he works for is small, which is good as he starts his career, and offers a variety of duties.

"I do customer service and work on water mains and water leaks," he said. "There are places where people don't do half of what I do."

Castruita is a success story Dan Harden points to when he talks about CTEC.

Harden, director of education for Fairplex, can envision more young people having similar experiences to Castruita through CTEC.

The program has been designed to give students an opportunity to develop technical and vocational skills that will allow them to take entry level jobs in well paid fields with room to move up with additional training.

Castruita is one of 15 students who took part in the inaugural water technology course and completed it successfully, Harden said.

Seven members of the class, which is part of CTEC's Environmental and Regenerative Studies career path, now work in the water industry, he said.

Castruita was one of several class members who interviewed at East Pasadena with the help of Patti Latourelle, an employee of the water company who is both a board member of the Bonita Unified School District and its representative on the San Antonio Regional Occupational Program.

Latourelle said she followed the progress of the water class and when an opening at the utility come became available suggested students be considered for the spot.

Castruita has been with the utility a little more than a year and in that time has proven to be "a wonderful employee."

Before he enrolled in the water technology class Castruita considered going into law enforcement.

Working for the water utility has afforded him many of same benefit those in law enforcement are entitled to "but it's a lot less dangerous," he said.

His job allows him to work outdoors, carry out different responsibilities and comes with good wages, Castruita said.

The utility company pays for continuing education classes in addition to paying for college courses as long as he earns a C or better, he said.

Castruita is taking advantage of the latter. He's taking courses at Citrus College as he learns more about the water industry.

His goal is to move up in the industry and some day work at a water treatment plant and maybe even move into a management position, he said.

POMONA -- To many people Fairplex is a place to have a hot dog and ride a gigantic Ferris wheel during the L.A. County Fair.

For dozens of teens and young adults Fairplex is a school campus.

Fairplex "is the ultimate community classroom," said Mark Maine, Pomona Unified School District's director of regional occupational programs.

Young people enrolled in programs through the Career & Technical Education Center, or CTEC, take classes on the grounds of Fairplex where any of its facilities can serve as a classroom or lab, said Dan Harden, director of education for Fairplex.

"We call it a classroom without walls," he said.

Students are able to take courses where they can develop marketable vocational and technical skills in any of six career pathways: agriculture, arts, automotive, business, construction, and environmental and regenerative studies.

CTEC, a program of the Fairplex's Education Foundation, runs in partnership with the San Antonio Regional Occupational Program, which serves Pomona and Bonita unified school districts.

The program meets state standards so students earn vocational education credit for their course work, Harden said.

Fairplex's Education Foundation supports the program by raising the necessary money to operate and Fairplex provides materials and access to facilities where students can get the hands-on experiences that will prepare them for their careers, he said.

That means students have access to places such as the kitchen and front desk of the Sheraton Suites Fairplex, the galleries of the Millard Sheets Gallery or the vehicles and equipment of Fairplex.

"What we offer here (schools) could not offer in the classroom," Harden said. "We are in the real-world workplace schools so often talk about."

Harden has hired top-notch instructors in their fields to teach the classes but they aren't the only ones doing the teaching.

Students have access to Fairplex professionals and journeymen tradesmen as well as leaders of local businesses with years of experience willing to share their knowledge, said Dwight Richards, Fairplex vice president of operations.

By the time students complete the courses in their chosen career paths they will have solid technical skills they can use to secure jobs after high school. Additional training at a two-year or four-year college will lead to even better opportunities, Harden said.

Students who may have struggled with academics or questioned why they needed to understand math or science often find out through their hands-on work what the practical applications of such subjects are, he said.

The idea for a program such as CTEC has been around for some time and was spearheaded by Los Angeles County Fair Association members Don Hendrick and Jil Stark, both of whom are also Education Foundation members, Richards said.

Both see the value of vocational education but noted it is something schools are rarely able to offer, he said.

"We believe we at Fairplex could fill that void," Richards said.

In the past, Fair Association President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Henwood has worked with Pomona Unified to bring students to Fairplex who had participated in a school district program, such as its hospitality course, to continue their training there, Harden said.

CTEC will allow such efforts to expand and include additional career choices, he said.

Playing a part in educating young people is not a stretch for Fairplex.

"This fits right in with our overall mission," Richards said. "Education is 50 percent of our corporate mission."

