Fontana Unified School District has appointed three new administrators and a school principal, continuing a transformative first full year under Superintendent Miki R. Inbody. At the District level, FUSD has named Glenn Alegre as Chief Technology and Digital Integration Officer, Jonathan Dunn as Executive Director of Fiscal Services and Tammy Fleming as Director of the Multi-Tiered System of Supports – Academic. The District also selected Monique Martinez to serve as the new Juniper Elementary School principal.
The El Monte community sits at the nexus of several major freeways, negatively impacting the air quality for the people who live, work, and go to school there. Join artists Lalo Alcaraz and Levi Ponce and Media Personality Alysha Del Valle to celebrate the completion of a new 80’ mural, visible to tens of thousands of commuters on the 60 freeway, and EV car wraps to encourage the use of clean transportation. The project marks the culmination of El Monte Union High School District’s Clean Mobility in Schools Pilot Project. Guests will also be treated to a screening of the District’s new Clean Energy Careers animation.
When La Serna High School senior Marcos Barajas launched his streetwear clothing line as a junior, he never dreamed he would come to school and see his classmates wearing his latest designs and showing off his brand to their friends. The recognition Barajas has received for his creations shows how far he has come since a challenging freshman year. After recording a 0.4 GPA in ninth grade, Barajas was placed in the school’s award-winning OASIS Studies program, where he was assigned a peer academic mentor. Now on track to graduate, Barajas has a 3.0 GPA, was a recipient of La Serna’s “Be Your Best” award and is committed to working with struggling underclassmen as a Haven academic mentor. For his hard work and dedication to overcoming adversity, Barajas was presented with an Award of Merit by the Whittier Union Board of Trustees during a meeting on Feb. 13.
Seven Covina-Valley Unified School District students will seek to impact education research as part of Digital Promise’s League of Innovative Students’ spring 2024 cohort. Each year, the Center for Inclusive Innovation selects up to 40 students nationwide from school districts that are part of the League of Innovative Schools. These students join a team of education policymakers, educational technology developers, and researchers in designing student-centered solutions to issues in education. The students will work on one of three projects that will not only enhance their research and design-thinking skills but also contribute to shaping the national education landscape.
Students filled A.B. Miller High School’s gym abuzz with anticipation as administration revealed the school’s new “Rebel” mascot, showcasing A.B. Miller’s commitment to school spirit and inclusivity during a pair of on-campus rallies on Feb. 16. A.B. Miller’s modern mascot was carefully designed to reflect the school’s “rebellious spirit,” embodying the spirit of resilience and determination the school and its alumni have exemplified since the school first opened in 1991. Staff passed out t-shirts featuring the new mascot during the rallies to students, who posed for photos with the new mascot before heading back to class.
Fifth-grade students at Baldwin Academy are benefiting from Microsoft Education’s public preview of its latest Artificial Intelligence (AI) learning tool, Reading Coach. The free immersive experience harnesses generative AI to help learners produce their own stories and independently practice reading-aloud content that gets them excited about reading. In addition to generating engaging stories from characters and settings selected by students in real-time, Reading Coach also tracks each student’s progress to help educators gauge their growth, find areas of opportunity and earn badges to track their amount of time, proficiency and reading level.
Fontana Unified scholars eager to learn about college life and the role that Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) have played in ensuring equity in education for underrepresented students, are preparing to take the trip of a lifetime when they join the District’s inaugural HBCU Campus Tour. More than 100 students have signed up to join the six-day chaperoned tour, which is scheduled for March 17-22 and will visit Georgia, Alabama, Florida and historic campuses of schools like Morehouse College, Alabama State, Bethune-Cookman University and more. Fontana Unified, which is partnering with On A Mission Youth Travel to organize the tour, will cover the costs of airfare, lodging and meals.
Covina-Valley Unified School District is breaking ground on Covina High School’s new aquatics center, which will include replacing the current 1950’s-era pool and upgrading the aquatics facilities, ensuring students have access to modernized amenities. C-VUSD expects the project to be completed by Spring 2025.
Bonita Unified School District students’ achievements in their academic, athletic, artistic and extracurricular endeavors took center stage during the 2024 State of the District address, held Feb. 8 at the Bonita Center for the Arts. Hosted in partnership with the La Verne and San Dimas Chambers of Commerce, the State of the District brought together nearly 200 local elected officials, representatives from businesses and community organizations, residents, parents and District employees, who listened to Superintendent Matt Wien reflect back on the District’s accomplishments in 2023 and share its vision for the future. The event culminated with the premiere of Bonita Unified’s 2024 showcase video titled “The Bonita Way,” an uplifting reflection on the District’s award-winning academic and co-curricular programs, dedicated employees and high-achieving students.
Covina-Valley Unified to Host Groundbreaking for New Aquatics Center
Covina High School will hold a groundbreaking for its new aquatics center, to be held at 4 p.m., Monday, Feb. 26. The new center will replace the current 1950s-era pool and will upgrade the aquatics facilities, ensuring students will have access to modernized amenities. The event will include speeches by C-VUSD Superintendent Dr. Elizabeth Eminhizer, C-VUSD Board of Education members, Covina High School student board member Gianna Herrera, and Congresswoman Grace Napolitano. Covina High School is located at 463 S. Hollenback Ave., Covina.
