Fontana Unified Elementary to Host Thanksgiving Meal for Families
Redwood Elementary School will host its eighth annual Thanksgiving Extravaganza from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20, providing a hearty meal and celebration for local families. Children’s plates are free; adult plates are $4, or $5 with a to-go container. The meal will consist of turkey and gravy with mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, vegetables and more. Tickets must be purchased by Wednesday, Nov. 13. Redwood Elementary is at 8570 Redwood Ave., Fontana.
Monrovia’s Monroe Elementary to Hold Cross-cultural Celebration
Monroe Elementary School will host a Convivio de Familia from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15 at Monroe Elementary School, 402 W. Colorado Blvd., Monrovia. The Convivio de Familia serves as a cross-cultural event, where students and families participate in a potluck, salsa contest and learn a traditional dance.
Close to 300 La Serna High School students were given the freedom to make their own financial decisions – and learn the unpleasant consequences of spending beyond their means – during Bite of Reality, an interactive simulation that tests students on real-world financial challenges. Sponsored by the Credit Union of Southern California, the financial literacy event, held Nov. 14, assigned students in the school’s Guided Studies, OASIS, HAVEN and Read 180 academic intervention programs, their mentors and consumer math students a fictional occupation, salary, spouse and family, student loan debt, credit card debt and medical insurance payments.
Fontana High School students submitted nearly 2,100 applications to colleges and universities on Nov. 6 during the school’s annual College Application Day, exceeding its original goal of 1,900 applications. Over 13 hours, students submitted their college applications with the help of counselors and staff. As an AVID National Demonstration School, Fontana High School aims to narrow the achievement gap and ensure more students enroll in four-year colleges and universities.
Río Hondo College will mark Veterans Day at 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 12 with a program honoring 1st Sgt. Janet Bretado of the 240th Signal Company, distribution of a Río Hondo College Veteran Memorial Coin and performances by the 40th Infantry Division Band and Río Hondo College Choir. The Veterans Day event will be emceed by Río Hondo College Veterans Service Center Counselor/Coordinator Arely Castaneda and feature a Presentation of Colors by the California National Guard – Veterans Honors Program.
Chief Tracy E. Rickman, who has helped lead and expand Rio Hondo College’s nationally respected firefighter training academies as well as launch a cadet crew that annually battles California wildfires, will retire Dec. 11. Rickman joined Rio Hondo College 22 years ago and today serves as fire technology coordinator for the Rio Hondo College Fire Academy, the Rio Hondo College Wildland Fire Academy and EMT program.
Río Hondo College’s Office of Online Education has received a $477,000 grant as part of the California Virtual Campus Online Education Initiative to add or update 16 industry-valued online certificate programs in fields ranging from Wildland Fire Technology to Web Design. College officials anticipate the programs will be open to students in fall 2020.
Freshmen from West Covina Unified’s Mt. SAC Early College Academy will present weeks of research during the school’s second annual Environmental Solutions Fair, highlighting the effects of plastic pollution on Steller sea lion, elephant poaching, ghost net fishing, pollinator decline, cyanide fishing, the endangerment of sea turtles and more. Students built presentations consisting of a series of cross-curricular assignments, including research papers, art projects created with recycled materials and public service announcements.
The Credit Union of Southern California, a longtime supporter of La Serna High School’s award-winning and life-changing intervention program, OASIS, has launched a $50,000 endowment to ensure students in the program find enduring success after graduation. CEO Dave Gunderson and Executive Vice President Eric Day have provided thousands of dollars in scholarships over the years to students in La Serna’s Organized Academic Support in School (OASIS) program, which motivates students who are underperforming to earn higher GPAs and graduate high school. They will regularly contribute to the endowment, with the funds going toward scholarships as well as other methods of support to ensure OASIS students have the support necessary for successful futures.
Brandon Lam, a senior at West Covina Unified’s Edgewood High School, received an Honorable Mention from the National Merit Scholarship program for achieving stellar scores on the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Of the 1.6 million students who took the exam, Lam was one of 50,000 to be recognized. Lam, who holds a weighted 4.6 GPA, explores his love of the arts through Edgewood’s International Baccalaureate dance program and is an avid volunteer in campus clubs.