Representatives of Pomona Unified said recently the work being carried out by Fairplex and the Education Foundation is gaining strength at a critical time.

As school districts see their budgets shrink and struggle to provide new options for their students, CTEC is growing and providing much needed educational opportunities.

"The Educational Foundation has made a huge commitment," said Cindy Walkenbach, a consultant for the school district and its retired director of secondary education. "To be an educational resource ... I think they're coming back to that mission in a very big way."

The commitment to raise funds for such an educational purpose is also significant because it ensures the program will continue living, Walkenbach said.

Pomona Unified has about 40 students enrolled in CTEC courses.

More students could benefit from CTEC but transportation has been a challenge for some who find it difficult to get to Fairplex, Walkenbach said.

Another challenge is parents aren't always comfortable allowing their children to attend a class at Fairplex, she said.

To give students and parents a better understanding of what Fairplex has to offer, Pomona Unified is planning a career fair on the Fairplex property where parents and students can learn more about CTEC and the resources available to students enrolled in its courses.

"People have to see things to feel comfortable," Walkenbach said.

Bonita Unified School District has a number of students enrolled in CTEC courses and areas of concentration.

"We have students in everyone of those concentrations," said Lois Klein, assistant superintendent of educational services at Bonita Unified.

The programs have drawn the attention of both high school level students and adults alike, said Melissa Smith, senior director of student support services at Bonita Unified.

Part of the appeal is the small class sizes and the chances students have to interact closely with the instructors, Klein said.

In addition students are working in surroundings suited to the particular course of study, she said.

Students in the ceramics programs "are working in a building set up to exhibit art," Klein said, adding most high school classes don't have such resources.

"The Fairplex provides this huge campus with all these opportunities," Smith said. "It's this beautiful setting for our students."

The program has also served to help students explore potential career opportunities, Smith said.

Students have used the program to find out if a field they have an interest can be a career to pursue or if they should look elsewhere, she said.

Maine, of Pomona Unified, said CTEC offers students a great deal aside from career training.

"I think a lot of these programs give (students) confidence for the next step," Maine said.

Programs such as this one encourage students to pursue a high school diploma. Although some may have left higher education out of their plans, ROP and CTEC classes can change that, he said.

As students start to see the possibilities open to them with additional education, "it connects them to the post-secondary experience," Maine said.

He said that as the program grows there may be opportunities to launch courses in areas such as health careers as well as engineering and design, areas the district has started to focus on.

As people in the public sector and private industry hear about CTEC, they have approached Fairplex with suggestions for career programs that could be offered, Richards said.

"People are coming at us but the funding is the only challenge," he said.

One program that is being developed is conservation and wildland fire science, a course that would include training in ecology, soils, water, forests and problems such pollution and animal extinction.

The program could lead to job opportunities in government, the National Parks Service and agribusiness.

POMONA - The first L.A. County Half Marathon on Dec. 13 on a course winding through Pomona, La Verne and San Dimas may be the first step to an annual full marathon race in the area.

The 13-mile run will involve numerous local partners and is being organized by former Olympic pole vault champion and Pomona native Bob Seagren and his company, International City Racing. 

The announcement was made Monday (Nov. 16) afternoon at Fairplex, which will serve as the starting and ending point of the running event.

POMONA - Samuel Torres is the first male principal at the all-girl Pomona Catholic High School, but his gender is not what makes him stand out to students or parents.

As far as students are concerned, the principal "could be an alien from outer space" as long as that person "does a good job," said Dani Rose Meave-Cateril, the school's student body president.

So far, Torres is doing just that.

"His door is always open. He is here all the time," Meave-Cateril said. "Questions or ideas you have, he is completely open minded."

Parents have noticed his enthusiasm and commitment to the school as well as its students.

"He is so energetic and has such a positive attitude," said Rosie Gonzalez, president

Samuel Torres, a native of Los Angeles, leads Pomona Catholic High School as the new principal. He comes to the Pomona post after working as an educator in Maryland. (Eric Tom/Correspondent)

of the school's parent group.

Students, faculty and others today will gather at the school for a special Mass, during which Torres will be installed as principal.

Torres on July 1 took over the duties of principal of the academic institution, which is in its 111th year of educating young people.

Torres took over after his predecessor, Kimberlee Gazzolo, left to take the position of superintendent of schools for the Diocese of Lake Charles, La.

