Santa Claus and Baldwin Park Unified administrators surprised students in its Early Head Start program with bags full of toys, ranging from puzzles and coloring books to stuffed animals and doctor kits. Baldwin Park’s Organization of Supervisors and Administrators and the District’s Early Childhood Education program organized the collection.
Paramount Unified has increased its District graduation rate to more than 87 percent, according to recently released California data, through a strategic plan that focuses on college and career success. The District inspires students to strive for success beyond high school through annual college fairs, college prep curriculum and by waiving the cost of PSAT/SAT tests.
Parent volunteers are helping keep Lynwood Unified schools safe through the Burning Calories and Crime program. Volunteers walk campuses in groups to ensure safety while promoting health and fitness. For more information, or to volunteer, contact the District’s Student Services department.
State test scores at two El Monte City School District campuses have soared by as much as 20 percentage points after educators devised innovative ways to share student performance data and refine lesson plans. Cherrylee and Wright School administrators attribute the four-year growth in standardized math and English language arts scores to Professional Learning Communities, which bring teachers together to track the academic and social-emotional progress of students.
Jurupa Hills High School senior Maya Martinez will pursue her dream of attending an elite Ivy League college thanks to a four-year QuestBridge National College Match scholarship to Brown University, where she will study mathematics. Martinez, who has a 4.4 GPA, was one of 1,127 students nationwide to receive a full-ride QuestBridge scholarship. She is the first Jurupa Hills student in four years to be selected for the honor.
Early Childhood Education hosted a literacy event on Dec. 20 in all ECE classrooms that sent each child home for the holiday break with a new book. Parents and students made crafts and sang seasonal songs before each child selected a book of their choice to develop their home library.
Seventy-five Bonita Unified School District students received new pairs of brand-name shoes as the centerpiece of a holiday gift basket created by the District in partnership with Sempra Energy and Claremont nonprofit Shoes That Fit. The baskets are filled with toys donated through the District’s annual toy drive, led by Lone Hill Middle School campus supervisor Cyndy Starkey.
Shirpser School third-grade teacher Jose Espinoza has received a Bobby Salcedo Esperanza Award from the El Monte Promise Foundation for inspiring students to be their best selves, providing in-depth assistance to struggling students, relaying the importance of higher education and offering a friendly face for students in need of support.
Baldwin Park Unified is adding five electric buses to its school bus fleet – with the first three arriving Dec. 20 – thanks to a $1.8 million California Energy Commission grant. The grant will cover the cost of charging stations and the vehicles, which replace five diesel-powered buses. These upgrades will help to improve air quality and increase the use of renewable fuels in the community.
Inglewood High School alum Daniel ‘D Smoke’ Farris is making major waves in the music industry and inspiring the community around him. The champion of Netflix’s “Rhythm + Flow,” Farris has recently released a project titled The “Inglewood High EP” and will make a guest appearance at Inglewood High’s Winter Concert in January.