Hundreds of graduating seniors from El Monte Union’s comprehensive high schools celebrated their commitments to colleges and universities during College Signing Day ceremonies in May.
Bassett High School seniors will attend a rally on Tuesday, May 21 where, cheered on by their peers, they will sign symbolic letters of intent during the school’s College Signing Day, displaying their commitment to the four-year universities they plan to attend in the fall.
Rio Hondo College will celebrate the graduation of 11 new Tesla START technicians, the third cohort to graduate since the Whittier-based College became the globally recognized innovative car company’s second training partner in 2018. The new START program graduates, who have already been placed at Tesla service centers in Buena Park, Burbank, Costa Mesa, Pomona and San Diego, join 26 graduates of cohorts one and two.
Mountain Park School, a K-12 tuition-free Independent Study School option provided by Monrovia Unified School District, offers flexibility for students and families who need a non-traditional school schedule and program. Through Mountain Park School, Monrovia Unified provides students with a rigorous academic plan with a full curriculum that meets college admission requirements. The school is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and approved by the National Collegiate Athletic Association. To learn more or enroll, call (626) 471-3002.
As part of a living history lesson demonstrating how periods in time are both similar and different, past and present teachers and students of La Verne Heights Elementary gathered on May 30 to unearth a time capsule buried at the school in 1994. Lauren Barnes, a teacher and student council adviser at La Verne Heights, was a fifth-grader and student council president at the school in 1994 when the time capsule was filled with items from students and buried. Barnes, several of her fellow La Verne Heights alumni, former teachers and Marcia Pateau, who served as principal at the time, helped retrieved the quarter-century old items, which included student essays predicting hoverboards and flying cars, an old diet Pepsi can, a floppy disk and some Pogs. A new time capsule- set for retrieval in 2044- will be buried later this summer when Spencer Gardner, a La Verne Heights alum and Bonita High School student renovates an oak tree monument on the campus as part of his Eagle Scout project.

Early Childhood Education (ECE) students from Pleasant View Elementary School sang popular children’s songs to more than 120 people during the 19th annual Family and Community Partnership Recognition Luncheon on May 16.
Fontana Unified High Schools Ranked by U.S. News and World Report
Fontana Unified’s five comprehensive high schools were named to U.S. News and World Report’s 2019 Best High Schools list, among nearly 3,000 schools in California to be honored for their college readiness efforts and improved academic achievement. U.S. News and World Report evaluates schools on six factors: college readiness, math and reading proficiency, math and reading performance, under-served student performance, college curriculum breadth and graduation rate.
Buena Park Junior High Students Excel at Robotics Tournament
Eight students from Buena Park Junior High showcased their engineering skills as they competed against a field of 80 students from four area junior highs and middle schools at Robot Nation, an annual robotics contest in which students must maneuver robots around obstacle courses. Two Buena Park teams placed in the competition.
San Gabriel Unified Students Raise Awareness of Sexual Assault
Students at Gabrielino and Del Mar high schools decorated campuses with jeans painted with messages condemning sexual harassment and assault and discussed consent as part of Denim Day/Week, an international campaign for sexual violence prevention and education. Every Del Mar High student engaged in Denim Day activities in late April, including an assembly on the history of the event and the importance of consent. Gabrielino High hosted a week of activities from April 29 to May 3, including a photo booth, scavenger hunt, healing ceremony and jean-painting session.
San Gabriel Unified’s Gabrielino High School was named to U.S. News and World Report’s 2019 Best High School lists, honoring its comprehensive approach to promoting college readiness and boosting academic achievement. This is Gabrielino’s ninth appearance on the list in 10 years.