Torres is well aware of Pomona Catholic's legacy and its tradition of preparing young people for the future both academically and spiritually - a challenging job in today's society.

"The biggest challenge for our young people today is to look beyond themselves and the lesson then is to serve others," Torres said.

Young people are influenced by the media as well as popular culture to look and act a certain way and consume certain products, he said.

"In many ways our faith calls us to be counter cultural," Torres said.

Places such as Pomona Catholic are institutions that instill values, moral integrity and commitment to service, he said.

Torres comes to Pomona Catholic from Bishop Walsh School, a pre-kindergarten to 12th grade school in Cumberland, Md.

Torres, a native of Los Angeles, wasn't always an educator.

The Cal State Los Angeles alumnus earned a bachelor's degree in business administration.

He worked in the private sector and owned a construction business before he and his family decided in 1996 to move east to be closer to relatives.

After the move, Torres found an opening for a high school Spanish teacher at Bishop Walsh School. He applied and got the job, which also provided him with the opportunity to coach sports, he said.

Torres went on to earn a master's degree in administration and curriculum from Frostburg State University in Maryland while his responsibilities increased at Bishop Walsh.

In 2007, he became the school's principal.

Torres said he comes to his new job with experience as an educator and a parent.

Students need affirmation, encouragement and the opportunity to dream, he said.

Adults must also send a message that not all things come quickly.

"First of all, the challenge to our girls is to be educated, spiritually enlightened and with that comes delayed gratification," Torres said. "I'm here to say the work and the sacrifice are worth the wait."

As head of Pomona Catholic, Torres has much to do.

One of his goals is to attract more students to the school, which has a 197-member student body. One way that will be accomplished is by creating the best college preparatory curriculum possible, which is being done by contacting the nation's top colleges, Torres said.

The information gathered will be used to build up and create a more rigorous academic program, he said.

Torres also plans to work with parochial middle schools so children and their families can begin thinking of college and what they must do to prepare for it, he said.

In five years, Torres said he would like to have an enrollment of more than 400 high school girls, a new gymnasium, state-of-the-art technology for the campus and "the continued excitement and courage of praising God for opportunities."

Torres is a person whose "priority is first and foremost the education of the young ladies that attend Pomona Catholic High School," said Adela Solis, principal of Pomona Valley Catholic Middle School, which is on a portion of the high school's property.

Torres has welcomed her faculty members, Solis said, and has expressed an interest in creating a curriculum that allows for smooth transitions from students going from one school to the other.

He also knows what is needed so students receive "the education that will make them successful in college," Solis said.

Word is getting around about Torres, parents and students said.

Alumnae are interested in what's going on at their alma mater as well as parents who had girls attend there in the past and have daughters approach the start of high school, said Gonzalez.

Parents who haven't been active in school are coming back and inquiring about being involved, she said.

"There's just a new buzz about the school," Gonzalez said.

POMONA - For 240 high school peer counselors, Tuesday morning was a time to brainstorm and come up with plans to address problems such as violence and sexual harassment.

The students gathered at the Cal Poly Pomona Bronco Student Center for the Pomona Peer Resources annual leadership retreat. 

A Lincoln Elementary School teacher is among 20 winners of Wal-Mart's "Write to Change the Classroom" essay program.

Melissa Galvan will receive $4,000 worth of school supplies for her classroom plus an additional $4,000 to be used for school supplies for the entire school, according to a statement released by Wal-Mart representatives.

In her essay Galvan wrote: "Every school day I am blessed to walk into my classroom and be charged with educating my students."

"Receiving these materials will help enrich the lives and learning of my students and would be a blessed gift," Galvan continued.

The company's essay program is open to teachers, parents and students who write about the school supply needs they encounter, the statement said.

The inspiration for the program was an eighth-grader who wrote to her congressman explaining the basic school supply needs she and her classmates were facing and asked the legislator for help.

"Many teachers are unable to provide the essentials - books, paper and pencils - for their students this year. We wanted to help," said Kimberly Sentovich, vice president and regional general manager of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. in California.

In judging the essays, need, creativity and the effect the school supplies would have on the campus where considered, the statement said.

The judging panel consisted of four teachers from around the country who were recognized by their states for their outstanding work as teachers.

The fifth member of the panel was Ty'Sheoma Bethea, the eighth-grader who wrote her congressman, the statement said.